BIMtopia
Submitted For
Module 2 - Points to Ponder
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Please share your comments on 3 of the following Points to Ponder questions. (Choose 3 of the 5 questions below.)

How much detail should you include in your building model? How do you decide?

  • As you develop your initial design?
    • The basic idea of what the final building will look like should be “sketched” out. This could include the shape of the building, basic layout of beams and columns, location of windows, etc.
  • As you continue to iterate and develop on your design?
    • The building should gradually get more features added to it as the design develops. Once the beam and column sizes/locations are determined, then the architectural, nonstructural elements should be added.
  • What are the key stages?
    • Schematic design, design development, construction documents, construction administration
  • And how much detail should you include at each stage?
    • SD - Basic idea of beam/column size and layout, model should represent what the designers plan for the building to look like
    • DD - Beam/columns should be accurate, architectural elements added to the model, all design work is done and adding nonstructural elements to the model
    • CD - Finalized model that features everything that is intended to go into the building for construction. Has dimensions and annotations
    • CA - Any extra updates that need to be added to the model based on additional developments or construction issues

Many door and window manufacturers provide Revit families for doors and windows that you can specify for your building design.

  • The advantage of manufacturers for providing these is that when these families are available, designers will include them in their model and that specific product will in turn be used in the construction. If the families were not provided, designers would find another manufacturer that provides families or they would not most likely use that specific product.
  • The benefit as the designer of using these manufacturer-provided families is that it creates a more accurate model that best represents what the final product will look like.

What are the advantages of getting the Revit component families (for furniture, equipment, and fittings) directly from the manufacturer versus from an online sharing website like RevitCity.com?

Often times the manufacturer has a more complete catalog of component families which are up to date with the latest versions of the item. They are also made and published by the same manufacturer who designed the item, so the models are most likely going to be more accurate and more tediously created. On the other hand, online sharing sites will have a larger quantity of models, but they may lack the same quality as a manufacturer would provide as they are most likely created by regular users.