Which types of structural framing systems and materials are most commonly used in the US for residences? For office buildings?
For residential buildings, the most common framing materials are wood. This is because it doesn’t need to provide a lot of weight bearing and it is cheap. For large office buildings, steel is the primary material because of its price and ability to resist large loads.
Why do different teams of designers and subcontractors link and share their models during the design process?
Linking models allows it to be on the cloud before it is done. This is helpful because after each session working on the project, you don’t have to “save as” and upload another version. You can continue to save it as it is and upload it as a “V2” (version two) of the project. A take-away of this is that if you aren't ready for a client to see the project, it is available on the construction cloud for the client to before the project might be finished.
How do you think design coordination was done before we started using digital models?
I believe the civil engineer and the architect had to be in the same room working out what they wanted out of the project. It required in-person interactions to make sure there weren’t any clashes. Now, projects can be construction-ready without the architect or civil engineers ever meeting. The digital model also prevents clashing by giving a more interactive view than blue prints could.