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Teaser Tuesday - Revit Import 2.0


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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Development continues constantly on many of the features added in previous versions. One of the features getting it’s 2.0 upgrades this version, as part of our recently renewed efforts to ensure usability of existing features, is Revit Import.

 

You now have even more  collaboration options when importing a Revit file.. In Vectorworks 2018, you can now import Revit building objects such as Doors, Windows, Roofs and Walls as native Vectorworks objects. As well as import Revit Textures as Native Renderworks Textures.


Screen Shot 2017-08-15 at 8.11.22 AM.png

Screen Shot 2017-08-15 at 8.11.40 AM.png

 

In addition to those, you also will have additional control over what is imported and how. In the Revit Import Options dialog you have several new options. First, you can choose the Views you wish to import. Active View Only, will import Revit information from the current active view, in the Revit file. This can be 3D model views, or 2D drawings views.

 

Or you can choose to import the entire 3D model using the 3D Model View option. If the Revit file has a 3D model, it will imported into the Vectorworks file. Design Layers for each of the 3D Views will be created.

Screen Shot 2017-08-15 at 8.11.22 AM copy.png

 

You can choose to import 2D and 3D Views. This will bring in the 3D model views on Design layers and create Sheet Layers with the 2D views.

 

In addition to choosing your desired views, you can also control the type of geometry that is imported. With the Create Vectorworks Native Objects enabled, Revit Doors, Windows, Walls, and Roofs will be converted to Native Vectorworks Doors, Windows, Walls and Roofs.

Vectorworks Walls will be generated with any corresponding Wall Components.

 

Vectorworks 2018 on the left, A360 Viewer on the right:

Screen Shot 2017-08-15 at 8.11.01 AM.png

 

For other objects, you can choose whether to import them as Mesh objects, 3D Polygons or convert to Solid Objects.

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So...here is my previous experience with Revit import - I find on Bimobject a door or window I want. Let's say from the Velfac range. It doesn't have a Vectorworks specific version so I download the Revit version.

 

Then I go to Revit import and import that window. And it does import, but it imports as some kind of mesh object, and this is essentially useless because it's not parametric; I can't tell it to be the specific size and configuration I'm after.

 

Am I understanding correctly that in 2018 when I do that Revit import, it'll import as a properly functioning parametric door or window object with all the profiles etc correct to the manufacturer design?

 

If so - great.

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5 minutes ago, line-weight said:

So...here is my previous experience with Revit import - I find on Bimobject a door or window I want. Let's say from the Velfac range. It doesn't have a Vectorworks specific version so I download the Revit version.

 

Then I go to Revit import and import that window. And it does import, but it imports as some kind of mesh object, and this is essentially useless because it's not parametric; I can't tell it to be the specific size and configuration I'm after.

Line-weight, in my experience very few BIM objects in Revit. Revit 'families' is as close as it gets. The reason is that it is not in AutoDesk's or the manufacturer's interests to do so. Vectorworks has a much more 'parametric' basic 'generic' core of objects that speeds up production in line with design practice. Revit 'prefers' designers to be too specific too early. VW opts for updating information during the design process, which is how as an architect I work. Revit prefers the designer to insert and replace with specific products even before they've been specified.

 

The very reason I rejected Revit as my BIM software of choice in the first place. But, as ever, hype succeeds over common sense.

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Totally agree - revit needs an army of people constantly making revit families for it to be effective and keep progress on projects moving forward. Modeling in revit is so arcane and the lack of any window or door tool forces you into either finding a family that will work or make one - and the clincher is you wouldn’t bother making a ‘dumb’ object in the family editor - you need to spend the time to make it parametric so it is useful beyond one use; depending on the complexity this can be vey time consuming.

i worked at a small practice that wanted to migrate from Autocad to Revit (at the constant pressure of the reseller...) and the boss just couldn’t get his head around the paradigm shift, which was fast hurtling to a showdown... so I quit!

