Introduction

Architecture is the process of turning a thought into space. While it’s so simple to convey that in the written word, the actual act of doing so is much more than it is possible to write. It’s glory, it’s torment, it’s frustration, it’s freedom, it’s the realization that one miscalculation means a complete redesign, like blowing on a house of cards, and it’s the 3 a.m. epiphany when you realize that the new design was what you were meant to get to in the first place. With all of that, it’s also the burning desire to work relentlessly to make something better one step at a time.

Autodesk® Revit® Architecture software is one of the many tools we employ to help us through this organic process. It’s one tool in the toolbox, but it can be much more than that. It can be the workflow that helps to empower a team. That team is the designers, the contractors, and ultimately the owners who are all looking to speak the same language.

We hope that in the process of using this book, you’ll experience a bit of the struggle to realize a bit of the satisfaction of finding the solution. We hope what you learn in this book helps inspire you to your own bit of greatness. Because what’s most important is that architecture isn’t about buildings. It’s about what we are able to accomplish with what little time we have. This is the elegant essence of Revit. Before we go much further, there are a few semantics to discuss.

First off, all the tutorial files necessary to complete the book’s exercises plus sample families are hosted online at www.sybex.com/go/masteringrevit2015.

Don’t have a copy of Revit 2015? Download the trial version of Revit Architecture at http://usa.autodesk.com/revit-architecture, where you’ll also find complete system requirements for running Revit.

For the clearest direction when following the exercises in this book, please make sure to install all of the Revit support files that come with the default installation. We reference them heavily, and you’ll need them to best leverage the software.

Also, it should be noted there are a few flavors of Revit. Starting with the 2013 edition, Autodesk released Revit Architecture, Revit Structures, and Revit MEP as separate packages. They also released a One Box solution that has all of those products in a single version of Revit. Depending on what you have installed—Revit as One Box or Revit Architecture, there will be some slight variations in the user interface. We have focused this book on the use of Revit Architecture. If you’re using the One Box solution, the variations will be slight and hopefully manageable.

Finally, most of our offices purchase the Revit software on subscription. With subscription comes a host of benefits and add-ons to Revit. This includes tools like access to cloud rendering, storage, and analysis, which we demonstrate in Chapter 9, “Conceptual Design and Design Analysis.” You can go here to create an account: http://subscription.autodesk.com.

Who Should Read This Book

This book is written for architects and designers who have had some exposure to Revit and are eager to learn more. It’s for architects of any generation—you don’t need to be a computer wizard to understand or appreciate the content within. We’ve designed the book to follow real project workflows and processes to help make the tools easier to use. The chapters are full of handy tips to make Revit easier to leverage in your day-to-day world.

This book is also for the entire range of architects, from those who are fresh out of school to seasoned project managers. We have endeavored to include content for all walks of the profession so that regardless of your role on a project, you can learn how BIM changes both workflow and culture within a project team. With that, a basic understanding of Revit will make it easier to work through the book. Revit is a very robust tool requiring more than one project iteration to master.

For BIM managers, the book offers insights into the best practices for creating good project or office templates; these managers should also take a sneak peek into the powerful world of building content and Revit families. We’ve added many time-saving and inspiring concepts to the book, supported by examples from our own projects and the rest of the real world, to help motivate and inspire you on your journey through building information modeling.

What You Will Learn

This book will help you take the basics of Revit and BIM that you already know and expand on them using real-world examples. We will show you how to take a preliminary model and add layers of intelligence to help analyze and augment your designs. We’ll show you how to create robust and accurate documentation, and then we’ll help you through the construction process.

We go beyond introductory topics. To that end, we won’t be starting a project from scratch or teaching you how to build a simple BIM model. If you are interested in learning at that level, we strongly recommend you pick up Autodesk® Revit® Architecture 2015 Essentials (Wiley, 2014) before plunging headlong into this book. Instead, our book begins with a brief overview of the BIM approach. As you are already aware, BIM is more than just a change in software; it’s a change in architectural workflow and culture. To leverage the full advantages of both BIM and Revit in your office structure, you will need to make some changes to your practice. We’ve designed the book around an ideal, integrated workflow to help you make this transition.

Starting with the project team, standards, and culture, we’ll discuss how BIM changes your project approach and how to best build your team around a newer workflow. From there, we’ll delve into conceptual design and sustainability studies, continuing through best practices for design iteration and refinement. You’ll learn how to use powerful modeling techniques, how to design documentation best practices, how to make compelling presentation graphics, and how to take advantage of parametric design with the Family Editor. We’ll explore workflow topics like tracking changes and worksharing as well as some strategies that move beyond traditional concepts of BIM. The book concludes with an appendix on troubleshooting and best practices so you can avoid common pitfalls. Throughout the book we’ve shared our practical experience with you, particularly in the form of real-world-scenario sidebars.

Whether you’re studying Revit on your own or in a class or training program, you can use the “Master It” questions in the section called “The Bottom Line” at the end of each chapter to test your mastery of the skills you’ve learned.

Free Autodesk Software for Students and Educators

The Autodesk Education Community is an online resource with more than five million members that enables educators and students to download—for free (see website for terms and conditions)—the same software used by professionals worldwide. You can also access additional tools and materials to help you design, visualize, and simulate ideas. Connect with other learners to stay current with the latest industry trends and get the most out of your designs. Get started today at www.autodesk.com/joinedu.

The Mastering Series

The Mastering series from Sybex provides outstanding instruction for readers with intermediate and advanced skills, in the form of top-notch training and development for those already working in their field and clear, serious education for those aspiring to become pros. Every Mastering book includes the following:

• Real-world scenarios, ranging from case studies to interviews, that show how the tool, technique, or knowledge presented is applied in actual practice
• Skill-based instruction, with chapters organized around real tasks rather than abstract concepts or subjects
• Self-review test questions, so you can be certain you’re equipped to do the job right

What’s New?

The Autodesk Revit team works continuously to improve the software, add new features, and eliminate bugs. It’s a constant evolution. Following you will find a list of the items that have been added or enhanced in the 2015 release.

1. Sketchy Lines Use the new Sketchy Lines feature to apply a hand-sketched graphic style to the current view or define the settings in a view template to apply the style to multiple views.
2. Anti-Aliasing In the Options dialog, the Use Anti-Aliasing option has been changed to Smooth Lines With Anti-Aliasing. You now have the ability to enable anti-aliasing for all views in the project or for selected views. Corresponding settings in Revit.ini allow you to predefine these options for users.
3. Ray Trace Usability Improvements The Ray Trace interactive rendering visual style for views has been enhanced to provide a faster, higher-quality, smoother rendering as well as improved color accuracy and improved shadows with all backgrounds.
4. Added Formulas You’ll find the following enhancements to formulas:
   • exp(x): In formulas in prior releases, the software evaluated exp(x) as 10^x. Starting with this release, the software evaluates exp(x) as e^x.
   • ln(x): Starting with this release, you can represent natural logarithm (logarithm base e) in formulas as ln(x).
5. Hidden Lines These have the following...