Family Jewels - Creating Quality BIM Content

Wanna Teach an AU (Autodesk University) Revit MEP or BIM Class?

So if you would like to teach, present, run a lab at AU 2010, then here's how you can go for it...

The MEP Design & Engineering track presents curriculum topics that are important to MEP and building systems engineers, designers, drafters and CAD managers wishing to learn more about Autodesk software for building information modeling (BIM), performance analysis, design and documentation.   We invite proposals for MEP Engineering classes that feature AutoCAD MEP and Autodesk Revit MEP software. We are particularly interested in proposals that touch upon topics including BIM using Revit MEP at the core of the design process, proposals that discuss rapid energy modeling and energy analysis using Revit MEP and supporting Autodesk sustainable design software or partner application as well as proposals that discuss tips and tricks for increased design productivity using AutoCAD MEP. We seek proposals suitable for both intermediate and advanced users.

Intermediate classes help users move from pilot to production. Classes will discuss how to move to a BIM workflow with Revit MEP at the core, while remaining productive by using AutoCAD and AutoCAD MEP for increased design and drafting productivity and the creation of construction documentation.  We welcome classes that discuss implementation strategies, and explain workflows such as new and existing building renovation and retrofit projects as well as hybrid workflows where AutoCAD and AutoCAD MEP compliment the workflow and enable MEP engineers to move to BIM at their pace. Classes that discuss best practices for coordination between MEP engineering firms, structural engineering firms and architectural firms who are embracing BIM are also welcome.

 

You can submit your proposals at Autodesk University 2010 Call for Proposals.

 

Proposal checklist. One of things we’ve introduced this year is a proposal checklist that lays out everything you need to do prior to making a proposal submission.

 

Speakers and lab assistants receive an honorarium and you can find out the details at Speaker and Lab Assistant Honoraria.

 

*** The last day to submit proposals is May 14^th ***

The watershed event that birthed the Family Jewels blog site.

A few weeks ago I went to help a friend with their Revit MEP design and found the closet support/toilet carrier I downloaded from the manufacturer, came in on it's side and was WAY over detailed. You could have made the casting from that family. So I thought forget it - I'll try this other manufacturer, and when I did, that family came in hosted, had the wrong connectors, and was also WAY over detailed. So I decided to call up that manufacturer and asked how they were creating their content, and they said they were having it made for them. When I asked how many seats of Revit MEP they had, they said none. So I asked if they QA'd their actual products before they went out the door, and of course they did. So then I told them you should start considering doing the same QA for their BIM content, because when you think about it, whoever is creating your content for you, knows as much about plumbing as you yourselves do about making Revit families.

The point is a lot of manufacturers out there just aren't getting it. They hire out their BIM content creation, and then just throw it online when they get it back without even checking it first. So that was the moment I decided maybe a blog dedicated to Revit content creation would help. If you're a manufacturer and you do not provide design content that you produce with as much care as you take for your regular products, you still won't, or will no longer get spec'd, even if you have the preferred product. Why? Simply because time = money, and users just don't have the time to create the content for you. I have had at least three designers tell me on separate occasions they are flat spec'g the first manufacturer to provide the Revit families of the products they need. That's right - flat specifying based on content availability. And you, manufacturers, your content has the potential to be your best foot forward - your first contact with lots of designers. If your content is sub-standard and has to be rebuilt, or in some cases is useless (wrong family template), what do you think they will think of your actual products?

So here are some basic do's and don'ts for manufacturers. First the do's:

1. Before you start, do ask your user base what they need or want from your content - particularly the "I" in BIM - the Information you're going to put in the content. Keep the information about the content as rich as the designer, the contractor, the owner, the maintenance people, etc. will all need.
2. Ask for help. You have the SEEK website and team there to help you at http://seek.autodesk.com/. And they can put you touch with developers who know how to create content, and know when to ask you the right questions about your products as they develop it for you.
3. Do use all the support you'll find in the Manufacturer portal on the SEEK website: 
4. Once there, make use of the Revit Model Content Style Guide.
5. And if you decide you want your content professionally developed for you, the SEEK team will be happy to point you to the best developers out there via their Partner Program.You'll get it right the first time!

And the don'ts:

1. Never make the content any more detailed than is ABSOLUTELY necessary. This is the most violated rule. The desire is to make your content look compelling, when to a Revit user, the more simple the content geometry - the more compelling it is. For instance, just use detail lines to represent the trap on your wall mounted toilet - DON'T actually model a toilet trap. When it comes to geometry - KISS. 
2. Never post your content for public consumption without first testing it in a Revit model. If you have a circle of trust among your user base, let them test drive it for you. You'd never sell your actual products without QA'ing them - don't treat your content with any less attention to detail. 

If you have other do's & don'ts you want the manufacturers to be aware of, then respond to this posting with positive, professional criticism. But don't just post it here - make sure you copy your vendor and/or that manufacturer too so they can be edified and take action.

Pipe/Duct Elevation Tag

So here's the first piece of free content on the Family Jewels blog. Thanks to my good friend Marvin Titlow at Michael Brady Architects for sharing this tag. With this family, you can tag either a duct or a pipe, select center, top or bottom, and even move it along a sloped pipe and it displays the elevation as you go, at that point. Click the thumbnail here to download the file.

You will need to play with the Spot Tag and the Pipe and Duct tags in different views to see how they work. Remember to set the Relative Base in the family Instance Properties to get the proper AFF offset.