Site plans with in Revit

[roscopeco2000]

Hello I know Revit can create site plans but is I wonder if this is better done in autocad and then inported in Revit? Revit is limited in it's 2d drafting tools ie no polylines, no layer control. Am I just being old fashioned in this thinking ? Has anyone got some examples I could see?

[ennujozlagam]

@roscopeco2000  hello, yes that what i did i link site plan in to my revit file, you cannot model everything like existing structure, existing elect. post, existing drainage. etc etc... into revit it will take you time to do that. so the easy way is to link any changes in autocad you can easily reload. thanks

[roscopeco2000]

But you could use detail lines to create a site plan on the site elevation level, but is generally people would use AutoCAD for this?

[SteveKStafford]

Civil engineers either use, (if we're focused on Autodesk products) AutoCAD or Civil 3D, which is the product Autodesk believes is the correct choice for them. I am aware that some firms (very small proportion I believe) use Revit in some fashion too.

AutoCAD technically isn't any better suited to the task because it is a general purpose drafting tool. You can draw things representing molecular biology, ships, or a dishwasher...in 2D or 3D. I learned AutoCAD first and I thought it was an awesome program back then. It took a bloody long time to master. Then I used some other products and noticed the contrasting approach each one took to solve the same problems. You can draw anything in Revit too. It has a bias toward building elements though. If you're only ever going to draw 2D lines it's probably not worth the effort to switch.

It's true that Revit doesn't have a polyline, but a series of lines can be manipulated like one. In Revit I use toposurface to generate contours instead of drawing lines. Usually I create it from the work (DWG usually) of a surveyor. Then again I've seen people twist railings into representing a variety of things, other than a railing, that a polyline might be used for.

Revit approaches tasks differently because it was designed by different people than AutoCAD (different company originally too) and because it set out to solve the problem of drafting differently too. Also once we master a software program we usually find it's possible to accomplish things that, initially, seemed impossible.

If you are a civil engineer then you ought to be examining all the products that claim to suit your profession and decide which one fits your work best. Revit could be a good fit just because it may help you work with clients that also use Revit. Then again you might find Civil 3D is better suited because it helps you deal with engineering problems Revit ignores, like road alignments or hydrology. If you do landscaping Revit might actually be a good fit, check out Laura's blog.

[barthbradley]

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@roscopeco2000 wrote:

Hello I know Revit can create site plans but is I wonder if this is better done in autocad and then inported in Revit? Revit is limited in it's 2d drafting tools ie no polylines, no layer control. Am I just being old fashioned in this thinking ? Has anyone got some examples I could see?

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Are you comparing modeling a terrain in AutoCAD using the polylines and lofting, with modeling a terrain in Revit by placing individual points?  If so, and we're voting; I’d vote Revit all day long and twice on Sunday – especially if you’re modeling it in AutoCAD just to import it into Revit.  As far as for examples; there are plenty of videos tutorials online that walk you through both methods. 

[roscopeco2000]

Hello Barth no not modelling 3D topographically just creating a 2D site plan to show terrains types and boundaries.Dont get me wrong Revit for architectural stuff wins hands down. I am just still not convinced if its best practice to do all of the site work,drainage drawings etc in AutoCAD then link it to a Revit file then also link in Revit house models or create site layouts using details lines still confused

[barthbradley · Accepted solution]

Sounds like you’re describing Plot Plans. I’ve done literally thousands in my career; all with AutoCAD using the work of the projects’ Civil Engineers (e.g. Improvement Plans, Grading Plans, Final Map, etc.). Not one time has the Civil ever been delivered in RVT format. So I can see your point, and would strongly advocate for your approach.  Keep your site planning in DWG format and link.

[roscopeco2000]

Thanks yes that's what I suspected it's just my new company are keen to transfer everything to Revit. It just I could see plot plans being a pain Revit as you don't have any layer control.My understanding is Revit is more for the architectural site of things ..

[roscopeco2000]

I am actually a architectural technician so I will producing elevations, sections, floor plans. All of which I can produce fine in revit. It's just the production of site layouts ( master plans) make more sense to do in AutoCAD to me, it seems you agree with me .

[SteveKStafford]

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@roscopeco2000 wrote:

It just I could see plot plans being a pain Revit as you don't have any layer control.My understanding is Revit is more for the architectural site of things ..

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It has two kinds of layer control, one is called Object Styles (3D elements) and the other is called Line Styles (basic lines). If you create specific Linestyles then you can control them in views much like Layers. If you use 3D elements or line based families then Object Styles offer the same kind of Layer control.

[roscopeco2000]

Ok thanks Steve but your preference would still be to do site plans in AutoCAD then import into Revit then link in Revit models?

[SteveKStafford · Accepted solution]

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@roscopeco2000 wrote:

It's just the production of site layouts ( master plans) make more sense to do in AutoCAD to me, it seems you agree with me .

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Agree in part. If the majority of the work is done by someone else in other software then it doesn't make much sense to do it over in Revit. If I'm doing all the work I might have done it in AutoCAD 15 years ago but not today. I won't give you any grief for choosing a different path than me. I can't decide for you, it's your call (and your employer).

[roscopeco2000]

That's fine thanks I just wanted different opinions on best way to approach

[ToanDN · Accepted solution]

If I don't have a Civil consultant I would do the Site plans in Revit:

- Polylines?  Okay I will chalk that one as AutoCAD is the winner.  Although, one big benefit of polylines is their phycical width, which will not come in when you link /import the CAD file in Revit.

- Layers = Object Styles and/or Line Styles, so no real winner here.

- You may already have the site content blocks in CAD and none in Revit so it can be slower if you draw the Site in Revit initially.  But in the long run, you will have the same Revit content built up gradually from one project to another.

- Now is where Revit shines: Property lines and annotation; Spot coordinate, spot slope, and spot elevation; Floors with modifiable sub-elements for various elevations ( I don't even mention topo surface and their subset of tools).

[roscopeco2000]

Thanks toan ur advice as always is greatly received. I see the consensus is to use Revit i will push forward with this then. I have only used Revit for elevations,plans,details . So doing site plans in Revit was outside my comfort zone but now I know about line types. I can create multiple drawings for drainage, landscaping etc. Thanks again guys particularly toan you have really helped my journey into rebit. Many Xmas all

[Viveka_CD]

Hi @roscopeco2000

I'm glad to hear that you've found the forum helpful and that you appreciate the recommendations from experts on this thread.

Here is more product information on creating site plan in Revit and a video by Brett Grinkmeyer

Happy X'Mas to you too!

Regards,

[rick_ferrara]

Our work flow is to import a cleaned up version of the Civil Engineer's site plan from DWG to Revit.  Historically civil uses hundreds of layers and has significant content we don't need.  We copy their DWG, and clean it, flatten everything, strip the TIN model, all the nodes, and move all the utility items to a single utility layer.  

What I am looking for is a way to set Revit up to read in the data on the layer "property line" in the DWG and then draw all that layer content with a bold property line (scaled correctly), read everything on "easements" and draw them in a medium weight dashed line (scaled properly), and so on...

How can this be done?