Overview
In this assignment, you’ll design the structural framing system for the multi-story office building that you designed in Module 6. The focus of this assignment is on:
- Learning to model the essential structural framing elements.
- Integrating the architectural and structural model of a proposed design using ACC Model Coordination.
Getting Started
Use this Starting Point file to create your new structural model:.
Design Approach
The starting point for structural modeling is often an architectural model of the proposed design created by the architects and planners on the project’s design team.
Using that architectural model as a starting point, structural engineers typically:
- Create a new structural model using a project template set up for structural design.
- Link the architectural model to the new structural model to use the elements in the architectural model as references as the structural elements are modeled.
- Copy and link to key elements that define the spatial framework — for example, the Levels that define the floor-to-floor heights and any Grids that may have been defined to place walls or columns — into the structural model. Using linked copies of these Levels and Grids to place the new structural elements helps to keep the structural and architectural elements aligned and coordinated.
These steps create a baseline environment for modeling the structural elements. With this spatial framework established, structural engineers can then::
- Choose the primary material for the structural elements -- concrete, steel, or wood -- often based on constructability considerations (cost, project location, material availability) and the desired appearance.
- Modeling the structural framing elements:
- structural columns
- beams and beam systems
- structural floors
- structural walls and braces
- foundations
After the elements of the structural framing are modeled, it’s helpful to integrate the architectural and structural models into a single integrated environment that allows you to visualize how the systems work together and identify any potential conflicts. And you’ll be doing that using the ACC Model Coordination mode.
Before You Start Modeling - SIMPLIFY AS NEEDED
The point of this module is to gain some experience with a simple workflow for modeling basic structural elements.
This course does not cover advanced structural design strategies, so if you’ve created a very exciting, daring, complex architectural form — with gravity-defying cantilevers, twisting walls, and sloping surfaces — you should think about ways to SIMPLIFY your form into something more manageable before diving into the structural modeling.
Think about a more regular form (with structural columns vertically) before you get started. And don’t think about this as a defeat. You’re not giving up on your beautiful design idea from Module 6 — you’re just being realistic about what you can reasonably accomplish in one week at this very busy point in the quarter.
Designing the structural framing system for a complex, cantilevered or twisting form can be a HUGE task — far beyond the scope of what we’re looking for here.
What’s Expected
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Step 1A: Create a new structural model and link your architectural model into it.
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- Create a new project using the Starting Point file provided or using Revit’s Structural Analysis - Default template.
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- Use the Insert > Link Revit tool to link your architectural model into your new structural model.
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- In your new structural model, switch to the Default {3D} view.
- Open the Manage > Project Location > Coordinates > Acquire Coordinates tool.
- Then, select the linked architectural model.
It’s helpful to use this view to be able to easily select the linked architectural model.
Revit will report that the coordinates have been acquired from the linked model.
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- Use the Collaborate > Copy/Monitor tools to copy the Levels from your linked architectural model and ensure that the Levels in your structural model match the Levels defined in the architectural model.
If your architectural model was created using Autodesk Forma, it will probably have many sets of levels — one set for each of the buildings that you created in Forma. Just choose the levels from any one of the buildings to Copy/Monitor and use for your structural model.
And don’t bother renaming the levels in your structural model. The only important thing to be sure of is that you have a set of levels to use in your structural model that match the elevations of the levels in your architectural model. This is necessary, so the elements you place in your structural model will be at the appropriate elevation relative to your architectural model elements.
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- Create a Structural version of each view — with the Discipline property set to Structural.
- Create a Coordination version of each view — with the Discipline property set to Coordination — to display both the architectural and structural elements.
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Step 2: Plan out the structural grid that you’ll use to organize your structural elements
- Then create Grid lines that follow that pattern in your structural model.
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Step 3: Model the structural framing elements for one level of your proposed design.
- Use your best intuition to choose the initial sizes for these structural framing elements. This will be a guess (typically based on past experience) to act as a placeholder. The final sizes for these framing elements will be computed and confirmed during a structural analysis phase (which you won’t be completing in this project).
- Be sure to include:
- Try placing them at grid intersections
- In general, try to place columns no further than 30 to 40 feet apart. If the column spacing exceeds this distance, the beam depths may become very large, and this can negatively impact the space available for installing the required MEP systems.
- Beams will often follow the grid lines, but you will need to adjust this pattern adding secondary beams around floor openings and shafts.
- Be sure to adjust the Z offset of the beams to place them below the structural floors (if you’re using steel, wood, or precast concrete framing).
- Place the beam systems (or joists) one bay at a time so each beam system is bounded by the adjacent primary beams.
- Be sure to adjust the Z offset of the beam systems to also place them below the structural floors (if you’re using steel, wood, or precast concrete framing).
- Model the structural floor that will be supported by the beams and beam systems at this level. You can do this by:
- Tracing the boundary lines of the floor in your architectural model.
- Or, using the Collaborate > Copy/Monitor tools to make a copy of the floor in your architectural model.
- Be sure to:
- Choose a structural floor type that is appropriate for the level (ground level or upper level) and material that you’ve chosen for the framing system.
- Select each floor element and turn on the checkbox for the Structural property in the Properties palette.
- Place structural walls to provide lateral load resistance:
- Around any shaft openings or likely shear wall locations.
- At any locations that require retaining walls.
- You can do this by:
- Picking the walls in your architectural model to place new walls in your structural model.
- Or, using the Collaborate > Copy/Monitor tools to make copies of the structural walls in your architectural model. Do not copy the non-structural facade walls.
