Room loading with FFE: Workset or Link file

[pfaudler]

Hello,

I am new to worksets and trying to get my head around this for our requirements. Currently we are doing our room loading with furniture in Acad based on Revit exported G.A.s. Now we are thinking to do this in Revit for the next project. I am putting together a workflor for it. I need some help.

Is having Workset better for this instead of having a seperate file for furniture and copy/monitor Arch. shell model? I want to achieve room loaded elevations and room data sheets from Revit when we load rooms with furniture. What is the general practice for this type of workflow?

Thanks in anticipation of your help.

[Scott Womack]

If you want everything in one file, then a separate workset, or worksets is the only real way to go. Especially since work sets are available for use in a view filter. Worksets are NOT available for use in filtering a schedule.

The other possiblity, is for the furniture to be in a separate model, linked into the main Revit model. You have a little less control over visibility this way, but interior designers, are not then in the main model, and cannot screw up itemsin the main model. You'll have to pick your poisen, based on your companies requirements.

[pfaudler]

Scott, That is really helpful. You are always helful.
Thanks very much.

I am quite inclined to link method but then how would you run multi-category schedule that shows room number,name, furniture,electricals etc. in one given room?
Please see attached PDFs to understand it better. This is what we currently do in Acad and issue to the client. Can we do the similar thing in Revit using links?

Thank you very much for your help.

[Scott Womack]

You can no longer in 2009 copy/moniotr rooms, so, based upon your need to schedule equipment by room, it might have to be in the main model. You could try one room's work in a linked file to see what info is transfered. Maybe, since the room is in the main model, it would understand what equipment in the linked file falls within the main model's room. I have to admit, I have not tried this exact senario before, so I'm not certain of what would schedule

[pfaudler]

Scott,
Thank you very much for your quick responses. Lets see what other experts say about this?

thanks

[twiceroadsfool]

Linked Files is a good way to go in this situation BUT:

It will NOT report what room anything is in, if the room is across a Linked File. It doesnt work either way, between two files. If you stipulate that there are 2 models: ARCH and FURN: A Furniture schedule in the FURN model will not report the Rooms from ARCH (even when set to include Linked File Elements), and a Furniture schedule in ARCH set to include Linked File elements will not report the Rooms from the ARCH model either.

So you have a few options:

1. Use File Links, and manually coordinate the rooms and room numbers. Either using Room Objects or some other way. You could set the ARCH model Link to be Room Bounding, then Copy the room objects over, but it would have to be manually checked, etc.

Using File links could have a lot of benefits and caveats depending on the workflow, and what kind of finishes you need to do. If its just furniture, it might not be worth it. If its finishes and materials too, it might be beneficial. You can Copy Monitor the walls and have the NEW type by sans-finishes of the Old Type, so that finishes could be put in as seperate walls. (Make sure you know all the crummy things about CM if you go this way, like how they only align CTC, and that openings for families follow the EXTENTS of door and window families, not the openings...)

2. Use a workset, as mentioned by Mr. Womack. Realize that if you use a workset, you need to cover all the bases. Its not a workset that would be UNLOADED, its a workset that would be NOT VISIBLE BY DEFAULT in all views. You could set up view templates to manage which views had *finishes* and which ones did not.

If you didnt want it off by default in all views, you could also engage Filters, making sure all of your furniture and Finish Elements have a common value of some parameter. Parameter "Comments" could say FINISH or something.

Ive done both with varying successes. You just have to decide early, and stick with it...

[pfaudler]

Aaron,

Thanks for your detailed reply as usual. Did you have a look at those two PDFs that i posted earlier? Ideally, that is what i want to achieve. I am pulling my hairs since last few weeks and trying to setup a workflow for this.

Currently, We have taht information in ACAD and we use ACAD blot on called ADB and Codebook to do that process. It is very efficient in ACAD world. But in Revit, i have not idea how it will work. We have all Room related information like area, furniture, air, lighting, noise, safety, wall/ceiling/floor finishes, door/window finishes/specs etc.

I am really interested to get these things in Revit room object and generate room loaded plans and elevations from Revit. I know Revit has that power but cant seem to find a way.

Thanks

[twiceroadsfool]

Rahul-

Yes, l looked at the PDF's. As i mentioned above though, there are several ways to do exactly what you are suggesting, each will just have a different workflow and will require some manual coordination... Which isnt really avoidable, unless you bury everything in one model, which is certainly an option.

1. The moment you talk about linked files, you cannot show the ROOM INFORMATION and the FURNITURE INFORMATION in the same schedule, if theyre in different files. Not without some manual work. If you want them in linked files, consider copying the rooms. Otherwise, you can create the FURNITURE schedule (the one on your second attachment, with the elevations) in either file... It just wont have the room infor. unless youve copied the room over.

2. The first attachment could just be a glorified room schedule. You could even populate a lot of those types of data fields with key schedules, to keep the typing to a minimum.

3. Your other option, which will work as long as you dont mind handling the management aspect of it, and the linked-room-bounding-related slowdowns, is the following: Build the shell in the architectural model. Then, create the "Room model," and put the rooms AND the furniture in that file. That makes the scheduling a breeze. Then you can go back to your shell package and do the schedules, OR do them in the linked file.

I typically dont use room bounding linked files... I either put the room in the linked file, or i dont palce the room. So im not sure on a LARGE model how long that workflow will hold up... Ive never had a need. Typically if im placing the room, i put it IN the native file. That seems to make the most sense. But then again, i normally put the furniture in the same model.

But give it a whirl... Or go with the workset idea.

[cliff collins]

We link in our entire Interior Design model into a Shell/Core model.

You can schedule across linked models:

To include elements from linked models in a schedule:
1.In the Project Browser, right-click the schedule name, and select Properties.
2.In the Element Properties dialog, for Fields, click Edit.
3.Select the Include elements in linked files option.
4.To include project information from a linked model, for Select Available Fields From, select Project Information. Add the desired fields from the Available Fields list to the Scheduled Fields list.
5.To include the linked model instance name or the file name, select RVT Links in the Select Available Fields From list. Add the desired fields from the Available Fields list to the Scheduled Fields list.

cheers.......

[twiceroadsfool]

Cliff-

What im getting at, is in the furniture schedule it will not report the ROOM from the other model, that the furniture is *inside.* Furniture cant be *inside* a room that is in a linked file, which would mean that the room and furn need to be in the same file, hence my proposed solutions above...