What are the primary goals of creating a building model? Who are the key stakeholders?
The main goals of creating a building model in Revit include accurate representation of the design, coordination between different building systems, supporting analysis (such as energy, structural, and lighting analysis), and having proper construction documentation (clear model with texts, annotations, and tags). The key stakeholders include architects, engineers, contractors, clients, and building owners. Different stakeholders may have different needs and priorities. Architects need an accurate and flexible design model to be able to properly iterate and communicate their design intent. Whereas clients/owners care more about factors such as aesthetics, functionality, sustainability, and cost.
Many door and window manufacturers provide Revit families for doors and windows that you can specify for your building design.
By providing their products as Revit families, manufacturers increase the possibility that architects and designers will specify their products in real projects, which can lead to more sales. Also, It ensures that their products are used in design models accurately, including the proper dimensions, materials, and performance data.
As the designer, there are benefits to using these manufacturer-provided families such as increased accuracy, efficiency, and better documentation. Manufacturer-provided families are accurate representations of real-world products, including dimensions, material properties, and performance data. They also save time compared to creating custom families and represent what's available in the marketplace. Therefore, there is an advantage to using manufacturers’ families versus the families provided in the Revit library.
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?
Some advantages include accuracy, reliability, and up-to-date designs. Manufacturer-provided families are accurate in dimensions, materials, and performance; therefore, they meet real-world standards and are readily available. Manufacturer families are created by professionals and are reliable for use in detailed design and construction, whereas families from shared websites may have inconsistencies or errors. Lastly, manufacturer families are updated to reflect current product lines and standards. Families from online sharing websites may be outdated or incorrectly modeled.