Sharing Revit model with consultants

[Anonymous]

How will I share my model with the project's structural consultants who use
Revit Structural? Seeing that we will have Revit electrical, plumbing and
HVAC coming down the road is there an practical way being devised to keep
project consultants up to date where 20 to 50 mb files have to be transfered
from the architects office to the project consultant?

[Anonymous]

You'll post it on buzzsaw and they'll down load it. Or if you don't use buzzsaw, you can post it to an ftp site, or send them a CD. Most consultants won't want to follow your every move, so you will treat it the same as you did in the past, only update on major changes that have been approved or you need to coordinate.

[Anonymous]

When Autodesk developed the Revit Structural program the added the following feature and tool. The feature and tool (see tool button to left of Join Roofs) is copy/monitor. The copy monitor feature allows you to monitor a single project file that is work-shared between multiple users using Autodesk Revit Building or Structure and is designed to report changes.

Or you can have a Revit Building project file and the Structural consultant can work on his own Autodesk Revit Structural project file. You Import/Link each others project files to your project file. You exchange updated project files as necessary and in-turn review any changes. The copy/monitor checks each others project files for changes and lets you review the changes.

Works quite well. Of course you can always work through an FTP site. But the recommended way to manage data between Revit Building and Structural is by Import/Linking. That way each professional/discipline can work independently on there project file data, without diminishing LAN or workset performance or relying on the Internet for coordination. Also, Internet collaboration can be expensive, especially if you hadn't budgeted for the expenditure and no one wants to share or absorb the cost. It is worth investigating on your next project.

Mel Persin, AIA
ADT/Revit Consultant and Trainer
melarch@ameritech.net

[Anonymous]

Thank you sbrown and Mel for the replies.


wrote in message news:5049803@discussion.autodesk.com...
When Autodesk developed the Revit Structural program the added the following
feature and tool. The feature and tool (see tool button to left of Join
Roofs) is copy/monitor. The copy monitor feature allows you to monitor a
single project file that is work-shared between multiple users using
Autodesk Revit Building or Structure and is designed to report changes.

Or you can have a Revit Building project file and the Structural consultant
can work on his own Autodesk Revit Structural project file. You Import/Link
each others project files to your project file. You exchange updated
project files as necessary and in-turn review any changes. The copy/monitor
checks each others project files for changes and lets you review the
changes.

Works quite well. Of course you can always work through an FTP site. But
the recommended way to manage data between Revit Building and Structural is
by Import/Linking. That way each professional/discipline can work
independently on there project file data, without diminishing LAN or workset
performance or relying on the Internet for coordination. Also, Internet
collaboration can be expensive, especially if you hadn't budgeted for the
expenditure and no one wants to share or absorb the cost. It is worth
investigating on your next project.

Mel Persin, AIA
ADT/Revit Consultant and Trainer
melarch@ameritech.net

[Anonymous]

Melarch,

How can the copy/monitor function work best when transferring files between
consultants?

In my situation, I send my arch models to the structural every so often, and
they send me theirs. So far, when they send me a new one (once per month or
two), I change the name of it and my arch file automatically picks it up as
the linked file. As my deadlines get closer, I can't do this anymore as it
deletes all my dimensions associated with the structural file. So my
alternative, is to adjust my structural file to match any changes taken
place in the next file I receive. (Just to clear this up, my building is
pretty large, and is therefore split up into three arch files and 1
structural, all inter-linked into eachother, and the structural consultants
are a different firm 1,000 miles away) I don't think the copy/monitor works
if structural is always sending me a new copy of their file.

Over the course of this project, I've managed to work out a lot of the kinks
in this process, but of course its not perfect, so I'm trying to pick your
brain for ideas for future projects.

Thanks,
Jay

wrote in message news:5049803@discussion.autodesk.com...
When Autodesk developed the Revit Structural program the added the following
feature and tool. The feature and tool (see tool button to left of Join
Roofs) is copy/monitor. The copy monitor feature allows you to monitor a
single project file that is work-shared between multiple users using
Autodesk Revit Building or Structure and is designed to report changes.

Or you can have a Revit Building project file and the Structural consultant
can work on his own Autodesk Revit Structural project file. You Import/Link
each others project files to your project file. You exchange updated
project files as necessary and in-turn review any changes. The copy/monitor
checks each others project files for changes and lets you review the
changes.

Works quite well. Of course you can always work through an FTP site. But
the recommended way to manage data between Revit Building and Structural is
by Import/Linking. That way each professional/discipline can work
independently on there project file data, without diminishing LAN or workset
performance or relying on the Internet for coordination. Also, Internet
collaboration can be expensive, especially if you hadn't budgeted for the
expenditure and no one wants to share or absorb the cost. It is worth
investigating on your next project.

Mel Persin, AIA
ADT/Revit Consultant and Trainer
melarch@ameritech.net

[Anonymous]

Further information can be found at the following link for questions about
workflow with consultants Using Revit Structure and Revit Building.

