What happens when a single improvement sparks years of innovation?
In this presentation, Josh Allison shares the remarkable journey of transforming one modified 12d Model macro into a powerful suite of more than 70 custom macros over six years at SMEC. What started as a small enhancement evolved into a solution that has been used over 153,000 times, delivering an estimated 26,000 hours of saved work and $1.86 million in productivity gains.
Whether you’re new to 12d Model macros or looking to expand automation across your team, this session offers practical insights into turning everyday tasks into lasting efficiency improvements.
Watch the full video to discover:
How one small macro evolved into a suite of 70+ automation tools.
Why a solid business case is essential for gaining support for innovation.
The importance of tracking measurable metrics to demonstrate success.
Practical ideas you can apply to introduce automation and improve workflows in your own organisation.
Getting started with 12d Model doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Whether you’re new to civil design or looking to build a strong foundation in industry-leading software, this self-paced online course provides a structured learning experience that fits around your schedule. With expert-led training, practical exercises, and professional certification, you’ll gain the confidence and skills needed to begin your journey in civil design.
This Self-Paced Online Training course features 3 hours of on-demand video content, allowing you to learn whenever it suits you. The course is designed to help beginners understand the fundamentals of 12d Model 15 through a simple road design project, while introducing key terminology and essential design workflows.
As a part of your course, you will access:
– 12d Model 15 Software licence for 6 months, and data – Preliminary 12d Model 15 Fundamentals Course – 32 Online video lessons – Practical and engaging quizzes – Certificate of Completion – 12 months’ access to the SPOT video lessons
To get the most from the course, here are the requirements you will need to meet:
– Dual monitors are recommended (follow the videos on one and do the course work on the other) – Alternatively, use a second computer – Internet Connection – 12d Model v15 (will be supplied for free) – 12d Model v15 installation Document (will be supplied for free)
Designed specifically for those who are new to 12d Model 15, this course provides a practical introduction to civil design concepts and software workflows. Whether you’re looking to launch a career in civil engineering or enhance your existing skills, this course offers a flexible and professional pathway to becoming proficient in one of the industry’s leading design platforms.
In this short tutorial, we show you how to view and manage network licenses using the CodeMeter WebAdmin service.
When multiple users access 12d Model through a shared network CodeMeter, it is useful to view which licenses are currently being used and see the available licenses across each license container. CodeMeter WebAdmin provides an easy way to access this information, review active sessions, and manage user access when required.
This video also explores the License Monitoring tools to view license summaries, check session details, and end a user’s access to a license from the server. It also explains what happens in 12d Model when a user’s license session is ended.
Watch the full tutorial to learn how to view license usage and manage active network license sessions in CodeMeter WebAdmin.
The Civil and Surveying Institute (the largest and most experienced provider of authorised 12d Model training courses) offers a variety of training courses, in multiple formats. One of the most popular covers the Fundamentals of 12d Model 15. It’s a must-have training option for all those seeking to begin their journey with 12d Model software.
And the best part? It’s free to enrol.
This Self-Paced Online Training course includes two hours of on-demand video training, allowing you to learn at your own pace with structured guidance.
As a part of the course, trainees access:
– 12d Model Software licence for two months, and data
– 13 Online video lessons
– Practical and engaging quizzes
– Certificate of Completion
– 12 months’ access to the SPOT video lessons
This course is designed for those who haven’t used 12d Model 15 before, or have only been using it for a short time. The Fundamentals course teaches you to navigate 12d Model 15, some of the key terminology, and how to view and create data.
In this course:
We will cover creating a new project and how to navigate the workspace using the menus, toolbars, and views.
We will demonstrate how to create and import data, then create surfaces from that data, and use each of the Plan, Section, and Perspective views to assess that data.
In this video, we walk through how CodeMeter certification works, how to check a CodeMeter’s certification status, and the options available for both automatic and manual certification.
Keeping your 12d Model licenses certified is essential to ensuring uninterrupted access to your software, especially for users who regularly work in the field or in locations with limited internet connectivity.
Whether you’re managing a single dongle or multiple CodeMeters across your organisation, this guide will help you stay compliant and avoid unexpected licensing disruptions.
The Sydney 2000 Olympic Games (https://www.olympic.org/sydney-2000) showcased world-class sporting infrastructure and engineering excellence, delivering a landmark event that set new standards for venue design, construction, and urban development in New South Wales, Australia.
They were “the best Games ever”, and it is fitting that Australian-developed software played a key role in the construction of many of the venues and infrastructure which contributed to the success of the much-lauded Sydney 2000 Olympics.
The pressure was on to create a series of world-class venues in time for the illustrious event. Many companies were involved.
4d Model, now known as 12d Model, was used by principal consultants and contractors such as Abigroup, Connell Wagner, Walter Construction Group, Sinclair Knight Merz, SMEC (Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation) and Daracon Engineering for the construction of the Athletics Centre, Hockey Centre, Newington Olympic Village, the Regatta Centre – Penrith, Stadium Australia, the SuperDome, the Tennis Centre, the Sydney Showground and the Velodrome – Bankstown.
The software also was used for: – the Homebush Bay Infrastructure which included the main boulevarde and major roads; – all of the inground services – water, power, communications, gas – associated with putting that infrastructure into place; – the northern water feature, Fig Grove; – the central water feature, Homebush Bay; – the Archery Marker and Bennelong Road intersection; – pedestrian bridges, paved areas and light towers.
For one of the major facilities, the fully covered Sydney SuperDome built by civil construction giant, Abigroup Contractors, 12d Model ensured on-site quality assurance checking of all steps in the construction of Australia’s largest indoor sports and entertainment centre. Architectural and engineering service models were fed on-site into a 12d Model to ensure construction of the arena went according to plan.
