You’ve raised a valid point if the scope is limited to a few foundation walls, then 2D detailing may appear faster because you can reuse principle details. However, the strength of Revit rebar modeling becomes clear at project scale and in coordination.
With Revit, once you set up rebar shapes, cover settings, and rebar constraints, you can use parametric families and rebar sets. Instead of modeling each wall separately, you can automate placement by applying rules, duplication, or Dynamo scripts — this way 50 walls don’t mean 50 times the work.
The advantage is that every rebar is not only drawn but also counted, scheduled, and checked for clashes automatically. This eliminates quantity takeoff errors and reduces site issues.
In our high-rise project example, the upfront modeling took more time than 2D drafting, but the payback was huge: automatic bar bending schedules, error-free coordination with MEP/structural elements, and a significant cut in RFIs.
So while 2D is faster in drafting simple walls, Revit rebar is more reliable, scalable, and integrated especially on large or complex projects.
