SMC #54 "Production Manufactoring" Factory Machinery

[ClassicGamer-3DT]

The Challenge Rules

1). Each challenge we'll post a subject for you to model along with a time limit on how long you should spend on it. Spend no longer than the allocated time then post a render of your model. No cheating, we are relying on your honesty here and the idea of speed modeling is to simulate a "real world" environment. If you are working on a project and asked to show a concept model you'll need to be able to get somewhere near the target in the allocated time. Your submission should be a model created especially for this challenge and not one you have stored on your hard drive. How you interpret the brief is up to you as long as the final model conforms to what we have asked for. Any images of models that do not match the brief can be removed and the poster disqualified.

2). You may enter as many times as you like as long as each model is completely new and uses no components from other entries. Entries using models which are not original will be removed and the poster disqualified.

3). Your entry may contain as many views of your model as you like and must include a clear and easy to see wireframe of the mesh before any smoothing/subdivision has been applied. Wire renders/ Cell Shaded or Screengrab wireframes are acceptable. Any wireframes we cannot see correctly will be disqualified. The key is for us to be able to see the wireframes clearly to ascertain how you modelled the subject matter.

4). You MUST include the following details with each submission:

A). Software used
B). Time spent creating the model.
C). A Clay Render of your models.

Any further information is voluntary but posts not containing the required information can be removed and the poster disqualified.

5). Post TWO images per entry which must be no larger than 1280x1024 pixels in either landscape or portrait format with a file size of no more than 195k.
1 image for your wireframes and 1 for your clay combined with a optional beauty render.
These images must be uploaded to our servers using the "browse" button on the forum reply page.
Do not link to external images files. Images larger than the maximum size or posts containing links to external images (other than for reference materials)
will be removed and the poster disqualified.

6). The creation of displacement maps, normal maps and any splines drawn out in an external program other than your modeling software are to be included in your modeling time.

7). Time spent on rendering or texturing or building a scene in which to display your model is not included in the allocated period to allow those with slower machines to participate on an even playing field. What we are looking for is the quality of the models you can produce "under pressure". If your model is not complete, you can still post it as long as it's recognizable.

8). Posting the same entry twice in a challenge is considered to be double posting and will result in a disqualification. When asked to fix a previous post due to DQ or any other reason, you must fix the first post, or delete it altogether and create a new one.

9). The Winner must email jo@3dtotal.com to claim their prize.

10). Only 1st place & 2nd place (i.e. the runner up) can claim a prize.

These rules apply to everybody taking part there will be NO exceptions!

Subject: Factory Machinery.
Deadline - 10:00PM GMT 15th June 2012.
Description: A factory (or previously known as manufactory or a manufacturing plant) is an industrial building or complex having several buildings, where workers manufacture goods or operate machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production. Typically, factories gather and concentrate resources: laborers, capital and plant. Factories really took shape from the Industrial Revolution with many of the first modern factories established in the 18th century such as Matthew Bolton's Soho Manufactory (established in 1761 in Birmingham, UK) Around the same period popular and indeed lucarative factories thrived on the production of silk, wheat, textiles & silver. British colonies in the late 18th century also built factories simply as buildings where a large number employees performed hard labour but without the machinery mentioned this would be more akin to that of workhouses.
Cotton mills used inventions such as the steam engine and the power loom to really pioneer the industrial factories of the 19th century, this is where the precision machine tools and rep-lacebale parts allowed greater effieciency and less waste therefore improving productions costs. But it was with Henry Ford who really further revolutionized the factory concept in the early 20th century with the innovation of mass production, this introduced a need for highly specialised and trained labourers situated alongside a series of rolling ramps, which in Ford's case helped him with his automobile production and dramatically cut down the workforce aswell as costs.
Next Generation factories that followed have just about made the need for human labourers obselete and in most factories humans are only enployed for menial labour tasks or indeed to oversee computer operated production lines in case of faults.
In this challenge you are tasked with the topic of creating a factory machine. You can attempt this is many ways, you can choose to model a specific machine from history or indeed creae your own, you can populate and create an entire warehouse if you wish. You can choose to model everything from cotton mills, airplanes, cars, boats, caravans, food, newspapers, bottled water, beers, wines, dairies, computer assembly lines, world war II Lancaster Bombers or Spitfires, even how baked beans are created it's your choice. Again like last week's challenge you can choose to make this challenge as easy or as hard as you like, ifyou are a beginner or feel like taking your time just model a small automated machine or something, if you are an intermediate/advanced modeller try to hand at creating a whole factory warhouse with instanced machines of your choosing, you could even create a futuristic factory with next gen automated machines creating flying cars or even an alien race with a blood factory of human hybrids! As ever the choice is yours.

Modelling Time: 90 Mins.

Prizes:

1st Place - £30 worth of 3DTotal downloadable products & a gold award badge.
2nd Place - £10 worth of 3DTotal downloadable products & a silver award badge.
Honourable Mentions - Bronze Award Badges

Above All Else Have Fun & Good Luck!