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?siteID=123112&id=5790057

Hope this helps.
--
Jeff Hanson
Autodesk Product Support
Building Solutions Division
Manchester, NH
_____________________________

"Jay" wrote in message
news:5050077@discussion.autodesk.com...
Melarch,

How can the copy/monitor function work best when transferring files between
consultants?

In my situation, I send my arch models to the structural every so often, and
they send me theirs. So far, when they send me a new one (once per month or
two), I change the name of it and my arch file automatically picks it up as
the linked file. As my deadlines get closer, I can't do this anymore as it
deletes all my dimensions associated with the structural file. So my
alternative, is to adjust my structural file to match any changes taken
place in the next file I receive. (Just to clear this up, my building is
pretty large, and is therefore split up into three arch files and 1
structural, all inter-linked into eachother, and the structural consultants
are a different firm 1,000 miles away) I don't think the copy/monitor works
if structural is always sending me a new copy of their file.

Over the course of this project, I've managed to work out a lot of the kinks
in this process, but of course its not perfect, so I'm trying to pick your
brain for ideas for future projects.

Thanks,
Jay

melarch@ameritech.net

[Anonymous]

When I try this on a simple example (renaming the new structural file to the same name as the old one), it doesn't delete the
dimensions, even if the elements in the structural file have moved (though of course it will if the target element gets deleted).
Can you describe more precisely what you are doing?

"Jay" wrote in message news:5050077@discussion.autodesk.com...
Melarch,

In my situation, I send my arch models to the structural every so often, and
they send me theirs. So far, when they send me a new one (once per month or
two), I change the name of it and my arch file automatically picks it up as
the linked file. As my deadlines get closer, I can't do this anymore as it
deletes all my dimensions associated with the structural file.

[Anonymous]

The typical path between RB and RS is the structural consultant uses "copy/monitor" to acquire the columns/grids/levels from your building model. Their template starts without any of these and inherits your work to start. They evaluate it and make necessary changes and then pass their model to you. You link their model into yours and you use Coordination Review to consider the changes they have made if any. The process repeats by passing your changes to them etc.

If you are losing dimensions that are attached to linked objects you might try just renaming the old file and maintaining the name of the file that is linked so it can just "reload". This way references should be maintained.

Also you should avoid dimensioning to linked objects like their grids since yours are the "master" grid object really. Ideally you only show the structural model elements in your building for coordination and the annotation objects like levels and grids are your native elements.

A nice side effect of copy/monitor in Revit is that this works between Revit Building projects too, which makes for quite interesting options with linked projects in general. So in your case where you have split up a large project, your structural model can be the "master" that all others including the consultant's derive their grids/levels/columns from.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the info. I will definitely be fine-tuning the process as
projects come along. For the one I'm on now, however, my higher-ups have
expressed their desire to use the structural model sent to us as the
structure in our files, drawings, etc., which has made a complicated issue
only more complicated (I'm not even going to begin describing the problems
that have risen resulting from this). I have been renaming the new
structural files to the old ones, so that the links just automatically pick
up the new one, but as the structural file is being so rapidly updated on
that end, it affects any assoicated dimensions on my end.

I agree that this is not the best way to handle this, and will certainly
take all information into consideration on the next project to better the
process. Thanks everybody for your tips.

Jay


wrote in message news:5050837@discussion.autodesk.com...
The typical path between RB and RS is the structural consultant uses
"copy/monitor" to acquire the columns/grids/levels from your building model.
Their template starts without any of these and inherits your work to start.
They evaluate it and make necessary changes and then pass their model to
you. You link their model into yours and you use Coordination Review to
consider the changes they have made if any. The process repeats by passing
your changes to them etc.

If you are losing dimensions that are attached to linked objects you might
try just renaming the old file and maintaining the name of the file that is
linked so it can just "reload". This way references should be maintained.

Also you should avoid dimensioning to linked objects like their grids since
yours are the "master" grid object really. Ideally you only show the
structural model elements in your building for coordination and the
annotation objects like levels and grids are your native elements.

A nice side effect of copy/monitor in Revit is that this works between Revit
Building projects too, which makes for quite interesting options with linked
projects in general. So in your case where you have split up a large
project, your structural model can be the "master" that all others including
the consultant's derive their grids/levels/columns from.

[Anonymous]

Could you also use the CopyMonitor function between disciplines, i.e. mechanical and plumbing?  Of mechanical and electrical?

What if the architect creates two separate models for a given project, can I link to both of these models, or do I have to create a different model inside the active project?  Or do I need to create a separate project for the second model?

You immediate attention would be greatly appreciated.

TB

[rosskirby]

Just FYI, you responded to a thread that's over 7 years old, so you probably won't get an immediate response from anyone in that thread, if you get a response from them at all.

In response to your questions, though, you can link as many separate files into yours as you want, regardless of discipline.  If you've got the Revit Architecture/MEP/Structural version, then you should be able to copy/monitor anything from any other disciplines' file.

I'm not sure I understand your question about the 2 architectural files.  Are you talking about something like a core/shell file and an interior finishes file?  If so, then yes, you can link both into your project.