COLDSTREAM SOFTWARE

FUNDAMENTALS AND
ESSENTIALS TRAINING
Revit MEP

September 10, 2008

This book is designed to be the basis of an instructor led training course in Revit MEP 2009. This
book is available from ColdStream Software, an Autodesk Registered Developer offering training and
implementation services for Autodesk products since 1989.
COPYRIGHT 2008 © COLDSTREAM SOFTWARE

ColdStream Software makes no warranty, either express or implied, including but not limited to any
implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose regarding these materials, and
makes such materials available solely on an “as-is” basis.

Published by ColdStream Software, Printed in the United States of America, all rights reserved.

PROPRIETARY RIGHTS

All rights, title and interest in and to the information, data, photographs, graphics, videos, training
manuals, and other material (collectively, the "Content") contained in any Revit MEP 2009 Training
class presented by ColdStream Software, including, without limitation, any copyrights in or to the
"Content", belong to ColdStream Software and its content providers. "Content" may not be
reproduced, downloaded, disseminated, published, or transferred in any form or by any means.
Copyright infringement is a violation of federal law subject to criminal and civil penalties.

Third Party Trademarks

Revit and AutoCAD are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc.

All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders

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3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright 2008 © ColdStream Software ............................................................... 2

Proprietary Rights .............................................................................................. 2

Establishing A Successful Workflow Process ........................................................... 9

Optomizing Revit For Performance ....................................................................... 9

Hardware ....................................................................................................... 9

Project Model................................................................................................ 10

Workflow ..................................................................................................... 10

GETTING STARTED .............................................................................................. 13

Installing The Class Dataset .............................................................................. 13

Preparing Background files For Linking ................................................................ 13

MECHANICAL HVAC ............................................................................................. 16

Beginning a new Revit MEP Project ..................................................................... 16

New Project Startup ...................................................................................... 16

New Project Settings ..................................................................................... 17

Creating a Central Project file ......................................................................... 19

Enabling Worksharing .................................................................................... 19

Adding Elements to a Workset – linking the background file ............................... 20

Using Copy/Monitor to add levels to the model ................................................. 22

Creating Floor Plan Views ............................................................................... 23

Creating ceiling Plan Views ............................................................................. 23

moving the building elevation Symbols ............................................................ 24

Creating Plenum Levels .................................................................................. 26

Saving The Central Project File For The First Time ............................................. 28

Creating a Local Project File ........................................................................... 28

Launching Revit and Working on an Existing Project Each Day ............................... 29

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 Creating a New Local File ............................................................................... 29

Setting an Active Workspace .......................................................................... 30

Energy Analysis ............................................................................................... 31

Project Settings ............................................................................................ 32

Adding spaces to the linked background ........................................................... 33

Placing Spaces For Creating Heating And Cooling Zones ..................................... 34

Placing spaces for plenums ............................................................................. 35

Specify Individual Space Parameters For Energy Analysis ................................... 35

Specify Zones ............................................................................................... 39

Calculate Heating and Cooling Loads using the integrated tools by IES ................ 40

Calculate Heating and Cooling loads using a third-party analysis application ......... 42

Creating an HVAC System ................................................................................. 43

Applying Calculated Air Flows to The Space Elements ........................................ 43

creating a room supply air schedule ................................................................ 43

Locating Air Terminals ................................................................................... 46

Completing the Terminal Layouts .................................................................... 53

Placing Equipment ......................................................................................... 56

Creating a Supply Air System ......................................................................... 60

Completing the duct layout on the first and second floors ................................... 70

Adding A Ducted Exhaust System With Roof Mounted Fan .................................. 72

Mechanical Piping ................................................................................................ 78

Creating Piping Floor Plan Views......................................................................... 78

Adding a Hot Water Boiler ................................................................................. 78

Creating a Housekeeping Pad For The Boiler ..................................................... 79

Adding a Hydronic Piping System ....................................................................... 81

Adding a New Pipe Type ................................................................................. 81

Adjusting the Mechanical pipe Settings ............................................................ 83

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 Creating the Hydronic Supply System .............................................................. 84

Creating the Hydronic Return System .............................................................. 91

Adding Hydronic Supply Piping to the Second Floor ........................................... 94

Tips and Tricks For Users That are Creating Ductwork and Piping Systems .............. 98

Displaying Revit MEP systems by color ............................................................. 98

Creating Mechanical Equipment ....................................................................... 103

Creating a Titus Parallel Fan Terminal With Hot Water Heating Coil .................... 103

Creating A VAV Box Schedule .......................................................................... 121

Creating Shared Parameters ......................................................................... 121

Adding Shared Parameters to The VAV Box .................................................... 122

Creating a Schedule Using the New Shared Parameters ................................... 125

Exporting The Schedule to Excel ................................................................... 127

ELECTRICAL ..................................................................................................... 128

Beginning a new Revit MEP Project ................................................................... 128

New project startup ..................................................................................... 128

New project settings .................................................................................... 129

Creating a Central Project file ....................................................................... 130

Enabling Worksharing .................................................................................. 131

Using Copy/Monitor to add levels to the model ............................................... 134

Creating Floor Plan Views ............................................................................. 134

Creating ceiling Plan Views ........................................................................... 135

Creating Lighting floor plan views under power ............................................... 136

moving the building elevation Symbols .......................................................... 137

Saving The Central Project File For The First Time ........................................... 139

Creating a Local Project File ......................................................................... 139

Launching Revit and Working on an Existing Project Each Day ............................. 140

Setting an Active Workspace ........................................................................ 141

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 Creating an Electrical System .......................................................................... 142

Adding spaces to the linked background ......................................................... 142

Placing Lights ............................................................................................. 144

Adding a light switch ................................................................................... 146

Creating a Power Circuit............................................................................... 147

Tagging Electrical Circuits and Devices ........................................................... 154

Completing the First Floor Lighting Plan ......................................................... 157

Completing the SECOND Floor Lighting Plan ................................................... 158

Editing Circuits on the lighting Panel .............................................................. 159

Placing receptacles ...................................................................................... 160

Editing Circuits on the receptacle Panel .......................................................... 167

Connecting Mechanical Equipment ................................................................. 169

PLUMBING ........................................................................................................ 173

Beginning a Revit MEP Project ......................................................................... 173

Creating a Central Project file .......................................................................... 175

Enabling Worksharing .................................................................................. 176

Adding Elements to a Workset ...................................................................... 177

Using Copy/Monitor to add levels to the model ............................................... 178

Creating Floor Plan Views ............................................................................. 179

Saving The Central Project File For The First Time ........................................... 180

Creating a Local Project File ............................................................................ 180

Launching Revit and Working on an Existing Project Each Day ............................. 181

Setting an Active Workspace ........................................................................ 183

Adding Revit MEP Plumbing Fixtures to the Project ............................................. 183

Creating a Domestic Cold Water Supply System ................................................. 185

PLOTTING ........................................................................................................ 191

Creating a new sheet view .............................................................................. 191

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Revit Performance – Optimization and Best Practices ............................................. 193

View Manipulation .......................................................................................... 193

Model Manipulation......................................................................................... 194

Strategic Breaks ............................................................................................ 194

Multiple Files ................................................................................................. 195

appendix b - Network Issues .............................................................................. 196

Creating Central Files on a Peer-to-peer Network ............................................... 196

Creating Central Files on a Virtual Private Network (VPN) .................................... 196

8
ESTABLISHING A SUCCESSFUL WORKFLOW PROCESS

Computer Aided Design and Drafting tools have been used in the AEC industry for many
years. Some of the more popular applications include AutoCAD and Micro-station, Most
new Revit users have been indoctrinated into the CAD world through having used one or
more of those applications.

There is one big fundamental difference between Revit and all the other applications and
that is the concept of creating one project model in Revit for the purpose of
parametrically maintaining building component relationships versus creating individual
floor plate drawings that are referenced together to create a static project model in the
other CAD applications.

It is imperative that your understand the collaborative workflow process that must be
used when working with Revit Architectural, Revit Structural, and Revit MEP projects in
order to maintain a successful workflow that is sustainable throughout the lifecycle of a
project. This process includes the adoption of some practices that will help to streamline
project workflow and mitigate the performance impact on Revit.

OPTOMIZING REVIT FOR PERFORMANCE

Revit MEP performance can be affected by a number of factors. Some factors are
directly related to the hardware and the operating system that supports Revit, but the
most substantive impacts on performance are related to the creation and manipulation
of the project model. Factors include the following:

HARDWARE
The following hardware profile does not represent the bare minimum configuration that
will sustain Revit MEP 2009. It does represent what we currently feel is a good
configuration for workstations that will be used to work on medium to larger size
projects.

• Intel Core™ 2 Duo extreme, 2.8 GHz or equivalent AMD Athlon processor
• Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, or Windows Vista Ultimate 64 bit Edition
• 4 GB RAM
• Large Hard Drive 7200 RPM or better
• 1280 x 1024 True Color display resolution (minimum)
• Video card with a minimum of 512 MB dedicated RAM and hardware support for
OpenGL spec 1.3 or later

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PROJECT MODEL

• Size of project file(s)

• Number of linked files
• View manipulation
o Model graphics style settings
o Sheet view style settings
o Detail level
o Complex 3D graphics
• Model manipulation
o Project structure
o Connected networks
o Strategic breaks
o Multiple project files

See APPENDIX A – OPTOMIZING REVIT FOR PERFORMANCE for supporting

documentation on this issue.

WORKFLOW

On small projects, it is possible that one central file can be maintained for multiple
disciplines with each team member maintaining a local project file on his or her
workstation hard-drive. This will lessen the amount of file management that is required,
however; it must be stressed that the central file in this scenario can become large and
performance issues will affect productivity before the project is completed.

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One central project file – small projects

Each team member will maintain a local project file on his individual workstation hard-
drive. The team member will create a new local project file at the beginning of each
new work session by copying the discipline or region specific central project file to their
local project folder and renaming the file to be a local file. This ensures that the team
member begins each new work session with the most up-to-date changes and additions
to the project. Changes that may affect the work of other members must be posted as
soon as they are made through a “save to central”. As you work, you can see changes
other team members have made to the project after they have been saved to the
central file. In your local file, click File menu -> Reload Latest.

Changes that are made to the background link files must

1. Be posted to the link files folder
2. The link must be reloaded in each affected central file
3. Each team member must perform a File -> Reload Latest in order to see the
changes.

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Discipline Specific Multiple Central Project files – Larger Projects

Note that multiple central files are maintained, each representing a specific discipline
or disciplines. All the information is not pooled into one central file except at the
location of the central project manager (usually the Architect) where one BIM file
would be maintained with the central project files from all disciplines combined into
one database for rendering, interference detection, multi-discipline coordination, etc.

Each discipline specific central project files can still get large and performance issues
may become a factor. However, attention to details such as good link file
management (less is better), copy/monitor only those elements that are absolutely
necessary, and elimination of unnecessary detail in custom families can go a long
way toward implementing a successful workflow that is sustainable throughout the
lifecycle of a project.

