What are the primary goals of creating a building model? Who are the key stakeholders?
- What do they need?
- What do they care about most?
When creating a building model, the overarching most simplified goal is to create a visual rendering representative of the clients ideals. Whoever commissions the project, as well as the individual/population it will serve, are often most important when executing the design process. These stakeholders are often searching for designs that are able to conceptualize their vision, and present new and innovative ideas beyond what they could have even imagined--in essence, someone to elevate their ideas while still listening with careful thought and consideration to their specifications.
How much detail should you include in your building model? How do you decide?
- As you develop your initial design?
- As you continue to iterate and develop on your design?
- What are the key stages?
- And how much detail should you include at each stage?
During the initial design stage, it is best to keep specifications and details minimal, as the main structure or core design features may change along the way. However, I believe it is also beneficial to begin brainstorming potential details and then solidify those additions as the design becomes more solidified. The key stages involve (1) the initial meeting with the client, (2) preliminary drafts and visualizations, (3) client reviews and adjustments over fundamental design and then the intricacies, (4) finalized models, and (5) final meetings with clients for approval. Throughout each stage, from beginning to end, details should progress in response to the developing solidity of the design.
How much detail should you include about the composition (layers, materials, thicknesses) of your wall, floor, and roof assemblies at different stages of your design process?
- Conceptual design
- Preliminary design
- Design development
- Construction documentation
Many door and window manufacturers provide Revit families for doors and windows that you can specify for your building design.
- What is the advantage to manufacturers for providing these families? (it's not free to create and provide them...)
- What is the benefit to you as the designer of using these manufacturer-provided families? Is there an advantage to using them versus the families provided in the Revit library?
From the perspective of the manufacturer, this is an opportunity for large-scale advertisement where their products can be directly streamlined into their largest population of clientele: users of Revit and other architecture design softwares alike. From the perspective of the designer, this form of sharing establishes a digital commerce of new and popular products prioritized by others in their field. So, it successfully suggests patterns describing the population's general response, whether positive or negative, toward the new products.