The 6 R's of Teaching Revit: Retrospect

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“The past is where you learned the lesson. The future is where you apply the lesson.”

- Tracy Malone (author)

At first, there's "Resistance." Then comes the "Revelation," followed by the "Rambunctious" phase until "Reality" sets in. Then comes some much-needed "Refinement." I have seen this process play out over and over again. I do my best to set expectations, but in the end, it is a process most people go through. This brings us to my final phase when teaching Revit.

In "Retrospect," how do we bring together everything we've done? One way to pull it all together is by adding a Project Execution Plan (PXP) or BIM Execution Plan (BEP) to your project startup. A BEP can help set ground rules and manage expectations regarding what is needed on a project. BEPs can have as much or as little direction, depending on your preferences. The BIM Execution Plan my company uses is twelve pages, for example. I have seen BEPs as short as 1-2 pages, up to 60+ pages. 

The BEP guides the parties involved in a particular project. Ideally, everyone on the project, including the Client, Sub-consultants, and Staff, should be on board with the BEP. It establishes best practices, defines roles, and helps focus staff on the project's common goals. The BEP also manages expectations regarding the final product.

The BEP we use establishes the following:

• Project summary with design responsibilities.
• Client Standard settings
• Model Naming
• LOD
• QA/QC procedures
• Clash Detections process
• How the models link, including Project Base Point or Survey Poiny with Coordinates
• How often file transfers happen, the process, and so on.

There are several standard BEPs out there that can be used as a starting point. A quick search online will provide you with a large list of options. Many universities have BEP templates available for download, and the Army Corps of Engineers has a detailed BEP available as well. The first BEP we used at my firm was the Penn State template back in 2009-10. Since then, we have added customizations and eventually made our own.

Every company's BEP will be different. Some are driven by Client needs, and others are centered on best practices. Either way, the BEP or PXP can help refine your workflow and coordination. Retrospection will help you focus on making a better design.

Thank you for reading my series on the 6 R's of Teaching Revit. I really enjoy teaching Revit, training staff, and supporting my user base. I hope you came away from this series with useful information that will help you in the future.

I like to tell my students at the end of each class: "As long as you come away learning something new, I'm happy." Do you have any other approaches to training and teaching others that you'd like to share?  Let me know in the comments!