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GETTING STARTED
INSTALLING THE CLASS DATASET

The following files are provided for use in this exercise:

DISCIPLINE FILE FILE SIZE REVIT BUILD
Architectural file ColdStream Training Building – Arch - Central.rvt 5996 KB 20080602_1900
Structural file ColdStream Training Building – Struct – Central.rvt 1836 KB 20080602_1900

1. Copy the Revit MEP Training folder provided to you for this exercise onto your C:\
Drive. The folder structure for the project files is as follows:

C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training

Docs
gbXML
Ies data
Ifc files
Library
Link Files
Project
[+] ELECT
HVAC
PLBG
STRU
Raw Backgrounds
ColdStream Training Building – Arch – Central.rvt
ColdStream Training Building – Structural – Central.rvt
Shared Parameters
Templates
Electrical – Class.rte
Mechanical – Class.rte
Plumbing – Class.rte
Trace 700 Results

PREPARING BACKGROUND FILES FOR LINKING

The architect is responsible for evaluating the work that is being done in the main
project model and when changes are made to the model, the architect should provide
new copies of the architectural central project file to the engineering firms. The
structural engineer has the same responsibility as the architect in providing updated
copies of their structural central project file to both the architects and the MEP engineers
for coordination with building structural elements. The MEP engineers are equally
responsible for providing copies of their central file(s) to the Architects and Structural
engineers during the development of the project for coordination and collaboration
purposes.

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The MEP engineers will use the architectural and structural central project files as linked
background models. A linked background model in Revit is the equivalent of an XRef in
AutoCAD or Reference file in Micro-station. Sharing the same building information
models with architects and structural engineers enables the MEP design, architectural
design, and structural design and documentation to stay coordinated.

Note: The files may be provided as digital data attached to an email, through an FTP
site, on some type of removable media, or over a network.

In preparation for linking the architectural project file and Structural project file to the
MEP project model, you should verify the following:

• The customer release versions of Revit Architectural and Revit Structural are
compatible with your release version of Revit MEP. Note that files saved in the
latest release version of Revit are not backwardly compatible with earlier release
versions of the software. I.E. You cannot use Revit MEP 2008 to open a Revit
MEP 2009 file. Note however that files created with a different build number
within a release version can be opened using an earlier build number within the
same release version.
• The central files provided to you by the Architects and Structural Engineers were
saved with element ownerships relinquished.

Each time a new background is received from the Architect or Structural Engineer, the
file should be cleaned up and saved to the Link Files folder. The cleaned up project files
from the Architect and Structural Engineer will then be linked into the MEP project as an
overlay.

Notes: Revit does not require that the project folder and/or sub-folder names or
structure match this example. I have given you a specific structure for the folders for
clarity in following this exercise. Your office standard practices may dictate a very
different project folder structure from the one used in this example.

WHEN LINKING FILES ON A NETWORK, BE SURE TO SPECIFY THE LINK FILE

FOLDER USING THE UNC FORMAT (\\MACHINENAME\FOLDER\ETC.)

1. Startup Revit MEP. Go to the File pull-down menu and select File -> Open.
2. Browse to the Revit MEP 2009 Training\Raw Backgrounds folder and open each of
the Architectural and Structural central project files in Revit MEP. Perform the
following tasks.
a. Click down on the little arrow next to the Open button. Select All from the
Open Worksets drop-down.
b. Click on the checkbox next to Detach from Central. OK the warning dialog
that is displayed.
c. Click on the checkbox next to the Audit toggle. OK the warning dialog that is
displayed.
d. Select one of the two files to open and pick the Open button in the bottom
right corner.

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 Note: Upon opening the file in Revit MEP, if you get a Revit warning dialog
reporting that the central file has been copied or moved from another
location, you did not check the Detach from Central command. Cancel and
start over.

e. From the File pull-down menu, select purge unused.

Note: You will be warned that you cannot undo the Purge Unused… command. A
Purge Unused dialog will display with a list of all elements in the open project.
3. Select the ‘Check All’ button and pick OK.

The Purge Unused command unloads unused families and family types from a
project, reducing the file size of the project. If the project is workset-enabled, all
worksets must be open to use this command. This can dramatically decrease the
size of the file if the original creator of the file has not been performing a purge
unused on the file on a regular basis. This command should always be used on the
files provided by the Architect or Structural Engineer prior to making them available
to the project team in the MEP office for links into the MEP Project.

3. Save both the Architectural and Structural files following the purge unused
command. To save the architectural central file:
a. File -> Save as…
b. The Save as dialog displays
c. Browse to the Link Files folder in the Save in drop-down.
d. Set the Save as file name to ColdStream Training Building – Arch –
Link.rvt
e. Pick the Options… button.
f. In the File Save Options dialog, note that the “Make this a Central File after
save” setting is checked and grayed out.
g. Set maximum number of backup(s) to 5. The recommended setting for
backups is one for each team member. Five should be adequate for our
training project. Pick OK.

It is not necessary to save a local copy of this file. It will only be used as a link to your
MEP project and you should always link a Central file, not a local file. Perform the same
procedure on the Structural Central file and save it in the Link Files folder.

15
MECHANICAL HVAC
BEGINNING A NEW REVIT MEP PROJECT

This exercise requires that the preceding exercise, “Getting Started – Preparing the
background files for linking” be completed before continuing. The “cleaned up”
architectural and structural background files should be in the Link Files folder at this
point.

NEW PROJECT STARTUP

1. To startup a new Mechanical Project in Revit MEP, select File -> New -> Project from
the pull-down menu.

The New Project Dialog will display.

A new project can be started without a template by selecting the none radio button. You
will be prompted to please select an initial unit system for the project. Choices will be
imperial or Metric. Please note that when starting a project without a template, little or
no content is loaded in the project.

A new project can be started using a Template file. A default template named
Mechanical-default.rte will be used unless the operator chooses to browse for a different
template.

Note: In this exercise, we will be browsing to \Revit MEP 2009 Training\Templates to

select the Mechanical–Class.rte template file. You are encouraged to create custom
templates for each discipline. All Revit templates use the (.rte) file extension

2. Under Create New, select Project.

3. Click OK.

16
TIP: As an alternative, you can start a new project by clicking New on the Standard
toolbar, or pressing CTRL+N. Revit MEP bases the new project on the default template.
If no default template exists, an empty project window opens. For information on
specifying the default template file see Setting Options.

Note that the title bar along the top of the screen will read Revit MEP 2009 with the
current project name in brackets. It will probably read something like [Project 1 – Floor
Plan: 1 - Mech]. We will give the project a new name when we run the Save as
command.

NEW PROJECT SETTINGS

1. Once the new project is open, go to the Settings Pull-down menu and pick Options…
at the bottom of the drop-down.

2. In the General Tab, Verify that the username is your login name. This is the
username that will be used to checkout and assign workset elements for editing.
3. Under View Options, set the default view discipline to Mechanical. Choices are
Mechanical or Electrical.
4. Select the Graphics tab at the top of the Options dialog.

Some users prefer to have a black background (similar to AutoCAD) in the graphics
screen area. Pick on the Invert background color toggle if you wish to change the
screen background to black.

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5. Pick OK.

We will be using an Architectural Background file that was prepared in Revit

Architecture. The file has pre-defined levels and views. We want to begin our new MEP
Project using the same levels that were created by the Architect. Note that Revit MEP
begins with a couple of default levels, 1 - Mech and 2 - Mech. These are provided for
someone who is starting a new project without an Architectural (or other) background
file. We will delete them prior to linking the Architectural and/or Structural
backgrounds, and then we will Copy and Monitor the Architects levels.

6. Under Elevations, double-click on East Mech. The graphics screen will change to
display the East Mech Elevation View. Select the 1 – Mech level by picking on the
line. While holding down the Ctrl Key, pick on the line representing the 2 – Mech
level. Both levels should be highlighted in red indicating that you have selected both
levels. Press the Del Key.

A warning dialog will display. The dialog is warning you that all current views will be
deleted. Select the OK button.

Browser views before deleting levels Browser views after deleting levels.

Note in the Project Browser that all plan views have been deleted.

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CREATING A CENTRAL PROJECT FILE
On most building projects, MEP team members are required to work on a project
concurrently. Since multiple team members cannot work on the same elements in the
same project at the same time, the work must be managed by dividing the work into
types of work or into regions of the project.
Team members are assigned a specific functional area of work. This involves
simultaneously working on and saving different portions of the project. Revit MEP
projects can be subdivided into worksets to accommodate environments like this.
Worksets function similarly to External References (xrefs) in AutoCAD, with the
additional ability to propagate and coordinate changes between designers. Team
members adding elements to worksets can see the latest changes from other team
members and be sure the project design is progressing in a well-coordinated manner.
Viewing the latest work of other team members is accomplished by saving their work to
the central file and to local files on their own hard drives followed by a Reload Latest.
Team members working in other disciplines can reload the latest linked background files
containing collaborative work to view the latest changes and additions to the project.
This ability to reload changes is also similar to the workflow in AutoCAD xrefs.
After enabling work sharing and creating a central file, you can begin creating subsets of
a project that can be worked on independently. These subsets (or worksets as they are
referred to in Revit) are typically discrete functional areas, such as laying out work on a
specific level or departmental area, laying out ductwork, piping, equipment or controls,
etc.
Observe that if you select File from the pull-down menu, the Save to Central command
is grayed out. This means that you cannot create a central file at this point. Revit
disallows the Save to Central command until you have enabled Worksharing.

ENABLING WORKSHARING

1. Select File -> Worksets… from the pull-down menu. A Work sharing dialog displays.
2. Select OK. A Worksets dialog displays. In the Worksets dialog, click the new button
and a New Worksets Dialog displays.

3. Enter Linked backgrounds for the New Workset name. Click OK. The Linked
backgrounds workset will be added to the worksets list. The workset is editable and
the Owner of the workset is set to the current username. Make the Linked
Backgrounds workset the Active workset by clicking down on the drop-down in the
upper left corner and selecting it.

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4. Create additional worksets as shown in the following illustration.

5. Pick OK.
6. Right click in a clean spot in the toolbar menu ribbon just below the pull-down menu.
7. Pick the Worksets toolbar and locate it within the toolbar menu ribbon. See the
following illustration.

Click on the down arrow and select Linked Backgrounds as the current workset.

ADDING ELEMENTS TO A WORKSET – LINKING THE BACKGROUND FILE

We are going to add the architectural background file to our workset at this point.

1. Select the command to link a Revit file to your project. File -> Import/Link ->
Revit… Dismiss the Save Reminder if it displays.

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2. Browse to the C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training\Link Files folder and select the
ColdStream Training Building – arch – Link.rvt file.
3. Click on the down arrow beside the Open button and In the Open Worksets
dropdown, select Specify.
4. In the Positioning Frame, make sure that Auto - Origin to Origin is selected. Pick
Open
5. In the linking Worksets Dialog
• click on Door and Window Tags in the Name column and click on the Close
button.
• Click on Furnishings in the Name column and click on the Close button.
• Click on Plumbing Fixtures and click on the Close button.
• Click on Rooms and click on the Close button.
6. Click the OK button.

