CAD leader for precise 2D and 3D infrastructure designs

MicroStation is the computer-aided design (CAD) software that users worldwide trust for creating precise 2D and 3D drawings for infrastructure projects. Engineers, architects, and construction professionals openly collaborate to deliver inspiring projects, utilizing the industry leading DGN file format. MicroStation can help you deliver your designs on time and on budget, even as project complexities and scale increase. With extensive interoperability and collaboration capabilities, and the flexibility to work with 2D or 3D in your BIM workflows, MicroStation gives you the confidence to know that your design intent will be clearly understood.

Produce all deliverables with one application

Reduce the risk of project delays and errors, adapt to project changes, and save time with MicroStation. Automate drawing sheets, models, visualizations, multi-discipline documentation sets, and embedded BIM data. Generate consistent, high-quality deliverables such as paper plots, reports, 2D/3D PDFs, i-models, and 3D physical models. Create annotation, display styles, and reports directly from the embedded properties of objects to ensure that they will always remain in sync with the design model during work-in-progress.

MicroStation Capabilities You Wont Find Anywhere Else - Drawing

Explore more design options

Develop designs with a comprehensive set of mesh, solid, surface, and feature modeling tools. Build parametric functional components with predefined variations to easily find and manage similar components. Use drawing extraction tools to automatically immerse drawings within models for better clarity and to streamline the documentation workflow.  Ensure design intent is maintained with constraint capabilities, layout and annotate drawing tools. Speed drafting and annotate workflows with intelligent, interactive snapping and dynamic data entry.

Testimonial_Quote_Marks
“The reliability of Bentley's modeling environment, and ease of interoperability with other platforms allowed the Emerson Los Angeles team to work collaboratively and collectively throughout the project's lifecycle. The shared access to BIM data allowed all stakeholders to effectively and efficiently work in an open platform to deliver this innovative building on budget and on schedule.”
Testimonial_Quote_Marks
“Virtuosity's practitioner license offered my small engineering firm a simple, cost-effective solution to utilize the latest structural analysis software to provide quality project deliverables as efficiently as possible. As added bonuses, there are expert services available to keep me informed about new technologies as well as online training opportunities to help me further maximize my software investment.”
Virtuosity Testimonial
“In addition to the advantage of Virtuosity's Virtuoso Subscription, which includes expert services and training, having the ability to purchase practitioner licenses also enables us unlimited usage and access to the software products in our national and international offices. As a result, we can support projects with an international team more effectively and by constantly applying the latest developments of Virtuosity's products, we ensure our competitiveness in the market and the best results for our customers.”

Technical Capabilities

Develop better designs, faster

Develop better realized designs with unlimited design freedom made possible by MicroStation’s robust and extensive modeling capabilities, including the ability to:

  • Design in 2D
  • Design in 3D
  • Develop hypermodels
  • Analyze and visualize models
  • Automate common tasks
  • Control and protect files

Better inform teams

Ensure that all your stakeholders are better informed with clearer communication of designs made possible through intelligent deliverables production capabilities and the power of Bentley CONNECT collaboration services, including the capability to:

  • Create animations
  • Create lifelike renderings
  • Generate intelligent documentation
  • Publish i-models
  • Review designs collaboratively
  • Maintain and enforce standards

Freedom to focus on design

Enjoy the freedom to focus on design with better integration of information and teams made possible by MicroStation’s interoperable and scalable platform, including capabilities to:

  • Geospatially locate projects
  • Incorporate common design formats
  • Incorporate referenced design content
  • Integrate point clouds
  • Integrate raster images
  • Integrate reality meshes
  • Manage design changes
  • Work in a personalized environment
  • Extend and customize workflows

Ensure and enforce project-specific standards

With MicroStation, you can easily manage design changes and drawing standards, and control and protect files.

  • Apply templates to control geometry and data standards such as styles for dimensions, text, lines, and detail symbols.
  • Use automated tools to check drawings for standards compliance once designs are completed.

Model in personalized work environment

You can design in the right work environment for each project with required settings and standards automatically applied.

  • Access a comprehensive library of learning content.
  • Personalize and group tools and tasks and reduce keystrokes with customizable menus.
  • Integrate enterprise systems using a wide range of available tools to customize the user interface including Microsoft (VBA), .NET, C++, C# and user-defined macros.

Work on designs of any size

MicroStation enables you to work collaboratively on any size project.

