Create wall openings for the MEP

[ayman_tamimi]

Hello guys,

We are working on a project, in which each of us has his own file with linking the other files into his own one, anyway, my question is; is there any way to have an opening into my walls related to the linked MEP systems? 

or that I have to create my own openings manually around the ducts and pipes!?.

Thanks in advance.

[L.Maas]

In general this is not how this is done. Normal you will have separate people/teams/companies responsible for the different model (MEP, Structure, Architecture). As a MEP engineer you are in general not responsible (or have the knowledge) for the walls/structure of the building (e.g structural integrity, fire resistance).

What normally is done that you indicate (as MEP engineer) where you want your openings and the size of the needed openings. You hand it over to another team (structural/architecture)  and they will create those openings in their walls, or in case of issue proposes different place and return the updated model.

This can simply be done on existing drawings but you also can place families in your model to indicate where you want to have the openings. There are even add-ins that can automate this (e.g based on size of pipe going through wall create an opening element at that position) and have tools in place to communicate between different teams to track the openings.

For bigger projects we usually create a separate openings model which only contains the openings elements. This makes it easier to share this information.

[Keith_Wyble]

Your response didn’t fully address the question. I work for an MEP contractor, and this is a critical need. We produce wall opening drawings based on our coordinated system layout. However, the wall openings are not directly linked to the ductwork or piping, so any revisions require careful attention to the openings that have already been modeled.

[RSomppi]

You are correct in that it didn't answer the question from the architect above but it does answer your question (as MEP engineer). He is describing how it is usually done.