Note that you are in an elevation view. That is because there are no predefined
levels or plan views at this point.

BEST PRACTICES WHEN USING WORKSETS

1. Close worksets from the Worksets dialog box to globally turn off element
visibility, instead of turning them off in the Visibility/Graphics dialog box.
2. Specify visibility when creating worksets. When creating new worksets, there is a
check box in the Workset dialog box that makes a workset visible by default in all
views. Select this check box only if necessary.
3. Verify that the same Revit® build is installed on all computers that share worksets.
4. Use the Reload Latest command available on the File menu to update your copy of
the project without changing the central file. This saves time by eliminating the need
to reload the file during the save-to-central process.
5. Use Review Warnings available on the Tools menu in order to identify and fix posted
warnings prior to allowing local copies.
6. Periodically open the central file with the Audit option selected and then save the file.
If corrupted elements are encountered during the audit, they are deleted if possible
and the user is notified.

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7. Periodically save to central with the Compact Central File (slow) option selected. This
option is used to reduce file size when saving workset-enabled files. The process of
compacting rewrites the entire file and removes obsolete parts in order to save
space. Because the Compact process takes more time than a normal save, it is
strongly recommended that you only do this when workflow can be interrupted.
8. Ensure that a sufficient number of backups are being created. At a minimum, you
should have at least one backup for each member of your worksharing team in
order to increase the likelihood that each team member’s data is saved as part of the
backups.

USING COPY/MONITOR TO ADD LEVELS TO THE MODEL

The levels in the MEP model should match the levels in the Architectural and Structural
models in order to effectively collaborate the work between disciplines. The
Architectural model contains levels that we can use to create levels in our MEP model by
using the Copy/Monitor command.

1. Select the Copy/Monitor button.

2. Select Link from the drop-down. Move the cursor into the screen area and hover
over an element in the link file. A border should highlight around the link. Pick with
the left mouse button when you see the highlight. A side screen menu will display
the Copy/Monitor commands.

3. Select the Options command. The Copy/Monitor Options dialog will display.
4. Select the Levels tab and turn off the toggle for “Reuse levels with the same name.”
Click OK
5. Pick the Copy command from the Copy/Monitor menu on the left side of the screen.

22
6. Select the First Floor Level, Second Floor Level, and Roof Level in the elevation view
on the screen. Picking the next level will close the warning dialog following each
Level selection.
7. The Architect may create levels representing the various ceiling heights in the model.
If the Architectural model contains ceiling levels, copy the ceiling levels because they
will be used later in this exercise to create plenum levels in the MEP model.
8. Pick Finish Mode from the Copy/monitor menu on the left side of the screen.

CREATING FLOOR PLAN VIEWS

Observe the graphics screen. Zoom into one of the level heads and you will notice that
you now have copies of the Architectural levels. The Project Browser does not display
any plan views of these new levels.

1. From the pull-down menu, select Settings -> Options…

2. In the General Tab, under View Options, verify that Mechanical is the default view
discipline.
3. From the pull-down menu, select View -> New -> Floor Plan…
4. Dismiss the Save command dialog if it displays. The New Plan dialog will display.
5. Turn off the toggle for “Do not duplicate existing views”
6. Hold down the Shift Key and select all three Floor Plan Views by selecting the last
view in the list. All views should highlight.
7. Pick OK and the new plan views will be created in the Project Browser.

CREATING CEILING PLAN VIEWS

8. From the pull-down menu, select View -> New -> Ceiling Plan…
9. Dismiss the Save command dialog if it displays. The New RCP dialog will display.

23
10. Turn off the toggle for “Do not duplicate existing views”
11. Hold down the Control Key and select the First and Second Floor from the list.
12. Pick OK and the two ceiling plan views will be created in the Project Browser. They
will be located under the Mechanical discipline in a category named ???.
13. Select the First Floor Ceiling Plan in the browser, hold down the Control Key and
select the Second Floor Ceiling Plan. Both should be highlighted.
14. Right click with the mouse and pick the Apply View Template command in the pop up
menu. Select the Mechanical Ceiling from the list and pick Apply, then pick OK.

Note that once the Mechanical Ceiling View Template is applied to the two plans, they
are moved to a Ceiling Plans category under the HVAC discipline.

ADJUSTING VIEW PROPERTIES IN THE CEILING PLAN VIEW

1. Double click on the First Floor Ceiling Plan view. Note that the Architectural
Background is not being displayed correctly and the ceiling grid does not display.
2. Right click on a clear area in the graphics view window. Pick View Properties in the
pop-up window that displays.
3. Click the Edit button in the value column of the Visibility/Graphics Override
Parameter.
4. Select the Revit Links Tab.
5. Click on the By Host View button under Display Settings.
6. Select the By Linked View radio button. Select the Reflected Ceiling Plan: First
Floor from the drop-down list. Pick OK.
7. Pick OK twice to return to the graphics screen
8. Repeat the steps for the Second Floor Ceiling Plan view making sure to select the
Reflected Ceiling Plan: Second Floor from the drop down list.

MOVING THE BUILDING ELEVATION SYMBOLS

The Mechanical Template provides the 4 standard building elevation views, North, East,
South, and West. The elevations are represented by 4 Elevation Symbols that display

24
on the plan view. The symbol is a square with a triangular shaped arrow representing
the elevation view direction.

When a new Architectural background is linked into a mechanical template, the elevation
symbols may need to be adjusted.

1. Select all four of them by windowing each one with the CTRL Key pressed.
2. Pick the Move Command.
3. Select a point in about the center of the array of elevation symbols. (About where
the “g” is in “building” in the preceeding illustration.)
4. Move the cursor to a point near the center of the building and pick with the left
mouse button.

25
CREATING PLENUM LEVELS

Plenum levels are special levels that allow you to place spaces in the plenum areas
above the ceiling by using a floor plan view based on the plenum level. You must place
spaces in all plenum areas in order to perform an accurate heating and cooling loads
analysis.

If you do not intend to use Revit to analyze the heating and cooling loads then the
creation of plenum levels is not necessary and could affect the performance of Revit.

The plenum levels may also be used to host Air Terminals, Lights, Sprinkler Heads, or
other ceiling mounted elements.

Plenum levels may be created using one of the following two methods:

Hint: Levels must be created in an Elevation or Section view. The following illustration
is based on using the South Elevation View in our project.

If the project contains levels representing the various ceiling heights in the project and
you have copied those levels using the Copy/Monitor command, then change the Level
Type of each ceiling level to “Plenum” (see steps 5 and 6), otherwise you must create
the plenum levels using the Level command.

1. Pick the Level command from the Menu Bar. If the Level command
does not appear in the menu bar, pick the Basic Menu Bar, then pick the Level
Command. You will be prompted to “Click to enter level start point”.

26
2. Pick a start point as illustrated above. You will be prompted to pick the level end
point.

3. Pick a point to the right of the South Elevation view aligning the level heads in
accordance with the illustration.
4. Zoom in on the new Level Head. Double-click on the Level Name “Mechanical 3” and
change the name to “First Floor High Clg”. When prompted to rename corresponding
views, select the Yes button.
5. With the new level still selected, click on the Element Properties button on the
Options Bar. When the Element Properties dialog displays, change the Level Type to
Plenum.
6. Click on the Edit/New… button and under the Dimension Type Parameters, verify that
the Automatic Room Computation toggle is off and the computation height is set to
6”. Setting a computation height is similar to setting a cut plane in a view. It
defines the plane that will be used to calculate space areas and perimeters. Turning
on the Automatic Room Computation toggle will set the computation height to 4’-0”
which is incorrect for the low ceiling plenum and high ceiling plenum since the
distance between the low ceiling and high ceiling is only 1’-0”. Setting the height for
the plenum levels to 6” will ensure that both the low and high ceiling areas are taken
at an elevation which will correctly describe the plenum perimeter.

Setting the computation height to automatic can seriously affect the performance of
Revit MEP.

7. Create additional plenum levels for the First Floor Low Ceiling (9’-0”), the Second
Floor High Ceiling (10’-0”) and the Second Floor low Ceiling (9’-0”) using the same
procedure as outlined hereinbefore.

27
8. Verify that Floor Plans were created for each of the plenum areas by reviewing the
project browser Floor Plan Views.
9. Double-click on First Floor High Clg. Right click and select View Properties.
10. Under Instance Parameters, Extents select Edit View Range.
11. Verify that Bottom is set to Associated Level (First Floor High Clg).
12. Verify that Top is set to Level Above (Second Floor).
13. Verify that Cut Plane Offset is set to 6”.
14. Set the view range for each of the plans that you just created from the plenum
levels.

SAVING THE CENTRAL PROJECT FILE FOR THE FIRST TIME

We now have our basic background linked into our project. This is a great time to save
our work.

1. Select File -> Save as…

The Save As dialog will display.

2. Click on the Options button in the lower right corner. The File Save Options dialog
will display.

Note that in the Options dialog, Make this a Central File after save is checked and
grayed out. This means that you don’t have an option to not make this a Central
File. The first save will be to Central so pathing for the central file should be to a
shared file folder on the network back in your office. Select OK to close the dialog.

3. For the purpose of this exercise, browse to the Revit MEP Training\ColdStream
Training Building\HVAC folder. We will save the MEP Central Project file in this
folder. Change the file name to Training – HVAC – Central.rvt.

Note that it is very important to name the Central File with a unique name to
differentiate it from the local file that we will be creating next.

4. Pick the Save button.

The HVAC Central File will be saved for your project. Following this save, if you pick the
File pull-down, you will note that the Save to Central command is no longer grayed out
so it is a usable command. Note also that the Save to Central toolbar button is no
longer grayed out.

CREATING A LOCAL PROJECT FILE

Each day, you will be working on your local copy of the Central Project File. When your
workday is completed, or at intervals during the day, you will be saving your local file
back to Central so that other team members can see the changes you have made to the
Central Project File and vica-versa.

To create a local project file for the first time, select File -> Save As…

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In the Save As Dialog, change the file name to Training – HVAC – Local.rvt

Note: The name of the file must be different from the Central File name. If each team
member is saving their local file in the shared folder on the network, then each local file
should have the name of the user and the current date appended to the file name I.E.
Training – HVAC – Tony Tedder 041608.rvt. A naming convention such as
this will differentiate the new local file from other user’s local files (assuming that two
users are not using the same name). The date is important as well since it may
become necessary at some time in the future to open a local file and save it as Central
to reconstruct an unrecoverable Central File. The latest version of the local file cannot
be determined for certain without the date appended to the local file name.

The local project file should be saved to the user’s protected space on the
network or on the local drive of the user while the central file must be
maintained on the network shared space.

Keeping all files on the network is an acceptable method of saving the local project file
although it does represent a substantial increase in network traffic.

LAUNCHING REVIT AND WORKING ON AN EXISTING PROJECT EACH

DAY

CREATING A NEW LOCAL FILE

1. Each morning before you launch Revit, copy the current Central File to your local
folder, renaming it in the process. The new local file should be named using the
same naming convention suggested hereinbefore for creating a local project file. I.E.
the file should contain your user name and the current date. When you open the
new local file for the first time, Revit will recognize that it is not the central file due
to the name change and will display a warning dialog which you can dismiss by
selecting OK.

