Interoperability

Autodesk® Revit® is a complete architectural design and documentation solution, supporting all phases of design and all architectural drawings and schedules required for a building project. From massing and conceptual studies through the most detailed construction drawings and schedules, Autodesk Revit has tools for delivering productivity, coordination, and quality to the building team.

Autodesk Revit can be used alone or in conjunction with AutoCAD®. This guide will help those who are familiar with AutoCAD to understand how Autodesk Revit works, introducing some of the main features and concepts of Autodesk Revit and comparing them with similar features of AutoCAD.

This guide also demonstrates how you can use Autodesk Revit with AutoCAD to manage a project and its deliverables. You'll learn how to integrate existing AutoCAD projects with Autodesk Revit to produce construction documents. The process relies on the export compatibility of Autodesk Revit and the external referencing capabilities of AutoCAD.

Autodesk Revit provides DWG compatibility using the Autodesk ObjectDBX™ toolkit, and works with AutoCAD to ensure clear communication of design data among project teams.

Revit Interoperability With AutoCAD Whitepaper - By Autodesk

Found this announcement interesting.

http://pressreleases.autodesk.com/index.php?s=press_releases&item=436%3C%2Ftd%3E

Autodesk and Bentley Systems announced an agreement to expand interoperability between their portfolios of architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) software. Autodesk and Bentley will exchange software libraries, including Autodesk RealDWG, to improve the ability to read and write the companies' respective DWG and DGN formats in mixed environments with greater fidelity. In addition, the two companies will facilitate work process interoperability between their AEC applications through supporting the reciprocal use of available Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). With this agreement, the companies aim to improve AEC workflows by enabling broader reuse of information generated during the design, construction, and operation of buildings and infrastructure, and by enhancing the ability of project teams to choose among multiple software sources.

Interoperability has emerged as a critical issue for users of design and engineering software. By virtue of this agreement, and the interoperable offerings that it will enable, AEC firms will be free to employ software tools of choice from either Autodesk or Bentley to accept or submit either DWG or DGN files. By improving fidelity of work shared between the two file formats, users will be able to focus on being creative and getting work done, rather than being constrained by file-compatibility considerations.

Through supporting the reciprocal use of their available APIs, Autodesk and Bentley will enable AEC project teams to combine products from both providers within integrated workflows. For instance, a design team could use a mixture of Autodesk and Bentley software, such as Autodesk's Revit platform and Bentley's STAAD and RAM structural products, and simulate and analyze their designs or manage project information using Autodesk NavisWorks software or Bentley's ProjectWise.