3D File import benchmarks

[Robert Anderson]

So, I was wanting to use a LaPeyre alternating tread stair in a project (you architects will probably be familiar with these). LaPeyre has a nifty little 3D file generator on their site, just enter the style of stair and the floor to floor height, and download the file. I noticed that they had a number of 3D file formats available, so I downloaded a bunch of 3D file formats that Vectorworks would support. 

 

I include below a couple of shots of the stair geometry, the overall, and a blow-up. You can see it is fairly detailed geometry. 

 

With an eye to optimizing file size (without having to do the labor of actually simplifying the geometry,) I did some imports. The results are found in the file list show below.

 

A couple of observations:

• The fastest file import (almost instantaneous) is the Parasolid (X_T) file. It imports as a generic solid. The X_T import is the only one that produces a solid. I proceeded to convert the generic solid into other forms of Vectorworks geometry, just to see the results. The mesh conversion is not too bad (second best overall.)
• The smallest file (by quite a lot) is the STL. It creates an optimized mesh in Vectorworks. (The image above is the STL import, so you can see it is quite decent quality.)
• So, if you want speed or have to have solids, use X_T. If you want to optimize file size, use STL. As always, your mileage may vary. And of course, the source you use may not have all these formats. 

Hope this has been helpful!