2. Once the project opens, perform a Save as… and save the file to your local file,
making sure to retain the username and current date format.

3. Select Reload Latest from the File pull down and reload the latest saved local file (I
know, you just saved the file). According to Autodesk, this step is necessary in order
to stabilize some issues with Revit.

4. Perform a Save to Central. Check the Compact Central File checkbox and the Save
the local File after ‘Save to Central’ checkbox in the Save to Central Dialog Box. See
the dialog in the following illustration.

The process defined in steps 1-4 is necessary in order to ensure that you are starting
each day with the latest project changes. Many firms have found that this process can
be automated using a script.

29
Now you are ready to proceed with your work.

Do not edit the Central File.

Develop a habit of using the Save to Central.. command in the File pull-down any time
you make changes that might affect other users. You will be reminded to Save to
Central on a regular interval depending on the value in the Settings… -> Options dialog,
General tab.

Check the Save the Local File after “Save to Central” checkbox in order to keep
your local file synchronized with the Central File. Compact the Central file at least once
a week or more often if necessary. This can result in a substantial reduction in the size
of the central file.

Reminder: The Save to Central command posts your latest additions and changes to the
central project file and those changes can be viewed by all team members simply by
selecting the File -> Reload Latest command.

SETTING AN ACTIVE WORKSPACE

Each day when you begin your work, or at intervals during the day as you work, you
may want to work on a different region or level of the building, or a different component
of the building system within a region or level. These work elements may be divided
into worksets and if they are, you will need to make that particular workset active and
editable. You will also need to become owner or borrower of those elements before
proceeding.

You may make a new workset active by selecting the workset from the Worksets Toolbar
dropdown or you may use the Worksets dialog.

1. From the pull-down menus, pick File -> Worksets… The Worksets Dialog will display.

30
2. Note that all the current worksets are not editable. Select the workset that you will
be editing and click on the Editable button. In this case, select Spaces and make it
editable.
3. Select Spaces in the Active workset dropdown in the upper left corner of the dialog.

ENERGY ANALYSIS

Revit MEP integrates IES heating and cooling load analysis tools for use in performing an
energy analysis on the project. Revit also provides the ability to output a gbXML file
containing the necessary room data for performing energy analysis through use of third-
party analysis programs.

Zone and spaces are independent components but are used together to achieve a
common result. Spaces contain information about the areas that they have been placed
in. This space information is used to calculate the volume of the area and to help
determine a heating and cooling loads analysis. Zones consist of a one or more spaces
that are controlled by equipment that maintain a common environment (temperature,
humidity, and so on). Each zone contains zone information, such as heating and cooling
temper An effective energy analysis can only be accomplished if
1. All the spaces in your model are defined by space components in the building model.
2. The entire volume of the building model is included in load calculations.

For Revit MEP, spaces that are not typically considered as rooms in an architectural
model must be assigned space components. This includes spaces such as attic spaces
and the spaces between a ceiling and the floor above. The spaces in the building model
should be defined to the center line of bounding walls and from floor height to floor
height, so that there are no gaps between the spaces in a building. You can examine a

31
shaded 3D analytical model in the Heating and Cooling Loads Dialog to detect gaps.
However, when you find gaps in the analytical model, you must adjust the space
properties to correct the volume.

In this exercise, we will perform the following tasks:

• Specify energy data for our project

• Specify space parameters for energy analysis
• Specify space and area settings
• Define space components for energy analysis
• Use the IES heating and cooling load analysis tools
• Export a GBXml file for use by third-party analysis tools

PROJECT SETTINGS

1. Click Settings menu -> Project Information. The Project Information Element
Properties dialog will display.

2. Edit the Client Name, Project Name, and Project Number data fields and add the
information shown in the preceding illustration.
3. In the Element Properties Dialog click Edit for Energy Data.

32
4. In the Type Properties Dialog, under Energy Analysis, click the Value column for
Building Type, and select School or university as the building type from the drop-
down list.
5. Edit the rest of the data fields so that the properties match those shown in the
preceding illustration.
6. Click OK.
7. Click the Edit column for Project Address and enter “Anywhere, USA” in the Edit Text
Dialog that displays. Pick OK.
8. Pick OK again.

You have added energy data settings as project information.

ADDING SPACES TO THE LINKED BACKGROUND

The volume calculation for a space is based on its bounding components. Valid bounding
components include: walls, curtain walls, curtain systems, columns, roofs, floors, and
room separation lines.
Space volume is calculated as the area of its base multiplied by the height bounding
components within its upper limit. With the exception of floors, you can specify whether
or not a component is bounding by changing the component’s properties.

33
COMPUTING SPACE VOLUMES
Click Settings menu -> Area and Volume Computations…
Make sure that the radio button for Areas and Volumes is turned on.
NOTE: The calculations performed to compute space volumes can adversely affect Revit
MEP performance. You should clear this parameter when not preparing for energy
analysis.
Set Room Area Computation to ‘At Wall Finish’.

PLACING SPACES FOR CREATING HEATING AND COOLING ZONES

Spaces are exclusively used for the MEP disciplines to analyze volume. They contain
parameters that maintain information about the areas in which they have been placed.
This information is used for performing a heating and cooling loads analysis. Spaces
cannot be added to a project with a linked Architectural background unless the linked file
Room Bounding parameter is turned on.

When the linked architectural file is removed or reloaded through the Manage Links…
command or when the MEP file is opened following an update to the Architectural link
file, the Room Bounding Parameter must be reset (steps 1-5 in the following exercise).

1. Double click on the First Floor Floor Plan in the Project Browser.
2. Select the link. Right click the mouse with the link selected and pick Element
Properties from the popup menu.
3. In the Element Properties dialog, select the Edit/New button.
4. Locate the Constraints category. Verfify that the Room Bounding Parameter value is
checked. If not, click in the checkbox to check it.
5. Select OK twice to close the dialogs.
6. Click on the worksets toolbar and select Spaces from the dropdown list of worksets.
7. In the Design Bar menu, click on the Space command.
8. Move the cursor to the link file area and position it inside a room. Note that the
space object will display with diagonal lines to the room corners and a default tag
“Space”.
9. Pick with the left button to locate the first Space Element in the room.

34
10. Continue the process and locate space elements in each room on the first and second
floor. You must create a space element for each space including chases and shafts.
11. Move the cursor back to the first space on the first floor and when the diagonal X
displays, pick on the X, right click and pick Element Properties.
12. In the Element Properties Dialog, note that the Upper limit level is set to First Floor.
Click on First Floor and when the drop down displays, select the Second Floor as the
upper limit level.
13. The lImit Offset is set to 8’-0” by default. This should always be set to 0’-0” with the
upper limit set to the next level up so set the limit Offset to 0’-0”.
14. In the Element Properties Dialog, scroll down to Identity Data. Note that the Room
Name and Number are displayed but greyed out. Add the Space Name and Number
to match the Room Name and Number.

Hint: This step is not necessary in order to calculate the space heating and cooling
loads, however; once the reports are generated, it is much easier to track the space
loads if they are identified by space names and numbers that match the Architectural
room names and numbers.
And No … The Space Elements will not “pick up” the room names and numbers from
the Architectural Room Elements. The inability for this to happen is not an error.

15. Repeat this process for each space that you added to the first and second floors.

PLACING SPACES FOR PLENUMS

Use a similar process to place spaces for the low and high ceiling plenum spaces above
the first and second floor spaces. Each plenum space should be set to not be occupiable
and the name should be set to “Plenum”.

SPECIFY INDIVIDUAL SPACE PARAMETERS FOR ENERGY ANALYSIS

1. Double-click on the Second Floor – HVAC View under Project Browser Views.
2. The Second Floor View will display in the graphics screen. Move the cursor to a point
inside Space 203, the Cinnamon Room, upper left corner. When the Space Element
highlights, right click and pick Element Properties. The Element Properties dialog will
display.
3. Verify or change the Element Properties for the Cinnamon Room in accordance with
the following table of values:

35
 CONSTRAINTS
Parameter Value
Upper Limit Roof
Limit Offset 0’-0”
Base Offset 0’-0”
Energy Analysis
Parameter Value
Occupiable []
Condition Type Heated and Cooled
Space Type Classroom/Lecture/Training
Construction Type <Building>
People Edit…
Electrical Loads Edit…
Design Heating Load 0.00 btu/h
Design Cooling Load 0.00 btu/h

Click on the Edit… button for People to display the People Loads for the selected
space.

4. Set the values to match the illustration above.

5. Click on the Edit… button in the Value column for Electrical Loads.

36
6. Set the values to match the illustration above.

Specify parameters for all of the spaces on the first and second floors in accordance with
the space parameters table on the following page. Note that some settings in the space
parameters table are abbreviated.

H&C Heated & Cooled

UC Unconditioned

HTD Heated

CLT Classrom/Lecture/Training

VAV – SD VAV – Single Duct

L/R Lounge Recreation

E/M Electrical/Mechanical

37
 SPACE PARAMETERS TABLE

SPACE COND SPACE CONST PEOPLE ELECTRICAL

TYPE TYPE
# Btuh Sen Btuh Lat Lights Power
Watts W/ft2

101 Parsley Rm H&C CLT <Building> 40 230 190 901 3.0

102 Sage Rm H&C CLT “ 40 230 190 844 3.0
103 Rosemary Rm H&C CLT “ 52 230 190 730 3.0
104 Thyme Rm H&C CLT “ 65 230 190 973 3.0
105 Janitor Vented E/M “ 0 0 0 95 0
106 Male Toilet H&C RR “ 2 315 325 118 0
107 Female Toilet H&C RR “ 2 315 325 118 0
108 Break Room H&C L/R “ 20 580 255 122 3.0
109 Break Room H&C L/R “ 20 580 255 122 3.0
110 Director H&C Office “ 4 510 255 530 3.0
111Secretary H&C Office “ 4 510 255 355 3.0
112 Conference H&C Conf. “ 6 510 255 243 3.0
113 Lobby H&C Lobby “ 15 640 315 1355 0
114 Corridor H&C Corridor “ 5 640 315 412 0
115 Equipment HTD E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0
116 Storage UC Storage “ 0 0 0 0 0
117 Storage UC Storage “ 0 0 0 0 0
118 Stair H&C Stair “ 5 1040 345 0 0
119 Plbg Chase UC E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0
120 Plbg Chase UC E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0
201 Second Floor Lobby H&C Lobby “ 20 640 315 1355 0
202 Cloves Rm H&C CLT “ 104 230 190 1649 3.0
203 Cinnamon Rm H&C CLT “ 40 230 190 920 3.0
204 Nutmeg Rm H&C CLT “ 40 230 190 730 3.0
205 Marjoram Rm H&C CLT “ 65 230 190 912 3.0
206 Male Toilet H&C RR “ 2 315 325 118 0
207 Female Toilet H&C RR “ 2 315 325 118 0
208 Janitor Vented E/M “ 0 0 0 95 0
209 Corridor H&C Corridor “ 5 640 315 471 0
210 Break Rm H&C L/R “ 20 580 255 122 3.0
211 Break Rm H&C L/R “ 20 580 255 122 3.0
212 Storage UC Storage “ 0 0 0 0 0
213 Mechanical Chase UC E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0
214 Plbg Chase UC E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0
215 Plbg Chase UC E/M “ 0 0 0 0 0

Once space parameters have been established, you may proceed to the next exercise.