  • Generate a complete 3D model and maintain design intent of all sizes and complexities.
  • Share common files across multiple teams and disciplines.
  • View and work with design information from others in real-time using live referencing of 2D and 3D DGN, DWG, and large image files.
  • Create and exchange digital markups of designs.
  • Track and easily understand changes made to design files, even at the component-level, throughout their lifecycle.
  • Improve enterprise-wide collaboration through integration with ProjectWise.

Visualize and analyze designs

With MicroStation, you can analyze and perform data visualizations on models based on their geometry or underlying attributes.

  • Perform analysis of real-world solar exposure and shading.
  • Apply real-time display styles to visualize models based on each object’s height, slope, aspect angle, and other embedded properties.

Produce animations and renderings

MicroStation enables you to produce realistic movies and simulations from design, construction, and operational models.

  • Choose from keyframe and time-based animation.
  • Get results faster, using live on-screen animation previews and distributed network processing.
  • Create lifelike visualizations and access online and delivered libraries of physically correct materials, lighting, and rich photorealistic content.

Add reality data for real-world context

You can easily integrate reality data to understand existing conditions with raster images, point clouds, and 3D reality meshes. Quickly add geospatial information to visualize reality meshes based on associated spatial and attribute data. Using digital contexts enables you to make better decisions and create high impact visuals for stakeholders.

Integrate any data type

You can incorporate legacy client data and a variety of file formats like DWG, SHP, and point-cloud data without the need for data conversions. And easily integrate models, drawings, documents, and data from other disciplines.

Better designs, faster

Develop better designs, faster

Develop better realized designs with unlimited design freedom made possible by MicroStation’s robust and extensive modeling capabilities, including the ability to:

  • Design in 2D
  • Design in 3D
  • Develop hypermodels
  • Analyze and visualize models
  • Automate common tasks
  • Control and protect files
Inform teams

Better inform teams

Ensure that all your stakeholders are better informed with clearer communication of designs made possible through intelligent deliverables production capabilities and the power of Bentley CONNECT collaboration services, including the capability to:

  • Create animations
  • Create lifelike renderings
  • Generate intelligent documentation
  • Publish i-models
  • Review designs collaboratively
  • Maintain and enforce standards
Focus on design

Freedom to focus on design

Enjoy the freedom to focus on design with better integration of information and teams made possible by MicroStation’s interoperable and scalable platform, including capabilities to:

  • Geospatially locate projects
  • Incorporate common design formats
  • Incorporate referenced design content
  • Integrate point clouds
  • Integrate raster images
  • Integrate reality meshes
  • Manage design changes
  • Work in a personalized environment
  • Extend and customize workflows
Ensure project standards

Ensure and enforce project-specific standards

With MicroStation, you can easily manage design changes and drawing standards, and control and protect files.

  • Apply templates to control geometry and data standards such as styles for dimensions, text, lines, and detail symbols.
  • Use automated tools to check drawings for standards compliance once designs are completed.
Model in personalized environment

Model in personalized work environment

You can design in the right work environment for each project with required settings and standards automatically applied.

  • Access a comprehensive library of learning content.
  • Personalize and group tools and tasks and reduce keystrokes with customizable menus.
  • Integrate enterprise systems using a wide range of available tools to customize the user interface including Microsoft (VBA), .NET, C++, C# and user-defined macros.
Work on designs of any size

Work on designs of any size

MicroStation enables you to work collaboratively on any size project.

  • Generate a complete 3D model and maintain design intent of all sizes and complexities.
  • Share common files across multiple teams and disciplines.
  • View and work with design information from others in real-time using live referencing of 2D and 3D DGN, DWG, and large image files.
  • Create and exchange digital markups of designs.
  • Track and easily understand changes made to design files, even at the component-level, throughout their lifecycle.
  • Improve enterprise-wide collaboration through integration with ProjectWise.
Visualize and analyze designs

Visualize and analyze designs

With MicroStation, you can analyze and perform data visualizations on models based on their geometry or underlying attributes.

  • Perform analysis of real-world solar exposure and shading.
  • Apply real-time display styles to visualize models based on each object’s height, slope, aspect angle, and other embedded properties.
Produce animations

Produce animations and renderings

MicroStation enables you to produce realistic movies and simulations from design, construction, and operational models.

