Complex Design Options

[DrakeCanyonArchitecture]

I have several sets of plans to work on that have this same set of circumstances. I have walls that will be moving in two different directions. Wall A has the standard option, a bay window which causes the wall to move out 2', and a sitting area that causes it to move out 4'. Wall B moves out 2' and 4' also in two separate options. There is also an option to add windows to wall B. Below wall B there is a Master Bath that also expands with Wall B, and sometimes moves independently of Wall B.

I'm perplexed how to make all this work. What I have been doing with design options has been relatively simple where just one area is changing in one direction. My mind keeps telling me that Wall A would belong to one design option set and Wall B would belong to another design option set. But to do it that way, the wall that the window is centered in belongs to another set that won't update when wall B moves out. If I draw each scenario in one option set, there will be what seems like an infinite combination of options. 

[lucdoucet_msdl]

@DrakeCanyonArchitecture 

Could you clarify in what context or to what end are the options are intended. This would help by possibly using alternate modeling methods to using design options.

For example, if the options are for a design review, chances are one option will be retained and you are left with less cleanup getting rid of the others when using revit design options. 

Or you have a modular design which let’s a client modify the final design late in the documentation stage.

Or you have “I know what I like when I see it” client.

-luc 

[ToanDN]

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@DrakeCanyonArchitecture wrote:

Wall A has the standard option, a bay window which causes the wall to move out 2', and a sitting area that causes it to move out 4'. Wall B moves out 2' and 4' also in two separate options. There is also an option to add windows to wall B. Below wall B there is a Master Bath that also expands with Wall B, and sometimes moves independently of Wall B.

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You need 3 Option Sets:  (A) Wall A, (B) Wall B, and (C) Master Bath

- (A) Wall A set shall have 3 options: (a1) standard, (a2) w/ bay window, (a3) w/ sitting area

- (B) Wall B set shall have  3 options: (b1) move out 2', (b2) move out 4', (b3) w/ window

- (C) Master Bath set shall have 4 options: (c1) standard, (c2) move 2' w/ (b1), (c3) move 4' w/ (b2), (c4) move independently

Now you can create different views and set each view to a combination of the above scenario.  With that said, you would only do this in earlier stage of a project.  Get your client sign off to one combination before you develop the project into construction documents.

[DrakeCanyonArchitecture]

@ToanDN That is pretty much the exact direction that I took. The biggest issue that I face is that these are production homes with options. So there isn't a single client and a few options for something like a custom home, but many clients with somewhere around 30 options. Right now there are a few guys who are manually adding the options for things like site plans, foundation layout, and framing packages. The idea is to build these options in Revit and be able to select the options (then make primary of course) but end up with a few sheets that are site specific to cut down on some of the mistakes that happen. I've done this with one model so far (the development is already well underway) and it cut about 7 hours of labor from what the current process is. 

What I end up having to do is to create 2 walls in the wall A design options set with just a window that moves 1' and 2' to center when wall B moves out, then remember to select that option when wall B moves out. What would be nice would be to have an EQ dimension constrained to wall B and the window so that when wall B moves, the window also centers. But since annotations don't work in options and the walls are put into different sets,  that association is gone. Really, if you could have sets within sets, I think it would solve the whole issue. 

There is an add in that we discovered by Simpson Strong Tie (which is surprising since it really isn't their specialty) called LotSpec, which is supposedly built to specifically address this issue in Revit. It's $1295 per seat per year.

[DrakeCanyonArchitecture]

@lucdoucet_msdl, there are a quite a few uses for what we are doing. One of those being a floor plan that can be generated quickly for the "“I know what I like when I see it” client. The master sets are already approved by the city so we don't have to deal with that at all. This is mainly for the purpose of having some site specific sheets for the trades to help eliminate mistakes and create some organization. 

We were hoping in the beginning that we would be able to set this up so that an average sales person could be taught to select the options and generate a mini floor plan for the client. The options are labeled A, B, C, etc, so in Revit, the sales person could select A, B, or C and generate a floor plan for the customer to sign off on. But it looks like that is probably not going to happen because of the level of complexity. Really due to the fact that when certain options are selected, other options will also need to be selected and there will be some additional clean up required.