The following article was originally published on My First Architecture Job on 24 October 2021.

So You've Done a Revit Course… Now What?

Part 2: Graphics

So you’ve done a Revit course and read part one of this two-part series... now what?

Revit (and other BIM software) are amazing tools that remove the need to change line weights and types which were typical of CAD-based programs. They are designed to document projects more efficiently by modelling everything in 3D while generating 2D drawings and schedules. However, as with a lot of software these days, there are a whole bunch of tools and features that unless you stumble upon or get told about them you may never end up using them. So for part two, here are the top four things I wish someone had told me about graphics before starting my first job.

View Templates

Typically, larger firms have predefined view templates. As the name suggests, view templates control how a view looks (which elements are and aren’t visible, line weights, shadows etc). For example, a project might have view templates set up for the following:

  • Demolition plans;

  • General arrangement plans;

  • Concrete outline plans;

  • Furniture layouts; and

  • Elevations and sections etc.

There are a lot of parameters that can be adjusted via view templates, so it’s a good idea to have a play and familiarise yourself before jumping onto a project. Why? Because if you adjust a view template for one view it’ll mess up all the other views associated with it!

Overriding Line Styles

With BIM software, efficiency comes from keeping 2D elements (detail lines, filled regions etc.) to a minimum. However every now and then you’ll want to change the appearance of some lines. Let’s say you want the roof to appear dashed on the ground floor (by default this would be invisible). This can be done using the linework tool. When you select the line you want to override, by default, it does the entire line. But what if you want to only do part of the line? For this, you select the line you want to override then carefully grab one of the dots that appear at the end of the line and drag it to where you want the override to start / stop.

Scope Boxes

In the past, drawings would be issued as hard copies. Nowadays softcopies are more common but there is nothing more distracting than quickly flicking through a set of floor plans and having them jump around the screen when they should all be aligned. Scope boxes help resolve this issue and have some other additional benefits.

A scope box can be used to define an area. You can then assign multiple views (plans, sections and elevations) to that scope box which in turn crops all these views in the same way. When you place each view on a sheet (provided you put them in the same location — you might need to draw temporary lines to assist with this), each plan will now align.

The tool becomes particularly useful on large projects where you might need to split a view up between multiple sheets. Typically in this situation, there should be an area in the middle with overlapping information. This can easily be achieved by having an overall view with two or more dependent views associated with different scope boxes.

Accuracy

Revit has the ability to model everything accurately. For example, when you make a wall type you can include all the individual layers the wall would be made up of — their exact thickness, material and location. However, while this might be okay for joinery, things aren’t millimetre-perfect on site. A wall might not get built exactly where it was supposed to or the render thickness might not be the same throughout. As a result, you could end up with a room 50mm smaller than originally expected. That’s why it’s important to include tolerances when documenting a project. The last thing you want on site is finding out that a certain part of the building no longer complies with the relevant codes and standards. Contractually, the following order of precedence applies:

  1. Specification;

  2. Architectural drawings; and

  3. Consultant drawings.

As you can see, architectural drawings take precedence over consultant drawings. So while some things like tile setouts should be shown accurately because they are an architectural issue, other items such as structural slabs should be shown graphically and reference the consultant drawings which would provide more detail. This minimises any potential discrepancies and contractual issues.

By learning how to use Revit you can minimise double handling, reduce human errors and therefore document with greater efficiency. However, at the end of the day Revit is a tool for documenting and although a certain amount of automation occurs, you should always double-check that everything has been drawn correctly and complies.

And that’s it! You now know everything I wish I knew about workflow and graphics in Revit before starting my first job. I hope you’ve picked up a couple of new tricks, or at least feel more at ease about using Revit next time you’re in front of your computer.