What are the primary goals of creating a building model? Who are the key stakeholders?

• Ultimately, the client is the main stakeholder. Although in a broader sense the surrounding community is a stakeholder as well. The client may want a sustainable, cost effective and functional building. Most of the time improved functionality comes at a cost. The same can be said for sustainable buildings as well. Therefore, the complexities of design quickly add up. As an engineer, I would prioritize safety (often times clients don't consider this).

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

• This is a difficult decision to make in a general sense. Overall, I believe little detail in the initial design and then more detail as the design proceeds. By the end of the project is when the detail should be almost completely defined. As the design proceeds the structural engineer may come to the realization for the need for a significantly larger column. This would most likely change the interior design amongst other things.

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

• When a manufacturer provides a Revit family they are hoping the addition of that family leads to the use of it in a model. This provides an opportunity to the modeler to use those elements. Assuming that does occur, then once the construction documents are put together and an order is placed, then the manufacturer gets a nice check to include their services to the client.
• As a designer sometimes those families provide a unique aesthetic or functionality that would not otherwise be including by default or within the websites that provide families. Thus providing a distinctive marketing opportunity when showcasing the model to the client.