Overview

Roads, ditches, trenches, and berms usually follow a predictable pattern known as a typical section. Assemblies are how we tell Civil 3D what these typical sections look like. Assemblies are made up of smaller components called subassemblies. For example, a typical road section assembly would contain subassemblies such as lanes, sidewalks, and curbs.

These typical sections, or assemblies, will be strung together into simple and complex corridor models in Chapter 11 and Chapter 12, so in this chapter our focus will be on understanding where these assemblies come from and how to build and manage them. Since it is difficult to understand the extensive applications of assemblies without seeing them in action in a corridor model, you may find it useful to work through the simple examples in this chapter, then come back and reread it after working through Chapter 11 and Chapter 12.

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Create a typical road assembly with lanes, curb, gutter, and sidewalk

• Edit an assembly

• Add daylighting to a typical road assembly

Subassemblies

A subassembly is a building block of a typical section, known as an assembly. Examples of subassemblies include lanes, curbs, sidewalks, channels, trenches, daylighting, and any other component required to complete a typical corridor section.