Curtain Wall Conundrums

[morganp]

I have a few questions about how to generate a high-rise curtain wall in Revit:


1. How do you create unitized panels that include mullions?

2. How do you tie the curtain wall module to the floor-to-floor height so that the horizontal grids automatically update for varying floor-to-floor heights?

3. How do you group curtain walls within a single floor so that the glazing for that floor can be repeated and updated globally?

4. How do you group one half of a symmetrical high-rise tower curtain wall so that it can be mirrored to the other side?

5. What is the most efficient way to create a curved curtain wall?

6. Has anyone gone through the full process of producing a building permit set for a high-rise curtain wall using Revit?


What it boils down to is that I have been frustrated by my attempts to draw a custom curtain wall for a thirty-five story high rise. The curtain wall is curved, and it is also interrrupted at balcony projections. The curtain wall in question also contains about 5 or 6 different panel unit types.

Over.

[mmodernc]

post a few visuals to explain each point
have you looked at all the new features, done any tutorials
have you used any other programme that can do all of the above

[sbrown]

See below for comments

I have a few questions about how to generate a high-rise curtain wall in Revit:


1. How do you create unitized panels that include mullions?

Create a cutrain wall type with the mullion spacing you want, then replace the panels of your main curtain wall with this type. OR build your mullions into a panel family(I believe this is easier and more powerful)

2. How do you tie the curtain wall module to the floor-to-floor height so that the horizontal grids automatically update for varying floor-to-floor heights?

If you make it as a wall going from level to level then it will do this, you will then have to array this up your model, don't have a mullion on the top or bot so you don't get overlaps


3. How do you group curtain walls within a single floor so that the glazing for that floor can be repeated and updated globally?

Use groups. Group the curtain wall, then array it up.


4. How do you group one half of a symmetrical high-rise tower curtain wall so that it can be mirrored to the other side?

Again use groups, highlight what you want, click group, then mirror.

5. What is the most efficient way to create a curved curtain wall?

Truely curved then you have to build panels or easier is to make a wall system that is only your glass thicknes, then add wall sweeps using mullion profiles as needed. Embed other wall types as needed.

6. Has anyone gone through the full process of producing a building permit set for a high-rise curtain wall using Revit? I'm currently working on a 15 story, I've created 46 story curtain walls, I found it easiest to work with custom panels vs adding mullions.


What it boils down to is that I have been frustrated by my attempts to draw a custom curtain wall for a thirty-five story high rise. The curtain wall is curved, and it is also interrrupted at balcony projections. The curtain wall in question also contains about 5 or 6 different panel unit types.

Build it as a family if it is too much trouble. If you can post a sketch, I'd be happy to try to create it.

Good luck.

Over.

[morganp]

I have uploaded a sketch of the aforementioned tower project.

[morganp]

post a few visuals to explain each point
have you looked at all the new features, done any tutorials
have you used any other programme that can do all of the above

Above, I have posted an axon and a typical floor plan of the curtain wall high-rise in question.

[sbrown]

I'm not really seeing the problems. Its not a straight out of the box application, but once you know your radius(import your plan into the family editor) It should be quite simple to create a family for each piece of your tower. The balcony would be one family, It looks like 28 floors are the same, so thats just a handful of families arrayed up. Or a curtain wall grouped, then arrayed up. It looks like a nice model. Is the performance the issue? Are you wanting to study various radius? If so, families are really the way to go. Again, nice looking project.

ps, sometimes it helps to look at building elements as simple extruded geometries, what I see on the screen is actually easier to model than a 3d toilet. You wouldn't hesitate to use copy the toilet 28 times, so don't hesitate to make a family that includes your various glass panels, door panels, mullions, etc.

[morganp]

It looks like a nice model. Is the performance the issue? Are you wanting to study various radius? If so, families are really the way to go.

The model was created using 'Sketchup.'

Using Revit groups, I attempted to build one-half of one floor of curtain wall. I then arrayed that group and subsequently crashed my machine.

Questions:

1. What kind of families are you suggesting I use? Should they be panel families, or wall families, or window families?

2. How does one create a block-like family that includes all of the elements of an cantilevered balcony, for example?

3. Why are groups so testy? Shouldn't they work like AutoCAD blocks?

4. Would Revit prefer to draw curtain wall families to their full vertical extents (ballooned) than to draw them one floor at a time?


Anyway, when our firm makes the full transition to Revit, I hope to get trained beyond the tutorials. I have been through most of the tutorials, but now I need to go to a real classroom.

[sbrown]

See Below


Using Revit groups, I attempted to build one-half of one floor of curtain wall. I then arrayed that group and subsequently crashed my machine.

Questions:

1. What kind of families are you suggesting I use? Should they be panel families, or wall families, or window families?

Depends, I usually set up the curtain wall to span the entire height of the building(or at least the number of floors that have the same module). then set it to have the grid breaks at the floor heights and any other grid dim. horizontally that makes sense, then you can make a curtain panel family with everything you want in it, you can even load furniture into it if you want. then swap out the generic panels with this new panel(in your curved case this is trickier, but not awful)

2. How does one create a block-like family that includes all of the elements of an cantilevered balcony, for example?

This could be built into the curtain panel family or what we did on our 46 story tower was a generic model family with various subcategories to control materials and visibility.

3. Why are groups so testy? Shouldn't they work like AutoCAD blocks?

Groups are bad in revit, I try to avoid them if I can.

4. Would Revit prefer to draw curtain wall families to their full vertical extents (ballooned) than to draw them one floor at a time?

Absolutely.


Anyway, when our firm makes the full transition to Revit, I hope to get trained beyond the tutorials. I have been through most of the tutorials, but now I need to go to a real classroom.[/QUOTE]