38
SPECIFY ZONES
Group spaces together in zones representing the air conditioned regions of the building.
We will divide our building into two zones, the First Floor HVAC Zone and the Second
Floor HVAC Zone. The building will be served by two Roof Mounted A/C Units, one for
each floor.
1. Use a crossing window to select all elements on the First Floor.
2. Click on the Filter button.
3. Uncheck all elements except spaces in the dialog

4. Click on the OK button.

5. While all spaces are selected, click on the Zone command in the Mechanical Design
Bar.
All spaces on the first floor will be assigned to a Zone element.

39
6. Click on the Element Properties button and change the Zone Name to First Floor
HVAC.
7. Click on the Service Type dropdown and select VAV Single Duct.
8. Click on the Cooling Information button in the Element Properties dialog and turn on
the toggle for Humidity control. Set the control to 70%.
9. Click on the Heating Information button in the Element Properties dialog and turn on
the toggle for Humidity control. Set the control for 50%.
10. Click on the Outdoor Air Information button and set Outdoor Air to 20 CFM/Person.
11. Perform the same functions on the Second Floor. Assign the Zone Name to Second
Flooor HVAC.

CALCULATE HEATING AND COOLING LOADS USING THE INTEGRATED

TOOLS BY IES
1. Open the Heating and Cooling Loads dialog. Click Tools -> Heating and Cooling
Loads…
2. Examine the analytical building model
3. Adjust building and space parameters, as needed
4. Run an integrated loads report
5. Examine the results, refine adjustments to the analytical building model and re-run
the loads report. A copy of the load report summary follows:

ZONE FIRST FLOOR HVAC SUMMARY

Input Data
Total Occupied Analytical Area 6633 SF
Total Occupied Analytical Volume 66287.75 CF
Cooling Set Point 74 °F
Cooling Supply Air Temperature 54 °F
Heating Set point 70 °F
Heating Supply Air Temperature 90 °F
Results
Total Cooling Load 314128.6 Btu/h
Total Heating Load 178420.2 Btu/h
Cooling Airflow 12605 CFM
Heating Airflow 4855 CFM

ZONE SECOND FLOOR HVAC SUMMARY

Input Data
Total Occupied Analytical Area 6595 SF
Total Occupied Analytical Volume 65214.54 CF
Cooling Set Point 74 °F
Cooling Supply Air Temperature 54 °F
Heating Set point 70 °F
Heating Supply Air Temperature 90 °F
Results
Total Cooling Load 364754.5 Btu/h
Total Heating Load 192947.4 Btu/h
Cooling Airflow 14330 CFM
Heating Airflow 5478 CFM

40
INDIVIDUAL SPACES HEATING AND COOLING LOAD SUMMARY – FIRST
FLOOR
Cooling Heating
Space Name Area Airflow
Load Load
36625.9 9048.0
101 Parsley Rm 714 SF 1346 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
39589.4 12583.3
102 Sage Rm 816 SF 1483 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
45942.1 12990.9
103 Rosemary Rm 792 SF 1673 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
1046 59176.1 13997.9
104 Thyme Rm 2173 CFM
SF Btu/h Btu/h
7766.3 3043.7
106 Male Toilet 155 SF 242 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
7264.0 1861.6
107 Female Toilet 148 SF 225 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
16890.9 1769.7
108 Break Room 204 SF 593 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
17005.8 1858.8
109 Break Room 204 SF 599 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
16503.0 7806.2
110 Director 398 SF 717 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
9527.2 2048.1
111 Secretary 209 SF 394 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
11081.2 3775.4
112 Conference 191 SF 441 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
29802.7 16603.3
113 Lobby 879 SF 1310 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
26653.1 7179.4
114 Corridor 578 SF 838 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
12460.3 10196.3
229 Stair 300 SF 571 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h

Note: The table does not display spaces that were set to unoccupied with a resultant
airflow of 0.

41
INDIVIDUAL SPACES HEATING AND COOLING LOAD SUMMARY – SECOND
FLOOR
Cooling Heating
Space Name Area Airflow
Load Load
1174 56454.6 28610.9
201 Second Fl Lobby 2315 CFM
SF Btu/h Btu/h
1458 90278.1 23425.5
202 Cloves Rm 3273 CFM
SF Btu/h Btu/h
45483.8 14044.7
203 Cinnamon Rm 838 SF 1758 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
45276.4 13786.2
204 Nutmeg Rm 792 SF 1749 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
1037 59862.3 18586.6
205 Marjoram Rm 2201 CFM
SF Btu/h Btu/h
9389.4 3458.7
206 Male Toilet 163 SF 299 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
9026.5 2455.9
207 Female Toilet 148 SF 288 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
34816.1 9746.8
209 Corridor 577 SF 1180 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
17664.0 1967.8
210 Break Room 204 SF 629 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h
17855.2 2123.5
211 Break Room 204 SF 638 CFM
Btu/h Btu/h

Note: The table does not display spaces that were set to unoccupied with a resultant
airflow of 0.

CALCULATE HEATING AND COOLING LOADS USING A THIRD-PARTY

ANALYSIS APPLICATION
Note: It is not necessary to perform this exercise unless you intend to use a third-party
application such as Trane TRACE or Carrier HAP to analyze and calculate the heating and
cooling loads for the building.
After you have placed space components in all the spaces in a plan, you can export your
design to a gbXML file.

Note: The gbXML export file may not contain the following information:
Wall types
Window types
Roof types
Floor types
Geographic Location
North orientation
The user must enter appropriate data for each element type in the model into the third-
party analysis program prior to execution of the analysis calculations.

1. Click File menu -> Export -> gbXML.

2. In the Save As dialog, navigate to the target folder for the gbXML file.
3. Enter a name for the gbXML file, and click Save.

42
4. Run the third-party analysis application. This exercise includes the resultant report
from a Trane Trace 700 run using the gbXML file generated by Revit MEP.
5. Examine the report, make adjustments to the model and re-run the analysis
6. Import results from the gbXML file.

CREATING AN HVAC SYSTEM

APPLYING CALCULATED AIR FLOWS TO THE SPACE ELEMENTS

At this point, the rooms all have calculated air flows. Actual airflow values will display
once air terminals are placed in the rooms.
1. Pick the Sage Room Space Element.
2. Right click and pick Element Properties
3. Scroll down to the Mechanical- Airflow Parameter in the Element Properties Dialog
4. Enter 1483 in the value field for Specified Supply Airflow
5. Click the dropdown value for Return Airflow and select Specified Supply Airflow.
6. Select OK.
7. Repeat this process for each space that will be served with a single-duct VAV system.

CREATING A ROOM SUPPLY AIR SCHEDULE

Schedules can be useful for displaying a listing of equipment for takeoffs, etc.
Schedules can also be used during the design and layout process. The following
schedule will list the space name and number along with the calculated air supply and
actual supply air quantities. This schedule will be useful for determining when the room
design conditions have been met during the placement of air terminal elements.
Select Schedule/Quantities from the Mechanical Design Bar. The new Schedule Dialog
will display.

43
Select the Spaces Category.
Enter “Room Air Supply Schedule” for the new schedule name.
Pick OK.
The Schedule Properties Dialog will display.

Select “Name” from the Available fields on the left and click the Add button. The
Schedule field for “Name” will display in the listbox on the right.
Select “Number”, “Specified Supply Airflow”, and “Actual Supply Airflow” and add each
to the Scheduled fields in order.
Click on the Sorting/Grouping tab and choose to sort by “Number” in ascending order.
Click OK.
The schedule will display. Note that a lot of spaces have a specified airflow quantity of
0. This is because the unoccupied spaces are not calculated for supply airflow. We need
to eliminate the spaces with 0 airflow from the schedule. This will make the schedule
shorter and more readable.
Open the Schedules/Quantities category in the Project Browser.
Note that Room Air Supply Schedule has been added to the browser. You may view the
schedule at any time by clicking Room Air Supply Schedule in the browser.
Right click on the Room Air Supply Schedule and select Properties.
In the Element Properties dialog, Edit the Filter Parameter.

44
Filter by Specified Supply Airflow greater than 0. This will eliminate the display of
spaces that contain a 0 CFM setting for Specified Supply Airflow.
The final room supply air schedule should look similar to the following illustration.

As you locate air terminals in the spaces, the schedule will automatically update to
reflect the actual supply airflow for each space. You may use the schedule to check your
airflow amounts against the calculated values.

45
LOCATING AIR TERMINALS

The schedule that was created in the previous exercise can be used to assist in the
location of air terminals in each conditioned space. Air supply quantities can also be
assigned to each terminal using the schedule as a guide.

PLACING PERFORATED FACE LAY-IN SUPPLY REGISTERS

1. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down
list in the upper left corner and set Air Terminals as the active workset.
2. Double-click on HVAC - Ceiling Plans - First Floor
Note: The ceiling plan displays the ceiling grid which can be used as a reference to align
the terminals correctly.
3. Enter “ZR” at the keyboard. Draw a region window around the meeting room in the
upper left corner of the plan. Sage Room 102.
Note from the chart above that the Sage Room requires 1483 CFM of supply air. This
space could be supplied with (4) air terminals supplying 370 CFM each. A possible
selection would be a Titus PAS (perforated face lay-in supply register) 24”x24” face, 10”
dia. Neck, 0.10” S.P., 30 NC.
4. From the Mechanical Design Menu, select Air Terminal.
5. On the Options bar, select the drop-down arrow to the right of the Supply Diffuser
24x24 face 12x12 neck selection. Note that a square face round neck selection may
not available.

6. If a square face round neck diffuser is not available, Pick on the Options bar Load
button.

7. Browse to the Imperial Library, Mechanical Components, Air-side Components, Air

terminals folder.
Locate the Supply Diffuser – Rectangular Face Round Neck – Hosted.rfa file. This is
a Revit Family of components representing rectangular face round neck air terminals.
The hosted style will allow you to select an object (the ceiling) or a work plane for
hosting the terminal and setting the elevation. Double-click to load this file (or pick
and select Open).
Note that you now have selections for a family of Rectangular Face Round Neck Air
Terminals in the Equipment Selection drop-down. The selections include both hosted
and non-hosted terminals. There are some basic behavioral differences in the
diffusers and also some graphical differences.

46
8. Pick the Supply Diffuser – Rectangular Face Round Neck – Hosted: 24”x24” Face –
10” Neck – Hosted.
9. Move the cursor into the graphics screen area. Note that the circle with a slash
displays. Pick on the “Place on a Face” button The air terminal will
display at the cursor location. The insertion point of the terminal is the
center point of the terminal, so move the terminal to the approximate
final location and snap it to the nearest intersection point of a horizontal
and vertical ceiling grid line.