- Be sure to turn on the checkbox for the Structural property in the Properties palette.
- As an alternative to structural walls, you can use structural braces between key columns (to provide lateral load resistance in a way that is more visually open than a structural wall).
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Step 4: Copy the structural framing elements from this one level to the other levels of your building.
- Select the structural framing elements that you modeled in the previous step.
- Use the Modify > Clipboard > Copy to Clipboard tool to copy these elements onto the clipboard.
- Use the Modify > Clipboard > Paste Aligned to Selected Levels tool to paste these structural elements onto the other floor levels.
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Step 5: Model the structural foundations that will support the framing elements.
- Create Structure > Foundation > Isolated footing elements to support the point loads at the base of structural columns.
- Create Structure > Foundation > Wall elements to support the line loads at the base of structural walls.
- Create Structure > Foundation > Slab elements to support the area loads under any slabs on grade.
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Step 6: Create structural views to share your design.
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- Set the Discipline property for these structural plans to Structural to hide the non-structural elements.
- Hide any other non-structural elements in these plans, so your structural framing elements clearly stand out.
- Add structural framing tags to the elements to show the sizes of the framing elements in these plans. Be sure to tag the:
- Structural Framing elements
- Structural Column elements
- Add dimensions to show the distance between the column grid lines.
You can use the Annotate > Tag All Not Tagged tool to quickly choose a tag type for each category, then add tags to all the Structural Framing and Structural Column elements.
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- Set the Discipline property for this 3D Structural Overview to Structural to hide the non-structural elements.
- Hide any other non-structural elements in this 3D Structural Overview, so your structural framing elements clearly stand out.
- Do NOT add structural framing tags in this view.
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- Reference Level
- Family
- Type
- Volume
- Count
- Create a new Calculate Value field:
- Name: Carbon Emissions
- Discipline: Common
- Type: Number
- The Formula will depend on the material being summarized in the schedule.
- For Steel, use: Volume * 0.411 / 1 CF
- For Concrete, use: Volume * 0.013 / 1 CF
- For Wood, use: Volume * 0.008 / 1 CF
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- Sort by Level, then by Family, then by Type
- Turn OFF the Itemize every instance checkbox
- Add a Grand total line
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- Select your calculated Carbon Emissions field
- Set the Field Format to:
- Units: Fixed
- Rounding: 2 decimal places
- Choose to Calculate totals
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- Base Level
- Family
- Type
- Volume
- Count
- Create a new Calculate Value field:
- Name: Carbon Emissions
- Discipline: Common
- Type: Number
- The Formula will depend on the material being summarized in the schedule.
- For Steel, use: Volume * 0.411 / 1 CF
- For Concrete, use: Volume * 0.013 / 1 CF
- For Wood, use: Volume * 0.008 / 1 CF
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- Sort by Base Level, then by Family, then by Type
- Turn OFF the Itemize every instance checkbox
- Add a Grand total line
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- Select your calculated Carbon Emissions field
- Set the Field Format to:
- Units: Fixed
- Rounding: 2 decimal places
- Choose to Calculate totals
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Step 7: Place all of these requested structural views on sheets.
- Use the E1 30 x 42 Horizontal title block - a size that is typically used for larger scale buildings.
- Include the:
- Structural Plans for each floor level with structural framing tags.
- Default 3D view with overview of your framing system.
- Two schedule views.
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Step 8: Integrate the Architectural and Structural Models using ACC Model Coordination
For this assignment, you’ll also merge your models in Autodesk Construction Cloud's Model Coordination module and create "Issues" to share specific views of the merged model. To do this, follow these steps to copy your architectural and structural models to your assigned Coordination Space folder, then use the Model Coordination tool to create three Issues that share interesting viewpoints:
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- Upload your architectural and structural models to your ACC Docs folder (where you typically upload them for submission).
- Select your uploaded files (click the checkbox to the left of the filenames, then use the Copy command (under the three dot pull-down) to copy them.
- Select the target folder inside the “_Coordination Spaces” folder based on your last name. For example, if your last name is Smith, choose the “_Coordination Spaces > Last Name S” folder as the target.
Be sure to give them unique names (that include your last name) that will make them easy to identify. (Rename them if needed).
You’ll be copying them into a shared folder with other students’ files, so you’ll want to be able to easily pick your files from the shared list.
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- Pull down from the Docs title in the left sidebar, and choose Model Coordination.
- Choose the Model Coordination space that corresponds with your last name from the menu at the upper right corner of the Models list.
- Create a new View that merges a 3D view from both your architectural and structural models.
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- Click the Issues button in the left navigation bar to display the saved issues.
- Click the Create Issue button to create a new one.
- Click a location in the model viewer to place a push pin.
- Enter info for this issue:
- Change the Type to Design
- Enter a Title
- Assign the issue to our course CAs - Daniel Traver, Carrie Tam, and Tai McMillan
- Click the Create button to save your issue and send it to the assignees.
- Repeat the prior step to create a total three issues sharing interesting viewpoints within your merged models.
Sharing Your Project
Please follow the instructions in the Canvas assignment to upload your building model to your folder on Autodesk Construction Cloud (BIM 360) Documents and create a new post sharing your project on this linked Notion page.
Module 7 - Design Project Submissions:
Structural Modeling & Coordination
Points to Ponder / Wrap-Up Questions
Please choose 3 of the following Points to Ponder questions and share your comments on this linked Notion page.
Module 7 - Points to Ponder