AutoCAD Architecture 3D
Explore AutoCAD Architecture's 3D modelling capabilities by recreating Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic Fallingwater. Learn to use the Build Panel tools—walls, doors, windows, and roofs—then set up projects using Project Navigator and generate floor plans, elevations, and sections directly from your 3D model.
- 2+ hours of premium content
- 5 step-by-step video lessons
- Future updates included
About this course
AutoCAD Architecture extends standard AutoCAD with intelligent building objects—walls that join automatically, doors and windows that cut openings, and slabs that respond to level changes. This course teaches those tools by modelling Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater, with its cantilevered terraces and complex level changes. You'll learn the Architecture ribbon and tool palettes, then use Project Navigator to organise floors and building zones. The modelling lessons cover parametric walls, slabs, stairs, curtain walls, and balustrades. Finally, you'll generate plans, sections, and elevations directly from your 3D model—placing views on sheets that update when the model changes.
This specialized AutoCAD Architecture course transforms your 2D design skills into 3D architectural modeling prowess through Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic Fallingwater project. You'll master AutoCAD Architecture's intelligent building components that automatically update drawings when designs change, eliminating coordination errors while accelerating the design development process.
The curriculum emphasizes AutoCAD Architecture's project management capabilities, teaching you to organize complex architectural projects with multiple drawings and views generated from a single 3D model. You'll develop expertise in the Project Navigator system that maintains consistency across project documentation while facilitating team collaboration.
Advanced 3D modeling techniques include parametric walls, intelligent doors and windows, and complex roof systems that demonstrate AutoCAD Architecture's power for sophisticated residential and commercial projects. The course covers professional documentation workflows that generate comprehensive drawing sets meeting architectural practice standards.
These specialized skills position you to leverage AutoCAD Architecture's unique combination of familiar AutoCAD functionality with powerful BIM-like capabilities, making it ideal for practices transitioning from traditional CAD workflows to more intelligent building modeling approaches.
What will you learn?
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This course will turn you into:
A 3D architectural modeller
Model Fallingwater using parametric walls, slabs at varying elevations, and curtain walls with custom grids. The building tools handle geometry—you control parameters.
A project structure expert
Set up projects in Project Navigator with proper floor levels. Link constructs to specific floors so changes cascade automatically through your drawings.
A documentation generator
Create plans, elevations, and sections directly from your 3D model. Set cut planes, refresh views on changes, and place on sheets—no redrawing required.
Syllabus
Tour the AutoCAD Architecture ribbon, palettes, and navigation tools that differ from standard AutoCAD. The Properties palette, Layers manager, Tool Palette, and Style Browser become your main controls for building objects. Understand the shift from 2D line drafting to 3D object-based modelling where walls, doors, and windows behave intelligently. You'll see how this approach compares to full BIM workflows in Revit.
Use the Build Panel to create parametric walls that join at corners, doors and windows that cut their own openings, and slabs that sit at specified levels. Add roofs with automatic edge conditions and stairs with configurable riser counts. Each element has adjustable properties—height, width, style—that update the geometry automatically. This object-based approach means changes propagate through your model without redrawing.
Create a project using Project Navigator to organise multi-storey buildings properly. Define building levels with floor-to-floor heights, set up divisions for different zones like main house and guest house, then create constructs that link drawing files to specific floors. This structure keeps large projects manageable and ensures drawings reference the correct levels. It's the foundation for coordinated documentation.
Model Fallingwater's ground floor starting with XRef reference plans as your guide. Draw walls with varying widths for structure and partitions, add slabs at different elevations for the cantilevered terraces, and place stairs with custom riser counts. Insert doors, windows, and curtain walls with adjustable grid divisions, then finish with balustrade walls. By the end you'll have a complete 3D floor model built from intelligent objects.
Generate floor plans, elevations, and sections directly from your 3D model using view drawings. Set global cut planes to control what appears in plan, and configure elevation viewpoints for each facade. Place views on sheets with title blocks, drawing numbers, and scales. When the model changes, refresh the views and your documentation updates automatically—no redrawing required.
Meet your instructor
Radu Fulgheci
Architect
BDP
Hi, I'm Radu. I'm an architect with over ten years of experience using many architectural design and modelling applications, for both professional and academic purposes. Working on challenging, high-profile projects, and international competitions, I've continually sought ways to optimise my workflow, from single to multiple applications, in order to achieve the best results in the shortest time. I believe in constant learning, so regardless of what knowledge level you may be, there is always something new that can help you improve. I want to teach you how to do the same.
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