10. Move the pointer to the terminal and when the terminal highlights, pick with the left
mouse button. Right click and select Element Properties in the pop-up menu.
11. Verify that the Offset value is 10’-0”. Hint: This is the ceiling height in the linked
Revit model. The “Place on a face” option has caused the diffuser to adopt the
elevation of the ceiling object in the linked model.
12. Now let’s look at the other type of diffuser and decide which is most appropriate for
our application. Return to the Equipment Drop-down menu and select a Supply
Diffuser – Rectangular Face Round Neck: 24x24 – 10 Neck. This diffuser is not
hosted.
13. Move the cursor into the graphics screen area. Note that when you hover in a space,
the diffuser does not display, however; hovering near the intersection of a horizontal
and vertical ceiling grid intersection will display the grid objects highlighted with a
“Nearest and Nearest” snap tip.

47
14. Pick a set of intersecting grids in the Sage Room near the first diffuser (don’t place
this diffuser directly on top of the first diffuser because we want to compare their
graphical appearances and behaviors). Hint: A diffuser was placed at the
intersection point but since it is not hosted by the ceiling face, it is being located on
the current level which is the first floor level. You will get a warning dialog to let you
know that the element you just placed is not visible in the current view. The diffuser
must be moved to the correct offset relative to the level before it will display in the
ceiling plan view.
15. Double-click on the First Floor Plan View in the Project Navigator and observe that
the diffuser will display in the First Floor Plan View. Pick on the diffuser, then select
the Element Properties button on the Options bar and change the Offset to 10’-0”.
Now return to the First Floor Ceiling Plan view.
16. Note that the center of the non-hosted diffuser is snapped to the intersection of the
ceiling grid exactly the same as the hosted diffuser and either type must be moved
in order to set them correctly in a grid panel. Note the appearance of the non-
hosted diffuser and the hosted diffuser displayed in step 9 hereinbefore. The hosted
diffuser displays more detail in plan view (the connector is displayed). The throw
arrows are very large and will require downsizing for proper display. The non-hosted
diffuser displays a simple face and more appropriate directional throw arrows. (the
directional throw arrows can be turned off individually). I prefer the ability to display
throw arrows in some circumstances so let’s delete the hosted diffuser and move the
non-hosted diffuser to the current hosted diffuser location. Move the diffuser using
the angle @ distance method in steps 17-21 hereinafter.
17. Change the Mechanical Air flow value to 370 CFM, the Pressure Drop to 0.10 in-wg,
and the Mark to “A”.
18. Pick OK.
Note that the terminal needs to be moved to the West 1’-0” and to the South 1’-0” in
order to locate it properly in the ceiling grid. The terminal should still be selected at
this point (displays as red in the graphics screen). If not, do the following:
Select the terminal by picking on it with the cursor and the left mouse button.
Once the terminal is selected,
19. Pick the Move button.
20. Pick a first reference point preferably in a nice clean spot on the screen.
21. Drag your cursor to the left (West), type 1 and press Enter. The Terminal will move
1 foot to the left.
22. Repeat the process and move the Terminal the required distance North or South.

48
23. Pick the terminal, select Element Properties, and under Mechanical Parameters, un-
check the 4 flow arrows.
The terminal should now be located at the end of a 2’x4’ tile as shown in the
illustration below.
Note: The method for creating the remainder of the terminals in this or any space is
a matter of personal preference using the Revit Modify commands that are familiar to
you. This exercise demonstrates the use of the copy command. The terminals could
have been placed at grid intersections and then all moved individually or in a
selection set.
24. Use the Copy command to make a copy of the terminal 14’-0” to the East of the
current terminal.
25. Select both terminals and copy them 14’-0” to the South.
The final layout should match the following illustration.

26. Go to the Project Browser, click on the Schedules/Quantities Room Air Supply
Schedule and verify that the Actual Supply Airflow for the Sage Room has been
updated to display 1480 CFM.

PLACING LINEAR SLOT CEILING DIFFUSERS

1. Zoom into the Director’s Office Ceiling Plan View.

2. Select Air Terminals from the Mechanical Design Bar. Note that in the Air Terminal
drop-down a linear slot diffuser is not available. Select the Load button on the
Options bar.
3. Look in the imperial Library -> Mechanical Components -> Air-side components ->
Air Terminals

49
4. Click on Supply diffuser with Plenum – Linear Slot – Hosted.rfa and pick the Open
button.

5. A Specify Types dialog will display with a list of available of types 1-4 slot in various
lengths. You may select one type or multiple types by holding down the CTRL Key
while making the selections. Select the 48x7 ¾-8 in. Inlet 4-slot type which can
deliver 280 CFM of air at 0.126 In Pressure Drop.
6. Select OK.
7. Select the “Place on Face” button on the Options bar.
8. Select the “Rotate after Placement” toggle and verify that it is toggled on with a
check-mark.
9. Move your cursor into the ceiling area. The linear slot diffuser should display at the
end of your cursor. Note the insertion point of the diffuser is at the center of the
diffuser. Locate it at the intersection of a horizontal and vertical ceiling grid element.
10. Use the Section Tool to cut a quick section through one of the linear slot diffusers in
the director’s office.
11. From the Basics Menu Bar, pick Section.
12. At the “Click to enter section start point” pick point 1.

13. Drag the cursor to the right in this case and pick point 2.
14. Double-click in the arrow head (shaded portion) and the section will display.

50
If the diffuser is upside-down (don’t laugh, this happens frequently when locating hosted
elements on a work plane) you can fix the situation very simply.
1. Click on the slot diffuser and look for the two little flip-flop arrows.

2. Click on the flip-flow arrows icon and the diffuser will flip over in the vertical plane.
3. Return to the plan view and move the diffuser if necessary to re-align it with the
ceiling grid.

15. Repeat the process to locate additional linear slot diffusers for the Director’s Office,
Conference Room, and Lobby in accordance with the following example.

51
PLACING EXHAUST TERMINALS
1. Select an Exhaust Grille 24 x 24 Face 12 x 12 Connection. Place the grille in the
ceiling of the toilet. Hint: snap to the intersection and intersection of the ceiling
grid.
2. Switch to the First Floor Plan View and select the grille.
3. Pick on the Element Properties for the grille and change the offset value to 9’-0”.
4. Turn off the UpFlow, RightFlow, and LeftFlow Arrows and set the flow to 150 CFM.

5. Click on the Edit/New button. This will display the Type Properties Dialog.
6. Click on the Duplicate button. A dialog will display the new name. Change the name
to 12 x 12 Face 10 x 10 Connection and click OK.
7. In the Dimension properties, change the Width to 1’-0” and the connector to 0’-10”.
8. Click OK two times to exit the Element Properties dialog. You have just added a new
Exhaust Grille to the family. Note that the size of the grille in the plan now matches
your new input.
Reposition the grille using the move command (if necessary) and copy the grille to the
other toilet and the Janitor’s Closet.

52
COMPLETING THE TERMINAL LAYOUTS

Repeat the procedures learned in the preceding exercise to locate all of the terminals on
the first and second floors of the building. Use the Room Air Flow Schedule to determine
air flow quantities for individual rooms. The following chart is a clip from the Titus Air
Distribution Manual, 24 x 24 perforated ceiling lay-in modules. Use this chart to select
neck sizes that would be appropriate for the air quantities you choose for each diffuser

Hint: Select a neck size that will deliver your air quantity at a total pressure not to
exceed 0.12 inches W.G. and a NC (Noise Criteria) not to exceed 30-32.
The following two illustrations provide suggested locations and numbers of terminals for
each space on the first and second floors. The layouts include (3) exhaust grilles on
each floor.

53
FIRST FLOOR TERMINAL LAYOUT

Rm Name Rm # Rm No. of CFM per Terminal Type Make and Model

Airflow Terminals Terminal Neck Size Mark
Parsley 101 1344 4 336 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Sage 102 1480 4 370 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Rosemary 103 1672 4 418 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Thyme 104 2172 6 362 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Male T. 106 242 1 242 8” Dia. C Titus PAS-8-24x24-3-26
Female T. 107 225 1 225 8” Dia. C Titus PAS-8-24x24-3-26
Break Rm 108 594 2 297 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Break Rm 109 594 2 297 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Director 110 720 4 180 8” Dia. E Titus ML-37-48 3-Slot 8” Inlet
Sect’y 111 394 1 394 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Conf. 112 440 2 220 8” Dia. D Titus ML-37-48 4-Slot 8” Inlet
Lobby 113 1116 4 186 8” Dia. E Titus ML-37-48 3-Slot 8” Inlet
2 186 8” Dia. Titus PAS-8-24x24-3-26
Corridor 114 840 4 210 8” Dia. Titus PAS-8-24x24-3-26

54
SECOND FLOOR TERMINAL LAYOUT

Rm Name Rm # Rm No. of CFM per Terminal Type Make and Model

Airflow Terminals Terminal Neck Size Mark
nd
2 Fl. Lobby 201 2315 8 220 10” Dia. B Titus ML-37-48 4-Slot 8” Inlet
2 278 8” Dia. C Titus PAS-8-24x24-3-26
Cloves 202 3273 8 410 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Cinnamon 203 1758 4 440 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Nutmeg 204 1749 4 440 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Marjoram 205 2200 6 366 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Male T. 206 300 1 300 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Female T. 207 290 1 290 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-10-24x24-3-26
Corridor 209 1180 3 393 12” Dia. A Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26
Break Rm 210 630 2 315 10” Dia. D Titus ML-37-48 3-Slot 8” Inlet
Break Rm 211 630 2 315 10” Dia. B Titus PAS-12-24x24-3-26

55
PLACING EQUIPMENT

Roof mounted A/C Units will

provide primary cold air to Fan
Powered Parallel VAV Terminal
Boxes located on each floor.
Heating will be provided by a hot
water coil on each VAV Box. The
VAV Boxes will be located above
the ceiling with ducted supply air
to each air distribution terminal.
Return air will be through troffered
lights to the plenum space above
the ceiling.

In this exercise, we will place the

VAV Boxes that will supply
conditioned air to each room. We
will begin with the first floor Sage
Room 102. The meeting rooms
have 10 Ft. ceilings. The ductwork
supplying air terminals in each
room will be run above the ceiling.
Space must be reserved for
electrical, fire protection, and
plumbing pipes from the second
floor. Initially, we will assume an
elevation of 10’- 11 7/16” from the
first floor to the bottom of the VAV
boxes. This will locate the ducts at
11’-7 1/16” to the Centerline.

LOADING THE VAV BOX FAMILY

1. From the Mechanical Menu Bar, select the Mechanical Equipment Command.
2. From the Options Menu Bar, select the Load button.
3. Browse to Revit MEP 2009 Training\Library and select the “Parallel Fan Powered VAV
Terminal – HW Coil.rfa” equipment family.
4. Pick Open.
5. The VAV Family will load into the project.

