Autodesk Revit Architecture 2016 No Experience Required

Autodesk Official Press

Eric Wing

• Publisher: Sybex
• Year: 2015
• Print ISBN:
  9781119059530
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781119059455
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: CAD-CAM
• Index: Computer Science

Go from beginner to guru quickly with the ultimate Revit Architecture 2016 guide

Autodesk Revit Architecture 2016 No Experience Required is your ultimate hands-on guide for mastering this essential BIM software. With step-by-step instruction and a continuous tutorial approach, this invaluable guide walks you through the design of a four-story office building. You'll be led through the entire design, documentation, and presentation process with expert instruction and helpful tips, so you can quickly become confident and productive. You'll follow a real-world workflow as you jump right into modeling, first placing doors and windows, then building floors layer-by-layer, adding roofs and ceilings, stairs, ramps, and railings. Coverage includes crucial information on detailing, view and match line information, and printing, plus advanced topics like curtain walls, sweeps, embedded families, and formulas. You'll delve into site considerations including grading and topsurface features, and integrate them into your design at the rendering stage. The companion website provides downloadable tutorial files so you can jump in at any point and compare your work to the pros.

Revit is the industry-leading Building Information Management software, hailed for its power and sophistication. This guide helps you get the most out of the software, with expert instruction and plenty of practice.

• Master the interface, tools, views, and editing capabilities
• Work with structural objects, text, dimensions, and multi-story buildings
• Generate construction documentation, schedules, and material takeoffs
• Explore phase management, work sharing, and working with various formats

BIM is the emerging paradigm for architects and others in the construction and engineering fields. Revit is the industry leader, and is quickly becoming a mandatory skillset. Autodesk Revit Architecture 2016 No Experience Required provides everything you need to get up to speed and down to work.

Chapter 1
The Autodesk Revit World

I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of presentations on how wonderful and versatile this 3D Autodesk® Revit® Architecture revolution is. You may be thinking, “This all seems too complicated for what I do. Why do I need 3D anyway?”

The answer is: you don’t need 3D. What do you do to get a job out—that is, after the presentation when you’re awarded the project? First, you redraw the plans. Next comes the detail round-up game we have all come to love: pull the specs together and then plot. This is a simple process that works.

Well, it worked until 3D showed up. Now we have no real clue where things come from, drawings don’t look very good, and getting a drawing out the door takes three times as long.

That’s the perception, anyway. I’ve certainly seen all of the above, but I’ve also seen some incredibly coordinated sets of drawings with almost textbook adherence to standards and graphics. Revit can go both ways—it depends on you to make it go the right way.

One other buzzword I’m sure you’ve heard about is Building Information Modeling (BIM). Although they say BIM is a process, not an application, I don’t fully buy into that position. Right now, you’re on the first page of BIM. BIM starts with Revit. If you understand Revit, you’ll understand Building Information Modeling.

This chapter will dive into the Revit graphical user interface (GUI) and tackle the three topics that make Revit…well, Revit:

• The Revit interface
• The Project Browser
• File types and families

The Revit Interface

Toto, we aren’t in CAD anymore!

If you just bought this book, then welcome to the Revit world. In Revit, the vast majority of the processes you encounter are in a flat 2D platform. Instead of drafting, you’re placing components into a model. Yes, these components have a so-called third dimension to them, but a logical methodology drives the process. If you need to see the model in 3D, it’s simply a click away. That being said, remember this: there is a big difference between 3D drafting and modeling.

With that preamble behind us, let’s get on with it.

First of all, Revit has no command prompt and no crosshairs. Stop! Don’t go away just yet. You’ll get used to it, I promise. Unlike most CAD applications, Revit is heavily pared down, so to speak. It’s this way for a reason. Revit was designed for architects and engineers. You don’t need every command that a mechanical engineer would need. An electrical engineer wouldn’t need the functionality that an architect would require. In the new Revit 2016 interface, the functionality I just mentioned is available, but it’s tucked away so as not to interfere with your architectural pursuits.

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NOTE This book is designed to cut to the chase and show you how to use Revit Architecture in a step-by-step fashion without having to read through paragraph after paragraph of theory just to find the answer you’re seeking. Datasets are provided on the book’s accompanying website (www.sybex.com/go/revit2016ner), but you can also use your own model as you go through the book. If you don’t wish to read this book cover to cover, don’t! Although I recommend going from front to back, you can use the book as a desk reference by jumping to a desired topic. The datasets will be added in phases to accommodate this type of usage. Either way, get ready to learn Revit!

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You’ll find that, as you get comfortable with Revit, there are many, many choices and options behind each command.

Let’s get started:

1. To open Revit, click the icon on your desktop (see Figure 1-1).

Figure 1-1: You can launch Revit Architecture from the desktop icon.

2. After you start Revit, you’ll see the Recent Files window, as shown in Figure 1-2. The top row lists any projects on which you’ve been working; the bottom row lists any families with which you’ve been working. The column to the right allows you to...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Titlepage
• Copyright
• Credits
• Dedication
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Introduction
• Chapter 1: The Autodesk Revit World
• Chapter 2: Creating a Model
• Chapter 3: Creating Views
• Chapter 4: Working with the Autodesk Revit Tools
• Chapter 5: Dimensioning and Annotating
• Chapter 6: Floors
• Chapter 7: Roofs
• Chapter 8: Structural Items
• Chapter 9: Ceilings and Interiors
• Chapter 10: Stairs, Ramps, and Railings
• Chapter 11: Detailing
• Chapter 12: Creating Specific Views and Match Lines
• Chapter 13: Creating Sheets and Printing
• Chapter 14: Creating Rooms and Area Plans
• Chapter 15: Advanced Wall Topics
• Chapter 16: Creating Families
• Chapter 17: Site and Topography
• Chapter 18: Rendering and Presentation
• End-User License Agreement