Cadworx Plant latest version and Autocad compatibility

Hi guys,
I wonder which is the latest version of Cadworx now? I am still using 2018 since I don't want to change version during long term project designing phase.
Is the new version 2022? And what's your thoughts, will Cadworx will leave Autocad platform totally in near future? I don't want to use Bricscad
I am looking forward to use GPU capabilities for smooth working with new Autocad 2022/23 Shaded(Fast) which is using Directx 12 with feature level 12_0 and runs complex models smoother than Navisworks does.

Can you actually confirm this from your own experience?

Coming to original question, based on this website (below), latest version is 22.

Hexagon DOCS

Well, yes.
We tested one very complex model, which was a x-ref, civil model from Tekla. Performance is un-comparative. Of course you need to have GTX 1060 or newer. We tested on RTX 2060. Really impressive, Autodesk is finally using real 3d engine in Autocad.

BricsCAD typically has some performance advantages over AutoCAD. Particularly with changing views and also 3D Orbit are the most noticeable.

BricsCAD also has some additional options for Multi-Threading for certain operations.

You should take it for a whirl. The Direct 3D modelling capabilities and Parametrics/Constraints/Design intent is most impressive.

Version 22 was just released. But if running the latest CAD is important, it does not run on the latest AutoCAD 2023 or BricsCAD 23.

Thanks guys,
I investigated a little bit more, Acad 2022 doesn't support DirectX 12 capabilities yet, 2023 does. It runs complex 3d models like a charm, however I hope that next version of Cadworx will support Acad 2023.
We in company considered to change software and pass to Plant 3d, but for now we are staying on Cadworx at least for next year. It is easier to learn Plant 3d than learning Bricscad for us.. but we will see.

Hxgn Support stated they are working on it. If they stick to a similar schedule as in the past, we may see a service pack with these updates in Jan-Feb.

You should take BricsCAD for quick test drive. If you know AutoCAD, you know 99.5% of BricsCAD already.

I tried Bricscad, we are using point clouds almost in each projects, and Bricscad is not performing very well with laser scans, I hope it will be better in future.
Anyway, I tested once again Autocad 2023 new 3d feature. For now, point clouds are not supported with that visual style which is again not good for us. You cannot change background color and adjust style at all. Hope it will be improved in future also.
I created one video so you can see 3D performance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yTTpTHlEfzc

Thats a pretty impressive comparison.

So we installed Cadworx 22 at Acad 2022. Tested with 2020 also.
Cadworx 22 has a lot of bugs.
- PCF export is with comma instead dots (eg. 1,00000 instead of 1.0000)
- slow getting data of pipe with COMP2ALL command (6-10sec)
- line view and others tables in palettes - you cannot extend it
- overall slower performance in Cadworx interface
There is some other things which is maybe related to Autocad also, like freezing when orbiting if point cloud is loaded..

The PCF Export might be based on your windows regional settings. I did a whole bunch of PCF exports today, all of them are with decimals.

Comp2all I counted as 2 seconds, I have a pretty old desktop, so should be quicker on newer hardware.

The resizing of the palettes I think is possibly an oversight. I will submit a change request in the idea station.

I agree, the palettes are not that stable. Sometimes they show, other times they don't. The icons for docked palettes are not correct. I also noticed it's pretty slow to open a drawing if you have any CWX palettes opened. Not all palettes/forms were converted...

Overall it seems it was rushed and should have been called 2020 R3

Yes, it seams like beta version
But we need to work now with it, there is no alternative. This unprofessional approach from Hexagon will force us to switch software to Plant 3d, most probably next year already.

- I had CW2018 installed since now, PCF was with dots. Now with 22 installed on same machine it is - comma. I will take a look in regional settings.
- Comp2all is slow at all our machines, mine has i7-8700 16GB Ram and RTX2080 and it takes 6-7s. On older machines it is going to 20s.
- Thanks Vanman for submiting.

Biggest issue for me is freezing when orbiting with point cloud, but it is not Cadworx issue.

What are you using for point clouds? Leica Cloudworx lets you set the point density and crop out points into areas. When our models start to slow down, we tend to break out the point clouds into areas as we do for drawing xrefs. Even then, it can be slow. There are other Leica solutions and workflows that can speed things up in the CAD world.

Also, if your 16GB ram is correct, that is a minimum for basic cad. If your getting into 3d, you should have at least 32, and point clouds should be as high as you can get it, but a minimum of 64

Yes, RAM quantity is one of my suspicious factor. I often see 90-95% of use overall when I load point cloud.
With ACAD 2018 I didn't had such issue with the same point clouds.
I have 16GB now. I will ask IT if they can provide me more.
I am using Autocad's attach point cloud and cropping with inbuilt ACAD's panels. I also have Cloudworks but again I am loading same rcp-s into it. I saw Leica jetStream with Cyclone, it works great but it is not cheap. You can load also over Cloudworx point cloud from Cyclone directly... although, I didn't try that with 2022.
Anyway, we are looking forward to see CW 22 hotfix very soon.

BTW. Autocad 2022 supports also enhanced 3D visual style, but you need to enable it first. Command is: 3DTECHPREVIEW, set to 1 and restart the Autocad. Switch to Shade visual style and you will see Shaded GSF enabled. It works with feature level 11_0 and greater. It has some limitations, but it runs large models very smoothly. Please check it.

Thanks for the tip on the 3DTechPreview, it works great in 2022. I just wish I could enable FASTSHADEDMODE in 2023 on my system. I'll have to dig into what it needs to work.

Which model GPU are you using?

Quadro M2000M, running DirectX 11.

It looks like 2022 can use 11, but 2023 needs DirectX 12

Yes, that's correct.
You need to have Dx12 and feature level 12.0.
I finished up with Acad 2019 in the end with CW 22. This is only version that works fine with point clouds. I tried Bricscad, it was ok, but it is a really buggy when it comes to the point clouds.

Thanks for the confirmation. Point clouds can be cumbersome, hopefully you can get some additional RAM in there to help with it.

Just to inform you, issue with PCF comma separator is solved by changing Windows Region settings. In additional settings, changed Decimal symbol from comma to dot. Now PCF has "dot" decimal separator as it should be. Strange but it works.

Nice find Vanman, and thanks for the confirmation PaoloDP