LOCATING VAV BOXES ON THE FIRST FLOOR

1. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down
list in the upper left corner and set HVAC Equipment as the active workset.
2. Zoom into room 102 (Sage Room - upper left corner of building)
3. Refer to the Room Air Supply Schedule and note that the Sage Room requires 1480
CFM of air supply. Select the unit from the following chart taken from the Titus Fan
Powered Parallel VAV Terminals catalog, model TQP.

56
 Note that the 2-4 Unit Size with 12” Inlet can handle the 1480 CFM with a radiated
NC level of approximately 24. This is an acceptable selection.
4. Design Menu -> Mechanical -> Mechanical Equipment
5.
6. Click down on the equipment list in the upper left corner. Select the Parallel Fan
Powered VAV Terminal – HW Coil - Size 4 –12.

7. Drag the unit onto the graphics screen and position it in the approximate location
shown.

Hint: Turn on the toggle for “Rotate after Placement” located on the Options bar or
simply press the space bar. The unit will rotate 90 degrees with each press of the space
bar. Additionally, if you want the VAV box to be shaded, set the Model Graphics Style to
Shaded with Edges. Special note: Do not mirror the box to get the final orientation
since many manufacturers do not make VAV boxes with the control panel on either side.

8. Once the unit is placed, pick on the unit and when it highlights, right click and pick
Element Properties. Under Constraints, verify that Level is set to First Floor. Set
the Constraints Offset Parameter to 10’-11 7/16”. Under Mechanical Air Flow, Set
the CFM to 1480. The inlet pressure drop (in. w.g.) cannot be set until the entire
system has been laid out. Under Identity Data, set the Mark to VAV-1 and the
Workset to Mechanical Equipment.
9. Click on the Edit/New Button, scroll to the bottom and in the Electrical Parameters,
set the voltage to 277.0 and the Amperage to 2.90. Scroll back to the top and note
that the Apparent Load is 803.3 Watts.
10. Use the same process to place VAV boxes serving the other first floor spaces. Use
the following table to set Element Properties for the boxes and locate them in
accordance with the illustration following the table.

57
Mark Airflow Inlet w.g. HW Voltage FLA Mfgr Model Description
Flow
VAV-1 1480 2.0 277 2.9 Titus TQP 4-12 See note 1
VAV-2 1340 1.3 277 2.9 Titus TQP 4-12
VAV-3 720 1.2 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-8
VAV-4 394 0.5 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-6
VAV-5 440 0.75 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-6
VAV-6 1307 1.8 277 2.9 Titus TQP 4-12
VAV-7 594 0.5 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-8
VAV-8 594 0.5 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-8
VAV-9 1092 2.5 277 2.9 Titus TQP 4-10
VAV-10 1672 2.0 277 2.9 Titus TQP 4-12
VAV-11 2172 2.1 277 5.4 Titus TQP 6-14
Note 1: FAN POWERED TERMINAL – PARALLEL – HW COIL

First floor VAV Box locations

58
LOCATING VAV BOXES ON THE SECOND FLOOR
1. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down
list in the upper left corner and set HVAC Equipment as the active workset.
2. Zoom into room 203 (Cinnamon Room - upper left corner of building – Second
Floor). The Cinnamon Room requires 1758 CFM of supply air.
3. Design Menu -> Mechanical -> Mechanical Equipment
4. Click down on the equipment list in the upper left corner. Select the VAV Unit -
Parallel Fan Powered: Size 5–6 14 inch inlet.
11. Using procedures similar to those used for the first floor units to locate VAV units on
the second floor. Use the following table to set Element Properties for the boxes and
locate them in accordance with the illustration following the table.

Mark Airflow Inlet w.g. HW Voltage FLA Mfgr Model Description

Flow
VAV-12 1760 2.1 277 3.2 Titus TQP 5-14
VAV-13 1640 1.8 277 3.2 Titus TQP 5-14
VAV-14 1640 1.8 277 3.2 Titus TQP 5-14
VAV-15 1769 2.25 277 3.2 Titus TQP 5-14
VAV-16 630 0.5 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-8
VAV-17 630 0.5 277 1.3 Titus TQP 2-8
VAV-18 2316 4.2 277 5.4 Titus TQP 6-16
VAV-19 1760 2.1 277 3.2 Titus TQP 5-14
VAV-20 2196 2.8 277 5.4 Titus TQP 6-16
Note 1: FAN POWERED TERMINAL – PARALLEL – HW COIL

59
Second Floor VAV Box Locations

CREATING A SUPPLY AIR SYSTEM

1. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down
list in the upper left corner and set Ductwork as the active workset.

2. In the Project Browser, double-click on the First Floor HVAC View

3. Zoom in on Sage Room 102. Hint: Make sure you can see all 4 terminals and the
VAV Box that serves Room 102.
4. Pick on one of the terminals.

The Options bar will change to display commands that relate to the selected element.

60
5. With the terminal highlighted, select the Create Supply Air System button.
6. The options bar will display commands for creating a Supply Air System. Pick on the

Edit Systems Button. .

7. An Edit Systems toolbar will display.

8. Select the Add to System button (the first button on the left). All of the model
elements will change to half-tone except for the terminal that was selected. The
design menu will change to Edit System commands. Pick on each of the remaining
terminals in the room.
9. Select the Select Equipment button (the fourth button from the left). Pick on the
VAV Box.
10. Select the Finish button.

CREATING THE AIR SUPPLY SYSTEM LAYOUT

1. Move the cursor to hover over one of the terminals in room 102. Hint: Do not pick.
2. Press the Tab Key on your keyboard.

Note that a dashed line will connect all the terminals and the VAV Box. This is called a
logical layout. It is not a duct path. It represents a network of terminals and equipment
that makeup a supply air system.

61
3. Pick on System Browser in the Mechanical Design Menu.

The System Browser panel will display. The browser usually displays on the right side of
the screen. Expand the browser to view the data.

Note that one supply system is identified with 1 VAV Unit – Parallel 1480 CFM. The air
supply system has 4 supply diffusers at 370 CFM each.

4. Hover your cursor over one of the Air Terminals and press the Tab Key. The logical
layout will display. Press the Pick Button on the mouse. The logical layout will
change to a dashed red line representing a routing. Pick on the Layout Path button
in the Options bar.

5. A layout path will be displayed.

62
6. Verify that Solution Type is set to Network.
7. Click on the Settings… button. The Duct Conversion Settings dialog will display.

You can customize the settings for the Main duct and for the branch takeoffs.

8. Set the main duct to Rectangular Duct: Mitered Elbows/ Taps. Set the Main
Duct Offset to 11’-7 1/16”.
9. Select the Branch duct.

63
10. Set the Branch duct to Round Duct with Taps. Offset 11’-8”. Flex Duct Type to Flex
Duct Round: Flex – Round

Maximum Flex Duct Length 5’-0”

11. Pick OK.

12. Click on the Next Solution button on the Options Bar and view each solution. Click
back to Solution #1.
13. On the Mechanical Design Menu, layout Options, Click on Finish Layout. A 3D duct
system will be drawn with fittings in accordance with the settings. The duct system
is unsized at this point.

64
MODIFYING THE AIR SUPPLY SYSTEM LAYOUT

The initial layout is not the finished layout because the duct system is not sized
correctly. Also, the end of the duct is open and must be capped. The sizing routine will
not work until the end is capped.

Additionally, we want to add a duct transition in the trunk following the first two
takeoffs.

1. Pick the duct at the end of the main run and drag it in the North direction about 6” to
provide and end for placing the duct cap.
2. Pick Duct Fitting from the Mechanical Design menu. Pick Rectangular Duct – End cap
– Standard from the equipment list dropdown.
3. Move the cursor into the graphics screen area. The end cap should appear on the
end of the cursor.
4. Drag the end cap over to the duct and snap it to the end of the duct. The endcap
should orient correctly on the duct, however; if it doesn’t you may need to undo it
and select the toggle for “Rotate after Placement” so that you can rotate the endcap
to the correct orientation after the initial placement. Pick Modify or press the Escape
Key.

In order to create a transition, the duct layout must be split at the approximate location
of the transition.

The Modify toolbar contains a Split command.

5. Pick on the Split command. Move the cursor into the graphics area. The icon at the
end of the cursor appears to be an Exacto Blade. Just pick on the duct at the
approximate location for the split.

6. Pick and after a few moments, a joint will display in the duct layout.

65
SIZING THE AIR SUPPLY SYSTEM LAYOUT

1. Hover the cursor over the main trunk duct near the VAV box. The duct will highlight.
Press the Escape Key two times or until the entire duct layout and the terminals
highlight. (do not highlight the VAV Box).
2. Pick once with the pick button. This process picks the entire supply duct layout less
the box. Pick the Sizing button on the Options bar. The Duct Sizing dialog will
display.

3. Set the sizing method to Equal Friction using 0.10” water gage per 100 ft.
4. Restrict duct sizes to 16” in height.
5. Set the Branch Sizing method to “Match Connector Size.” Click the OK button.

The duct system will be calculated and redrawn using the calculated sizes. Note that a
transition will be placed at the split location.

66
OK any information messages related to pressure drop not calculated, etc.

LABELING THE SUPPLY AIR SYSTEM

Labels provide the finishing touch to the layout. Duct size labels, Air Terminal Labels,
and Equipment labels are necessary for the final sheet view of the system.

DUCT SIZE TAGS

1. From the Basic Design Menu, Select Tag >> By Category

2. Verify that the tag is set to Horizontal, the Leader is toggled on and the offset is set
to 3/8”.
3. Move the cursor to hover over a duct. The tag will display and you can drag the tag
to a legible location on the plan. Pick to place the tag.

AIR TERMINAL TAGS

1. From the Basic Design Menu, Select Tag >> By Category

2. Verify that the tag is set to Horizontal, the leader is toggled off..
3. Move the cursor to hover over an Air Terminal. The tag will display. Pick to place
the tag. You can drag the tag to a legible and more desirable location on the plan
after the initial placement.

67
MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT TAGS

Tags are used to mark equipment that will be scheduled later in the design and
documentation process.

1. Select Tag from the Mechanical Menu Bar and pick By Category.

2. When prompted to “Pick Object to Tag”, select one of the VAV Boxes.
3. You may be prompted in an information dialog that “No tag is loaded for this type.
Would you like to load a tag now ?” Select Yes and browse to the Annotations +
Mechanical folder. Select Mechanical Equipment Tag.rfa and Load it into your current
project.

As an alternative, you may select the Tags… button on the Design bar. A Tags dialog
will display. Scroll down to the Mechanical Equipment category. Note that “No Tag
Loaded” will be displayed for the Mechanical Equipment Category. Pick on the Load
button (top right corner) and browse to the Annotations + Mechanical folder. Load the
Mechanical Equipment Tag.rfa tag family into the project.

