revit -dwf model link

[1GENA]

Is there any way THAT WE CAN update  DWF MODEL with out having to reexport from revit as an when the  the Revit model get changed?   We use DWF models for 5d costing and like to build a link between revit and dwf to be able to get our 5D costing recrds updated automatically when there is a change to the revit model

[dmfrazier]

"Is there any way THAT WE CAN update  DWF MODEL with out having to reexport from revit as an when the  the Revit model get changed?"

As you may know, DWF is a specialized electronic print file format (similar to PDF, with certain CAD-oriented enhancements).  As it is intended only to communicate specific, limited design information, it is by design not editable (other than by mark-up), to maintain the integrity of the information contained in the print and its relationship to the source.  If it were possible to modify the contents of a DWF (other than by mark-up) without first modifying its source (DWG or whatever), it could potentially create a chaotic situation in which the print and its source are out of sync and no one is sure which information is correct or current.

Your Revit model should be the source from which all other info flows downstream.  If the DWF needs to change, its upstream source should be changed and a new, replacement DWF regenerated.  Any other practice may save some time for some in the short term, but in the long term it can become a huge mistake.  

"We use DWF models for 5d costing and like to build a link between revit and dwf to be able to get our 5D costing recrds updated automatically when there is a change to the revit model"

I'm out of my element discussing Revit (as I am an AutoCAD user), but I don't think there is any (built-in) way to create any sort of permanent "link" between a Revit model and a DWF file such that changes to the model are "automatically" reflected in the DWF.  Because DWF is a "print" format, it will always be necessary to run the "print" (or Publish) function, and this will always result in a new file (which could over-write an existing previous file).  It may be possible to automate this (as in AutoCAD there is an AutoPublish function which might have an analog in Revit), but whether that allows you to "automatically" (or more easily) update the associated costing records I guess would depend on how those records are produced currently.  If you have some sort of "link" between DWF and your costing records currently, would it not be possible (and more efficient) to modify the arrangement so that the costing records link directly to the Revit model instead?

[1GENA]

Thank you so much for your well explained reply.

As you know it is always a hard battle if you want to  change any system that is already in place  in an organisation for a long time.  What i am trying to do is to find a way to link all our discipline model data with the QS/Cost Estimaters in a least painfullway. Our cost estimators use tools that only extract info from DWF and Autocad files. There are few software packages in the market that claims that they link Revit models and autodetect any changes made to the source files. 

Unfortunatly complete change of the existing system is not an option at the moment as we are just recovering from difficult economic climate. New systems always comes with a huge initial cost and other associated issues such as resistant to change, training, culture change,  etc .etc.

It is nice if the software like Autodesk QTO have the ability to link direct to Revit models rather than going through different roots such as remeasuring from DWF files, use of ODBC, Excel etc etc to get the information allready available with in the Revit model.

In my openion one of the things that BIM is trying to do is to eliminate doing the same thing twice and recreating the same info again and again and again.

Once again thank you so much for your reply.