Master the Art of AHU Family Creation
A Live Hands-On Training Session!
One of the top three buzzkills/obstacles/pain points in Revit is finding and using decent equipment families.
Specifically, air handling equipment like RTUs, AHUs, MAUs, ERVs, etc. (not to mention furnaces, fan coil units, dehu units, reheat coils...)
There are a million different possible configurations.
Some manufacturers have content available online, some don't. Some have them behind accounts or 3rd party plugins you have to sign up for and download. Some you can only get families emailed via a rep.
Some of these families work fine, but many do not. Almost none of them are customizable. Most of them are way too detailed -- down to the bolt heads -- and bog down your model.
You can spend hours and hours on every single project looking for and fiddling around with equipment families -- and still not be happy with the results.
(Ask me how I know.)
The only way to solve this unique Revit problem is to
- Learn the dark arts of Family Creation and
- Develop a kit of parts that you can use to rapidly generate any equipment family you need.
I consider this skill (and building your own stash of high quality parts) one of if not the most important skills to level up your Revit game.
That skill is what this event is all about.
What You Will Learn:
- Basic Family Creation from scratch
- How to use reference planes to drive geometry
- Instance vs. Type parameters
- Controlling family visibility with yes/no parameters
- How to nest one family into another (this is THE key for the 'kit-of-parts' family concept) and map dimension parameters
- How to properly assign Duct and Pipe Connection settings
- Family creation best practices and methods (sketch first; flex as you go; KISS/WAIMT; don't use "-"s, but do make your parameter names long and descriptive; etc)
- How to make Shared Parameters
- How to make Equipment Schedules
- How to Filter and Sort Equipment Schedules
What You Will Get
- Recordings, transcripts, and notes of all the sessions
- All the families I make during the sessions
- My own "Magic RTU" Families and kit of parts
- Several of my own RTU Schedules and Shared Parameters file
Who Is This For?
If you prepare design documents in Revit and want to level up your game, this Event is for you. If you're a drafter, an engineer, or even an owner who wants to learn more about this critical process of Revit mechanical modeling, join us.
You'll leave the session with a much better understanding of Revit Families and you'll be armed with the knowledge required to become a force of nature in Revit.
Format
Session 1: Geometry and Connectors. 90min. Wednesday, 1pm Pacific / 4pm Eastern.
- How to create a parametric family from scratch
- How to nest components into another family
- How to drive geometry with parameters to make your family infinitely customizable without having to start over every time
- How Duct and Pipe connectors work, and how to set them properly
- Controlling visibility of family geometry with parameters
- QnA
Session 2: Shared Parameters and Schedules. 90min. Thursday, 9am Pacific / Noon Eastern.
- Creating Shared Parameters (do's and don'ts)
- Plugins for managing Shared Parameters
- Creating and Managing Equipment Schedules
- Custom filters and sorting tricks (we'll demonstrate on a schedule for a VRV/VRF system)
- How to deal with Schedule notes and smart schedules?
- QnA
Each session will have a package of assets and at-home exercise for you to do. You'll have a week after the sessions to send me your "homework" files and I'll provide video feedback.
See You in the Live Session!
Got questions? Reach out to me at [email protected]
-Tyler Disney
