Classification of Revit Families

Nowadays, most job postings for architectural professionals require knowledge or expertise in Revit. But as popular as it is in the industry, it is still hard to find qualified and experienced Revit users. In my 10 years of experience as a Revit user, I’ve observed that the problem lies in any of the following factors:

• Lack of knowledge: New users have knowledge of the software but don’t know how to put a building together.
• Aversion to change: Users of CAD software (AutoCAD, Vectorworks, Sketchup, etc.) are reluctant to change or don’t want to change. AutoCAD has been around since 1982; by 1986, it became the standard for computer-aided design used in the AEC industry before the advent of BIM software. As such, users of the program have a hard time transitioning to Revit because they are so used to AutoCAD’s fast redraws, quick drawing methods and typed commands. They tend to compare AutoCAD with Revit.
• 3D aptitude: Users who want to change but don’t have the aptitude for 3D. I’ve observed that certain users, no matter how much you train them, simply cannot grasp the Revit 3D concepts. They are not able to visualize in 3D. Training time takes longer for these individuals.
• Time: Users who don’t want to invest time in training themselves.
• Impatience: Users being impatient in the learning process; those who think they can browse through the learning process quickly, thereby resulting in errors (e.g., carelessly deleting an entire floor or link). By contrast, those who study the software, take notes, practice and experiment, tend to grasp the software very easily.
• Lack of training: Previous users of other CAD software who have migrated and transitioned to Revit with minimal or no training at all.
• Low mastery: Users who are thrust into learning the software (in a workplace, on an actual project) face a surplus of mistakes, errors and confusion as they don’t practice and experiment at home or in their spare time. They don’t master the program and are just barely able to apply what they’ve learned from their training. Most of the time, actual work involves creating new walls, annotations, revisions and more relatively simple stuff. As a result, there is no time for studying and learning Design Options, Phasing, creating families, etc.

Having worked with large architectural firms, I’ve observed that unless you are specifically hired to be a project manager, designer, or project coordinator with Revit experience, you will be thrown into generating CDs. In the CDs phase, maybe 10 percent of effort, if even that, is devoted to family creation. This is because the company already has a collection of families or there is a Revit guru who handles the families. Thus, when given the task, family creation becomes a nerve-wracking and arduous task. In this series, I will go over the process of family creation and how to study and create them in a methodical way. This series will consist of:

Part 1  Classification of Revit Families

Part 2  The Family Editor User Interface

• Includes Properties Palette, Project Browser, Viewcube, Navigation Bar, Steering Wheel and View Control Bar

Part 3  The Ribbon, Quick Access Toolbar, Keyboard Shortcuts and Snaps

Part 4 Work Planes

Part 5 Dimensions

Part 6  Modifying and Editing Tools

• Includes the Draw panel

Part 7  Modeling

• Includes tutorials, samples, etc.
• Parameters

Part 8  Materials

Part 9  Introduction to Conceptual Massing

Part 10 How to Practice Revit Family Modeling

Part 1 — Classification of Revit Families

Families are classified into three types:

These are basic components used to create a building project. Examples are ceilings, walls, floors, stairs, railings, ramps and topo surfaces (see Figure 1).

They are also elements used in documentation such as levels, grids, callouts, tags and detail components. System families are built into the software and cannot be deleted. Their types, properties and behavior are predefined by Revit and cannot be changed. They can, however, be duplicated to form new types with editable parameters. They also host component families that are hosted in other families, such as doors and windows.

These are models created outside the project environment using the Family Editor (Figure 2). They are loadable families that can be placed, duplicated, deleted and modified. They can be host-based or freestanding.

Host-based families are components that attach or host to system families such as walls, ceilings, floors or any surface in the project environment. Creating component families is the main focus of this article.

• In-Place Families: These families are components created in a project environment. The creation process is the same as creating a loadable family from scratch in the Family Editor. This process is accessed by clicking the Model In-Place command (Architecture>Build>Component) in a Project file. This feature is provided so users can create unique families specific to a project such as custom parapets, roof elements and casework. See the curved shelf in Figure 3.

1. Create your in-place family (Architecture>Build>Component>Model In-Place)

2. While in the editing mode, select and group your in-place components. (Create>Create Group).

3. While still in the editing mode, select the grouped components then click the Application button (the R Revit logo on the top left); click Save As>Library>Group.

4. In the Save Group dialog box, you have the option to rename the group or keep the group name. Notice that the file type is .rfa (Figure 4).

Note: Do not choose Library>Family. That function is for saving all the families (in the current project you’re working on) in a designated folder on your computer.

The massing environment in Revit is where the design begins. In the initial stages of a project, conceptualization can be done using Revit’s massing tools. The building modeling tools and system families in the project environment can also be used for design concepts. However, they are limited because they lack the tools for creating abstract mass forms. By using the massing tools, flexible and organic shapes can be created (Figure 5 A). The final mass form can then be turned into Revit system components such as curtain walls, floors and roofs (Figure 5 B). Mass Forms can be created as In-Place or Loadable mass families.

Conclusion

In the two eBooks I released in 2012 and 2015, I emphasized the following:

Being proficient in Revit family modeling is like learning how to play a musical instrument. It doesn’t matter if you are a beginner, a prodigy, or a seasoned musician. You have to do the time. By this, I mean practicing for countless number of hours, learning how to read music, doing the boring scales, getting to know the instrument intimately, joining a band, etc. No amount of Revit tutorials, theoretical knowledge, research and literature will make you a good Revit modeler unless you actually sit down and create as much families as you can. There is no shortcut.