Rework Area Tool akin Rooms and Spaces

[dnenovMXKU9]

2D Area Tool is an abomination and a remnant from a bygone era. To be more in line with a holistic BIM approach, rework the Area tool to be the same as Room/Space tools.

• A volume that can autodetect Walls as bounding elements.
• The ability to contain Rooms/Spaces within.
• An Area is to a Room what an Apartment is to a Livingroom.

The technology is clearly there with Rooms/Spaces. The need is obvious, as Areas are an indispensable part of Revit right now. 

Thank you.

[DGraham2]

Hi,

While I agree that at area tool and how it functions should be revisited, having it function the same as the room or space tools defeats the purpose of the area tool. The primary difference stems from where the boundaries are drawn.

Rooms and spaces are volumetric, ie they extend to the internal face of finish and provide a volume for mechanical calculations as well as the area of wall/floor/ceiling requiring a finish. They do not include the space/volume taken up by internal walls and columns but do include the finish area.

Areas, in my experience, are used in determining the gross or leasable area which includes the space taken up by walls, columns etc. and often, if not always, have a different boundary than rooms and spaces. Associating a volume to an area that includes solid walls, columns etc. will provide incorrect volumes and finish areas.

I do agree that the ability to associate rooms to area (Bedroom 02 [room] > Unit 2314 [area]) would be useful and would allow for unit level take-offs or calculations which could be invaluable when providing finish options in a condo tower for example.

Cheers