EVEN BETTER TOGETHER: Collaboration between Architects and Structural Engineers in Revit

EVEN BETTER TOGETHER:Collaboration between Architects and

Structural Engineers in Revit

Irina Wong

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

I’m an expat architect who is now the BIM Coordinator at Degenkolb Engineers, a structural engineering firm in Washington, Oregon, and California.

My roles include coordinating Revit projects across disciplines, managing the firm’s BIM practice, maintaining responsibility for company-wide best practices, providing technical support, and leading the development of the firm’s future BIM direction.

In short, I plan models, I build models, fix models, and, more often than I will care to admit, crash models.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Make informed decisions at project startup and maintain strong communication through completion.

• Improve your workflow by understanding the perspectives and expectations of other disciplines.

• Develop a Building Information Model that implements proper Revit techniques for improved design coordination.

RULES OF THE ROUNDTABLE• Share your experiences!

• Everyone is likely to have diverse experiences and unique lessons learned. Kindly respect the differences.

• I have an egg timer and I’m not afraid to use it.

SESSION OUTLINE

• The BIM Kickoff Meeting

• The Architects’ Use of the Model• The Structural Engineer’s Use of the Model

• Tips for the Structural Engineers• Tips for the Architects

THE BIM KICKOFF MEETING


• Who?• Why?• What?


• Who?– A facilitator to manage the entire meeting– From each discipline:

• Manager(s) of project• Manager(s) of digital model

– Identify team members and roles• Who will field the design questions?• Who will field the BIM questions?


• Why?– Manage expectations and goals– No surprises– Set timeline for workflow


• What?– Articulate model usages

• Design documentation• Presentation material• As-built 3D model• Energy/structural/etc. analysis• ???


• What?– Articulate model expectations

• AIA E202 BIM Protocol Exhibit

STARTING OFF WELL – THE BIM KICKOFF MEETING• What?

– Articulate model expectations• AIA E202 BIM Protocol Exhibit

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PROJECT MILESTONES

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MODEL ELEMENT AUTHORA / S / C / M / E / P




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2LEVEL OF DEVELOPMENT100 (SD)200 (DD)300 (CD)400 (FABRICATION)500 (AS-BUILT)

LOD100 Model Content: overall building massingPurpose: Whole building analysis including volume, building orientation, and SF costs.

LOD200 Model Content: approximate quantities, size, shape, location and orientation. Purpose: analysis of defined systems and general performance objectives.

LOD300 Model Content: attributes and parameters defined by the owner.Purpose: Estimating, construction coordination for clash detection, scheduling, and visualization.

LOD400 Model Content: fabrication-ready detail.Purpose: construction and fabrication of project components, including MEP systems.

LOD500 Model Content: Central data storage of project, including completed parameters and attributes.Purpose: Building maintenance and operations systems.




100 A 100 A 200 S 200 S 300 S 300 S

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• Custom in-house Level of Development Matrix

8. Floor framing11. Braces13. Gusset plates14. Column base plates

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PROJECT MILESTONES




None: Info is not part of scope.

C/M: Info will be represented in our model & drawings, but it will be only copy/monitored from the architect.

Notes: Info will be represented in General Notes and other written forms of communication.

2D drawings: Info will be drafted in 2D drawings, details, and annotations; may be supplemented by notes.

Parametric: Info will exist in the parametric values of 3D objects, but will not be modeled.

3D: Info will be modeled in 3D; may be supplemented by 2D drawings and notes.




1. FYI2. For coordination3. For construction4. Fabrication5. Record drawings


• WHAT?– Articulate model expectations



• WHAT?– Establish collaboration procedure

• Designate Revit origin, coordinates, elevation• Set the model-sharing timeline• Refrain from “throwing the model over the fence”• Decide upon milestone coordination meetings


• What?– Determine post-design procedure

• Discuss BIM’s role in the CA process• Clarify As-Built or Record Drawing requirements

what’s your perspective on coordination techniques and issues at project kickoff?

THE ARCHITECT’S USE OF THE MODEL

THE ARCHITECTS’ USE OF THE MODEL

• THE REVIT ARCHITECTURE ENVIRONMENT (AKA THE BDS 2013 “ARCHITECTURE” TAB)

– The tab contains commonly-used architectural elements.– Some components (“Wall” and “Floor”) are named alike in

Structure and Architecture.• “Architecture” is non-loadbearing• “Structure” is loadbearing

• COORDINATION AND CLASH DETECTION– 3D views– Section boxes– Visibility/Graphics modifications


• PRODUCTION– Presentation materials– Construction Documents

• 2D and 3D views


for the architects in the room – how do you use the model?

THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEER’S USE OF THE MODEL

THE SE’S USE OF THE MODEL

• THE REVIT STRUCTURE ENVIRONMENT(AKA THE “STRUCTURE” TAB IN BDS 2013)

• The tab contains structural elements.

MODELING: THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS’ PERSPECTIVE

• MODEL CATEGORIES: A FEW ITEMS OF NOTE– Structural Framing

X X

MODELING: THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS’ PERSPECTIVE

• MODEL CATEGORIES: A FEW ITEMS OF NOTE– No “roofs”

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS’ MODELING

• ANALYTICAL MODEL– It‘s a simplified 3D representation of the full engineering

description of a structural physical model.

STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS’ MODELING

• COORDINATION AND CLASH DETECTION– We turn off everything in the architect’s model but:

• Walls• Floors and floor openings• Roofs• Grids/Levels

– Then, we look at the updates that affect our design.


• COORDINATION AND CLASH DETECTION - CHALLENGES– Copy/Monitor

“Elements deleted?! But I see the grids. Why does it say they’re deleted?”


• COORDINATION AND CLASH DETECTION - CHALLENGES– Roof slopes (or anything sloped)

for the SEs in the room – how do you use the model?

TIPS FOR THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS

TIPS FOR THE SEs

• CHECK YOUR WORK IN 3D.

Looks about right… … well, not really.

TIPS FOR THE SEs

• THE CLIENT MIGHT WANT PRETTY PICTURES.

Structural Model Finished Rendering

what tips do you have for the SEs in the room?

TIPS FOR THE ARCHITECTS


• REMEMBER THE DECISIONS MADE DURING THE BIM KICKOFF MEETING– Level of Development agreements– Collaboration procedures

• Origin• Coordinates• Sectors• North• Elevation Datum• Etc.

SURVEY POINT• Once Acquired or Published,

it becomes the “Shared Coordinate”

PROJECT BASE POINT• Specific to each file• “Origin-to-Origin”


• COLLABORATION PROCEDURES: THE ORIGIN POINT– Where is it geographically?– Use Shared Coordinates or Internal Origin?


• MAINTAIN THE DECISIONS MADE DURING THE BIM KICKOFF MEETING– Keep the origin, datum, sectors, and north– Modify Copy/Monitored elements – don’t delete.– Remember the LOD agreements

• MODEL WELL– Maintain clean dimensions– Use logical tools for modeling

what tips do you have for the architects in the room?

open discussion

Questions?

Irina Wong