  • Choose from keyframe and time-based animation.
  • Get results faster, using live on-screen animation previews and distributed network processing.
  • Create lifelike visualizations and access online and delivered libraries of physically correct materials, lighting, and rich photorealistic content.
Add real-world context

Add reality data for real-world context

You can easily integrate reality data to understand existing conditions with raster images, point clouds, and 3D reality meshes. Quickly add geospatial information to visualize reality meshes based on associated spatial and attribute data. Using digital contexts enables you to make better decisions and create high impact visuals for stakeholders.

Integrate any data type

Integrate any data type

You can incorporate legacy client data and a variety of file formats like DWG, SHP, and point-cloud data without the need for data conversions. And easily integrate models, drawings, documents, and data from other disciplines.

Virtuoso Subscription

Stay nimble and lower costs

We’ve bundled a 12-month license for trusted Bentley software with customizable training from experts and call it our Virtuoso Subscription. With lower upfront costs and flexible support options, businesses of all sizes can now compete with the industry’s heavy hitters.

LEARN MORE

 

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Explore our CAD and Visualization webinars for best practices and engage with Virtuosity and Bentley industry experts.

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Blogs

Read our Infrastructure Insights blog to find tips and tricks and CAD and Visualization user success stories from around the world.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is MicroStation?

MicroStation is the computer-aided design (CAD) software that users worldwide trust for creating precise 2D and 3D drawings for infrastructure projects. Engineers, architects, and construction professionals openly collaborate to deliver inspiring projects, utilizing the industry leading DGN file format.

  • Draft, annotate, and freely design 2D geometry and 3D models at any scale
  • Ensure project quality by enforcing CAD standards with robust configuration capabilities
  • Utilize data needed to deliver your projects, no matter when it was created
  • Produce consistent, high-quality deliverables, such as paper plots, reports, 2D/3D PDFs, iModels, and 3D models

MicroStation provide a comprehensive set of 3D CAD capabilities which include creating models and renderings, performing various analyses, animations, and more.

How much is a MicroStation license?

A practitioner license of MicroStation costs $2,135 USD. Prices also vary per region. While there are various types of licensing available, a common choice is the 12-month practitioner license offered through Virtuosity, Bentley’s eCommerce store. When you purchase through Virtuosity, you get a Virtuoso Subscription. This means you get the software and “Keys” (tokens) to redeem for customizable training, mentoring, and consulting services.

Is MicroStation hard to learn?

The average user reported three to six months with adequate training to become proficient in MicroStation. Every software purchase through Virtuosity comes as a bundle with “Keys” or training credits to ensure you get the training and expert services you need to get started right away. We call this bundle the Virtuoso Subscription.

Your purchase of MicroStation includes 3 Keys. You can redeem the Keys for expert services such as consulting, mentoring, customized instruction, one-to-one mentoring and/or on-demand learning.

How can I learn MicroStation for free?

You can learn about MicroStation for free by watching the tutorial videos. Additionally, you can request an evaluation license from our Virtuosity product sales engineer via the Chat Bot on this page.

What is the difference between AutoCAD and MicroStation?

The differences between AutoCAD and MicroStation can be found on our comprehensive list of over 100 MicroStation features and capabilities. Check out the feature-by-feature comparison between MicroStation, AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT. Compare now

Where can I get support for MicroStation, in the event I run into an issue with the software?

You can post your question(s) and receive peer to peer help as well as Bentley colleague support at our MicroStation Communities Support.

Where can I find out about the latest capabilities of MicroStation CONNECT Edition?

Check out the latest release announcement on our Bentley Communities forum.

System Requirements

Processor

Intel Pentium-based or AMD Athlon based processor 2.0 GHz or greater

Operating System

Windows 10 (64-bit) – Home, Pro, Enterprise, and Education
Windows 8 (64-bit) – Standard, Pro, and Enterprise
Windows 8.1 (64-bit) – Standard, Pro, and Enterprise
Windows 7 SP1 (64-bit) – Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate
Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 (64 bit) – Standard and Enterprise
Windows Server 2012 (64 bit)

Internet connectivity is required to use some of the features of the product and installation of software pre-requisites.

Microsoft Internet Explorer, minimum v8.0, recommended v9.0 or later, with 128-bit cipher strength is also required.

Also supports Citrix XenApp 6.5 64-bit on Windows Server 2008 R2

Memory

1 GB minimum, 2 GB recommended, (more memory typically results in better performance)

Disk Space

1.25 GB minimum free disk space

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