My Starter



The background isn't included as it's one I modelled for a client a few years ago. Fairly simple modelling from me but not had alot of time.... better than nothing I suppose, I was really lazy on this one and took a long time as I was bored with it a little, I hope to try a more detailed and better entry for this week's SMC. This is known as a feeder used for crating packet based snacks and crisps.

[rocneasta]

i just have images of old iron moulding factories... gonna see if google gives me anything else to work with, but all that come Monday when i'm back home

[Gladdy]

Isn't great, but I'm trying to transition from Blender to Max, Max UI is still a bit confusing at times so I could not include as much detail as I wanted to within the timespan.

[ragupasta]

Well here is my effort. Goes to show I really need to start modelling again, as I well run out of time.
If finished it was supposed to be a miniature steam beam engine from the victorian days.

3ds max
90 mins.

I know I should have put the application and time on the image, but since it did'nt get finished I saw little point in doing so.

All subdivision modelling.

[ClassicGamer-3DT]

They both look good guys, I know what you mean though I'm seriously out of practice too.

[ragupasta]

Gladdy: Nice modelling everyting is tidy and lookin good. I started the same way about 7 years ago-ish. I started with Blender, got hooked, and moved to 3ds max.
Now I kinda stick to Houdini and maths, so I really have forgotten the feeling of modelling.

Thanks ClassicGamer-3DT, I should return to modelling pretty sharpish!
Been looking at the Hard Surface stuff on these forums again, and im inspired!

Thank you.

[McFly]

Not bad Ragupasta! I find it good practice to redo a model several times: it usually ends up better looking and I can model faster too.

Anyway, here's my attempt. I originally had an idea for a larger scene with simple objects but as I was researching machinery I stumbled upon this old bandsaw and I got motivated to do it!





Reference:


I didn't have time to finish it but it was fun to do. Yeah, saw should be rotated 90 degrees but couldn't find a way to do it easily with Blender (array+curve modifiers).

[rocneasta]

@McFly - nice model, especially like the trick of same model being repeated to make the chainsaw ! nice

[ClassicGamer-3DT]

I'm wondering if they'll be any last minute entries before 10 tonight? about an hour & a half till the deadline?

Just had on of those breakthrough moments with this medical animation i've been doing where i've managed to speed up the rendering process drastically.

Got a huge amount of changes to impliment next week and a deadline of 2 weeks in which to make the changes & render out the animation, each shot varies between 60 to 120 frames a shot, with a final shot of I think 160-180 frames and the current animation rendering speed was around 2-4 hours a shot! and with 17 shots to render that's a looooonnnngg time...... well just had a go at a different test, which makes it look a little bit better too and got a single HD frame of 1920x1280 to 15-20 seconds in the viewport and 30-40 seconds once rendered out. Which means the first shot which consists of about 60 frames rendered in just over 16 mins! I wish I could have more days like that when things go to plan

Next week will be the hard part of getting everything to animate and making sure everything is to scale (gulp)

[rocneasta]

amazing time on render, that's something to be proud off with that HD resolution

[ClassicGamer-3DT]

Yeah was worrying me to be honest as i'd already re-rendered the full animation last week and it took about 30-40 hours to complete by leaving it on overnight. The annoying thing was some of the changes before were silly and really quick to update, but then the waiting would be for the re-rendering..... most clients are completely clueless to that, they just think we "draw" everything and they always wants something done yesterday, wheras i'll need all the information first thing Monday next week to stand a chance of getting this thing done and dusted and i'll be lucky if they get back to me Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon, they never think we are busy because we're artists but I have other client work to complete which all have deadlines and i've only one good machine in which to render things out and a crappy dell laptop for modelling when I cannot use the iMac. Just typical really lol Alot of clients seriously don't think our job is priority and almost not classed as a proper job but it's the same as anyone else's in fact I work more hours than anyone else I know that has a "real" job, most friends work from 9-5 etc then that's it, I work probably 14 hour days most of the time and never really leave work, sometimes I don't have the luxury of a lunchtime or things like that. Just annoys me when people think you're at home at it's "not the same" as being at work.... rubbish I say

Anyway, not long now till the next SMC guys, should be a good one, lots and lots of scope for this one and some really interesting and actually tricky meshes to get right, I found it hard earlier today modelling my starter anyway.

[Ash Darkside]

The History Maker:
A machine that produces history.
The creator of the machine does not guarantee the accuracy of the products of the machine and is not held responsible for it in any way.

Program used: Maya 2011.
Time: 60 mins.

[ClassicGamer-3DT]

OK everyone this challenge has now come to a close, you'll find the next challenge already live and ready to go, so see you there!

[Ash Darkside]

The Evil Factory:
The few who came to know what the machines here made, went running into the night and were found in the local asylum after few days. Still, the machines worked tirelessly to create what is awaited eagerly by many sinister beings.

Program used: Maya 2011.
Time: 90 mins.











2 mins late! I miscalculated the time and thought it ends 3:30 by my time T_T.
Wait! Isn't it supposed to end at 10 PM GMT? I am at Chennai (+5:30 GMT) which means the contest is ending one hour early!

[McFly]

Nice models man, could you post a shaded-wireframe rather than a full wireframe? Makes it hard to read.