This is really good news - I’ve still got loads of ‘dumb’ families I’d like to import - gas bottles, wall mounted instantaneous wasters heaters etc, but hadn’t taken the time to try out the import process after reading of the issues users were coming up against. If parametric properties were able to be converted that would be awesome; but I’m sure that would be either incredibly complex to the point of not being possible. One of my coolest families was a fully parametric manhole with three parametric pipe connectors... but boy, that took some time... with the modeling capabilities of VW it takes no time to knock up what I need, so one of the biggest fears I had with switching became a non issue. 

Aside fromm bimobject, revit city is a fantastic community driven resource with tonnes of stuff available for free as well.

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In Vectorworks 2018, you can now import Revit building objects such as Doors, Windows, Roofs and Walls as native Vectorworks objects.

 

I've never used Revit myself.

 

So, in fact, don't understand what the above statement actually means. What is a "Revit building object"? When it's a window, is it a parametric (Revit family?) object or a dumb object?

 

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Well I do hope that this will indeed be a big improvement over the initial offering to import Revit files.  It simply means more options are available to make my work easier.  In general this kind of item is low on the totem pole for me, but welcome none the less.

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OK @JimW - You deserve the benefit of the doubt, but....

I was super excited when this was announced last year - and it was basically unusable.  


Besides model door, wall, and window components being translated into native VW elements, has anything else been done to deal with the file size of everything else?  While I am curious how VW will deal with custom Revit door families, I am more curious how VW will deal with faucets and cladding.   Revit objects were simply too heavy to actually be used in practice.

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee
3 minutes ago, Tom Klaber said:

Besides model door, wall, and window components being translated into native VW elements, has anything else been done to deal with the file size of everything else?  While I am curious how VW will deal with custom Revit door families, I am more curious how VW will deal with faucets and cladding.   Revit objects were simply too heavy to actually be used in practice.


I have not worked with it heavily enough personally to firmly/independently verify (However the files I worked with to create the videos were noticeably snappier and more responsive this year after import) , but I will share this direct quote from the design documentation for this year:

"We expect that adding more natively converted objects will reduce the file size considerably. Additionally, converting 3D geometry presented with 3D polygons to solids or meshes also reduces the file size."

The same problems that caused file size increases were also contributing to the document slowness in most of the Revit issues I say over the past year.

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Doing a flat comparison importing the same file as objects in 2018 and with default settings in 2017 to see if I get a major size difference.

EDIT - Results from the raw import:

 

In 2017, the file imported and saved as a 200MB file.

In 2018, the file imported and saved as a 172MB file.

2017 on the left, 2018 on the right:

 

Top/Plan View:

2017_Plan.png 2018 Plan.png

 

OpenGL:

2017 OpenGL.png 2018 OpenGL.png

 

Wireframe:

2017 Wireframe.png 2018 Wireframe.png

 

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee
On 8/17/2017 at 2:50 PM, barkest said:

not sure if anyone there has 3DS Max but exporting to a 3DS file from an initial Revit file the doors end up being hundreds of single items. Is it possible to check what a door looks like if it comes from Revit and then goes into 3DS?

Apologies, I don't have access to 3DS at the moment, I'll ask.
 

On 8/15/2017 at 7:12 PM, michaelk said:

@JimW what does it do with a door or window that isn't possible in the native door and window tools?

It looks like it will take the geometry from the door and pack it into the Use Symbol Geometry option, giving you the parameters in the Object Info Palette of the original. If it does that, the object can't be edited parametrically any longer unfortunately.

 

On 8/17/2017 at 11:31 AM, nrkuhl said:

Will this work with structural elements?

It does not appear to at the moment, I'll confirm.

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3 hours ago, JimW said:

Doing a flat comparison importing the same file as objects in 2018 and with default settings in 2017 to see if I get a major size difference.

EDIT - Results from the raw import:

 

In 2017, the file imported and saved as a 200MB file.

In 2018, the file imported and saved as a 172MB file.

2017 on the left, 2018 on the right:

 

 

 

 

I will take 14%

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