“12d Model has proved to be an excellent tool for handling extremely large project models,” said a spokesperson for Abigroup.
The theme of our 12d Tech Forum this time is ‘Building the Future’.
To us, this encapsulates the way in which we and our 12d Community work together to be on the cutting edge of technology as we help construct a better world.
For 21 years, the 12d Tech Forum has brought together the brightest minds in the AEC industry to share, learn, and push boundaries. This year, our theme – Building The Future – reflects where we stand as an industry: at the intersection of technology, collaboration, and transformation.
We chose this theme because the future isn’t something that simply arrives. It is built – deliberately, technically, and together. As digital workflows mature, project complexity grows, and industry expectations rise, the professionals in our community are the ones actively shaping what comes next.
Through this theme, we want every session, conversation, and connection at the 12d Tech Forum 2026 to reinforce one idea: that the tools we build, the processes we refine, and the relationships we form today are the foundation of tomorrow’s industry.
We’re not waiting for the future. We’re building it.
In this short tutorial, we explore how to reference specific license containers in 12d Model when multiple CodeMeter dongles or license configurations are available.
Different 12d Model tasks often require different modules, from surveying and drainage analysis to more advanced modelling workflows. As organisations grow and licensing requirements become more complex, it is common to have multiple standalone or network licenses configured for different purposes.
This video explains how 12d Model identifies and accesses specific license containers, helping ensure you are using the correct modules for the work you need to perform.
Watch the full tutorial to learn how to manage multiple license configurations and streamline access to the tools your projects require.
In collaboration with the Sydney Catchment Authority, SMEC harnessed the capabilities of 4D Model (now 12d Model) to design and deliver key components of the Warragamba Dam Auxiliary Spillway project, enhancing design accuracy, visualisation, and earthworks management for a major infrastructure upgrade.
The major source of Sydney’s water supply is Warragamba Dam. Australia’s fourth largest dam, its primary function is to provide a water supply for the Sydney Metropolitan area. When adequate quantities of water are stored to meet these needs, electricity is generated and fed into the NSW grid by the hydro-electric power station located at the base of the dam.
Warragamba Dam is in the High Incremental Flood Hazard category and to prevent overtopping of the dam in extreme flood events, an auxiliary spillway is being constructed adjacent to the dam to divert floodwaters in excess of the capacity of the existing spillway.
The auxiliary spillway is a major civil engineering project due for completion in mid-2001. The works are being undertaken on a design and construct basis for the Sydney Catchment Authority (previously known as the Sydney Water Corporation) to improve the safety of the dam. In December 1998, the contract for the design and engineering of the spillway was awarded to SMEC, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation.
The project involves major excavation – some 1.8 million cubic metres of sandstone and overburden is being removed and transported to a spoil emplacement – and the concrete lining of the auxiliary chute spillway which will be approximately 650 metres long and drop 50 metres before discharging to the river.
Five fuse plugs – embankments that are designed to wash away when overtopped – are being built at the upstream end of the spillway chute to prevent the auxiliary spillway from operating in flood flows smaller than about a one in 750 chance of occurrence in any year.
Generally, the floor and wall of the spillway chute are in the form of a reinforced concrete lining against the excavated rock surface, however, one section of the spillway over an existing creek line will be constructed on compacted fill with cantilever walls on either sides. A bridge across the spillway, and a new road, are designed to provide access to the crest of the dam, the Valve House and the hydro-electric power station at the base of the dam.
Following concept design carried out by the Department of Public Works and Services, SMEC is responsible for the development of the detailed design – from concept to production of construction drawings. A vital component in SMEC’s engineering design work is 4D Model (later renamed 12d Model) software. Design draftsman on the project, Michael Kurtz, says it contains all the options necessary to produce a digital terrain model (DTM), including fast triangulation, contouring and sectioning routines, and to calculate spill volumes for accurate placement and subsequent costing of the work carried out.
Warragamba Project Manager, John Gray, said 4D Model software was primarily used for design and modelling of the auxiliary spillway and associated access structures such as roads and the bridge approach, along with calculation of spill volumes.
“Using 4D allows us to continually modify designs,” Michael said, “and, most importantly, to do it quickly. 4D allowed us to complete re-designed versions very fast for presentation to the client and to show the designs interactively in plan and sectional views. We also had to continually modify the design to fit the spoil emplacement within specified confines nominated by the client. The spoil would not fit into the area initially defined and required many modifications of the design.
“The perspectives we can provide using 4D are an easy way to convey a design to people who find engineering plans and contours difficult to interpret,” Michael said. SMEC uses the 4D alignment module to construct strings consisting of horizontal and vertical geometry. These horizontal and vertical components are created and edited interactively using the IP method on plan and section views.
SMEC is also using the 4D Drainage Module in the Warragamba project. This module supports the display of drainage networks typically required for development projects and new land subdivisions. An added bonus SMEC encountered using 4D was the ease with which the model output could be checked at any stage of the design process.
Following development of a design component, a copy of the model was produced for checking and further development by design engineer, Tim Loffler. Tim, who had no previous training in the software, said he found it “a most intuitive package” and that he could view and interrogate the model after getting a feel for the way in which the program operates.
“The program is very robust and will faithfully do what you ask it to do,” he said.
At the 12d Tech Forum 2026, most of our delegates will attend the Gala Dinner and enjoy award-winning food in BCEC’s beautiful Plaza Ballroom.
We’d like to take this opportunity to thank our Gala Dinner Sponsor, Stantec, for their generous contribution towards what will surely be an incredible night.
Stantec is a global leader in sustainable engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting, and are long-term 12d users.