68
4. Note that the tag will display as a question mark (?). Pick a location and place the
question mark next to the VAV Box. The question mark is displaying because the
piece of equipment has not been updated with a piece mark or the tag is looking at
the wrong field for the information to display the piece mark.
5. While the VAV Box is selected, pick on the Element Properties command in the
Options Bar and look at the Identity Data Mark Parameter. Does the value field
contain a piece of text ? Possibly “VAV-1” or something similar. If so, then the tag
is looking to the wrong parameter for the piece mark.
6. Click on the Question Mark that we placed as a piece mark.
7. Click on the “Edit Family” button that displays in the Options Bar.
8. Answer Yes to the prompt for “Open Mechanical Equipment Tag for Editing ?”
9. The tag will open and you will see a “1i” in the middle of the screen.
10. Pick on the text and then select the “Edit Label” button on the Option Bar to display
the Edit Label dialog.

You may select any of the Category Parameters in the left listbox and click on the blue
right arrow to apply the parameter value to the label. Parameters in the right listbox
may be removed from the listbox by selecting the parameter and picking on the red left
arrow.

11. Pick Type Mark on the right side and pick on the red arrow button (pointing left).
12. Pick Mark on the left side and pick on the blue arrow button (pointing right).

69
13. Pick OK.
14. From the Family Menu Bar, select Load into Project.
15. Note the tag will update in the project to display the VAV Box Mark.
16. Use the tag to mark all of the VAV Boxes on both the first and second floors.

COMPLETING THE DUCT LAYOUT ON THE FIRST AND SECOND FLOORS

Use the methods and procedures from the previous exercises to complete the layout of
low pressure ductwork from the VAV boxes to the air terminals on the first and second
floors. See the following illustrations for suggested duct layouts.

70
First Floor Supply Duct Layout

71
Second Floor Low Pressure Supply Duct Layout

ADDING A DUCTED EXHAUST SYSTEM WITH ROOF MOUNTED FAN

Exhaust Terminals were added in the ceilings of the two toilets and the janitor’s closet in
a previous exercise. We have determined that codes require an exhaust air quantity of
150 CFM from each of the toilets. Our Air Distribution Catalog indicates that we could
provide 10” x 10” square face registers with 8” x 8” neck sizes to handle the exhaust air
quantity. A similar register is provided in the Janitor Closet.

72
ADDING THE EXHAUST FAN

1. Double click on the HVAC Floor Plans First Floor View

2. Click on Design Menus -> Mechanical -> Mechanical Equipment
3. Click on the drop-down list of equipment. Look for an exhaust ventilator.
4. Click on the Load button to the right of the equipment drop-down.
5. Browse to Mechanical Components, Air-Side Components, Fans and Blowers. Select
the Exhaust Ventilator – Downblast.rfa file and pick Open. The ventilator family will
load.

6. Pick on the Properties button.

Note that only one size is available for selection. This family part was not created as a
parametric part.

7. Place the fan in the approximate location as shown in the following illustration.

8. Click on the fan and pick the Properties button. Under Constraints, note that the fan
is currently located at an offset of 0’-0”. What this means is that the fan is at the
floor elevation of Level 1. The fan must be moved to the roof.
9. Change the offset parameter value to 14’-0” and pick OK. The fan will disappear.

What happened ? the fan has been moved to the roof of the equipment room which is
above the top reference plane of the First Floor – HVAC View. We will need to display
the fan in order to complete the following exercise.

CREATING THE EXHAUST SYSTEM

This exercise requires that we select the exhaust fan along with the registers.

1. Right click in a clear space on the screen. Pick View Properties, scroll down to
Extents, pick on Edit values button of the View Range Parameter and set the Top
Primary Range offset for Level Above (second floor - HVAC) to 5’-0”. This will raise
the top of our view range to a point where we can see and select the fan component.
Pick OK and OK.

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2. Select one of the exhaust registers, then click on the Create Exhaust Air System
button on the Options tool bar.

Note that the button is context sensitive. It has changed to

Exhaust Air System because we selected an Exhaust Air Terminal as our system
component. Also note that the button is green (the default color for exhaust).

3. Select the Edit Systems Button (the left button of a three button
cluster that appears on the Options tool bar). A floating Tool Bar menu will display.

4. Pick Add to System from the Floating Toolbar menu and select the two exhaust
registers that are not displayed in bold.
5. Pick the Select Equipment Button (the fourth button on the floating toolbar) and
select the exhaust fan. Pick Finish System from the Edit System menu.
6. Hover your cursor over one of the exhaust registers and press the Tab Key.

A logical layout will display for the exhaust air system.

While the bold dashed line layout is being displayed, pick once with the pick button on
the mouse. The layout will change to a red dashed-line layout. Note that the Edit
System buttons are displayed on the Options tool bar in case you need to add an
additional terminal and/or change the equipment selection for the system.

7. Pick the Layout Path button on the Options tool bar.

8. Pick on the Settings button on the Options tool bar. Adjust the settings to match
those in the following illustrations:

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Change the main duct offset to 10’-6”

Duct conversion setting for Main Exhaust Duct.

Change the branch duct offset to 10’-6”

Duct conversion settings for Branch Exhaust Duct.

9. Click the right arrow to Network Solution type 3 of 6.

10. Click on Modify in the Layout Paths Design Menu.
11. Click on the horizontal run path along the outside wall and drag it down about 2’-0”.

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Dragging the horizontal path down a couple of feet.

12. Pick to set the location, the pick Finish layout in the Layout Paths design menu.

A 3D duct system will display.

The layout is still not complete. We must run the sizing routine on the ductwork.

13. Hover the cursor over the exhaust air terminal in the Female Toilet. Press the Tab
Key twice and the terminals and duct system will highlight. Press the pick button to
select the entire system.
14. Pick on the Sizing button, set to equal friction 0.12” sp, and pick OK.
15. Using methods and procedures learned in the preceeding exercises, tag the exhaust
ducts and registers.
16. Tag the duct up to the exhaust fan using the Text Command and 3/32” Arial text
style.

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Your final exhaust system layouts may look similar to the following illustrations.

First Floor Exhaust System Layout

Use the techniques learned in this section to add an exhaust fan and duct system to the
second floor.

Second Floor Exhaust System Layout

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MECHANICAL PIPING
Revit MEP provides commands for creating mechanical piping systems .

CREATING PIPING FLOOR PLAN VIEWS

Prior to creating the piping systems, we will create Floor Plan Piping views for the first
and second floors of our model. We will set the View Properties in these two floor plan
views to display pipe and equipment and we will set the view properties of ducts and air
terminals to invisible. This will facilitate the layout of the pipe.

1. In the Project Browser, Click on the Hvac -> Floor plans -> First Floor view.
2. Right click and pick Duplicate View -> Duplicate. A Copy of First Floor will display.
3. Pick on Copy of First Floor, right click, and pick Rename. Rename the copy to First
Floor Piping.
4. Perform the same function with the Second Floor.
5. Double-click on the First Floor Piping view. Right-click in the model viewport and
pick View Properties.
6. Edit the Visibility/Graphics Overrides and set Air Terminals, Duct Accessories, Duct
Fittings, Ducts, Flex Ducts, Rooms, and Spaces to invisible (click on the checkbox
and turn off the check mark).
7. Perform the same function for the Second Floor Piping view.

ADDING A HOT WATER BOILER

We will add a building heating hot water boiler, pumping system, piping, valves, and
appertenances to support the use of hot water coils on the induction air side of the
paralled fan powred VAV boxes that are being used to heat and cool our project.

Note: The heating summary that is reported by the IES load program does not include
outside air. The total building heating load is approximately 640,000 btuh including
ventilation load.

Buildng Heating Load: 640000 BTUH

Required boiler size: 20 hp
Hot Water Supply = 180 F Hot Water Return = 160 F
Pump Capacity: 640000 / (500 * 20) = 64 GPM

1. Zoom into the Electrical/Mechanical Equipment Room on the First Floor.

2. Select Mechanical Equipment from the Menu Bar.
3. Click on the drop-down list in the Options Bar and verify that Watertube Boilers are
not loaded.
4. Click on the Load button.

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5. Browse to Mechanical Components -> Water-side Components -> Boilers.
6. Scroll down to find Watertube Boiler – 150–2500 MBH.rfa. Pick the boiler family and
select the Open button.
7. Pick the 630 MBH Boiler and move the cursor into the First Floor Piping view.
8. Locate the boiler in the location shown in the following illustration.

9. Pick on the boiler, select Element Properties, and verify that the level is set to First
Floor. Set the Offset to 0’-6” in order to compensate for a housekeeping pad.

CREATING A HOUSEKEEPING PAD FOR THE BOILER

Mechanical equipment located in equipment rooms or on any floor is usually mounted on

a housekeeping pad. Revit MEP does not include housekeeping pads in the family
elements. You can make a pad very easily using the Create in Place… function on the
Options Bar.

1. Select the Mechanical Equipment command on the Menu Bar.

2. Select the Create in Place… button on the Options Bar.
3. Name the component “Boiler Housekeeping Pad” and pick OK.

4. The Menu Bar will change. Select the Solid Form Command.
5. Select “Solid Extrusion” from the fly-out.
6. You will be prompted to “click to enter line startpoint.” Pick a point at the lower left
corner of the boiler.

Hint: You will be prompted to select line start and endpoints as you continue around the
boiler. You are drawing an outline of the boiler footprint. When you have come back to
the initial startpoint, select Modify from the Menu Bar.

7. Click the Offset command from the Revit Toolbars.

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8. Set the Offset value to 0’-6”. (value is entered in a textbox on the Options Bar)
9. Click on each line that you created for the boiler footprint and move the cursor to
make sure the offset is being displayed to the outside. Pick once for each line to
create four offsets that trace the original footpring. Note that the corners will
automatically clean up.
10. Click Modify.
11. Select the original four lines that trace the boiler outline and delete them.
12. Click on the Set Workplane Command in the Menu Bar and verify that First Floor is
the current workplane.
13. Click on the Extrusion Properties Command in the Menu Bar. Set the Extrusion End
to 0’-6”.
14. Click on the Material Parameter Value field and select Concrete - Cast-in-place
Concrete.
15. Click OK to close the dialog and pick Finish Sketch.
16. Pick Finish Family. It is very important at this point to pick finish family
before using other commands.
17. Pick View -> New -> Camera
18. Pick a location for the camera in the Equipment Rooom looking back at the boiler.
Move the cursor to position the cam. Set the offset at 4’-0” from the First floor.
When you select the final view direction, the camera view will display.

You have just created a Concrete Housekeeping Pad for the boiler.

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ADDING A HYDRONIC PIPING SYSTEM

Prior to adding the Hydronic Piping System, we should adjust the water flows on the
coils and check to make sure that the Piping system that we want to draw is available in
this project. We will be creating our system using Copper pipe with soldered fittings.

INDIVIDUAL VAV BOX HEATING COIL CAPACITIES

VAV Box Minimum Htg Cap. (btuh) Hot Water Flow
VAV-1 12583 2.0
VAV-2 9048 1.3
VAV-3 7806 1.2
VAV-4 2048 0.5
VAV-5 3775 0.75
VAV-6 12083 1.8
VAV-7 1769 0.5
VAV-8 1859 0.5
VAV-9 16603 2.5
VAV-10 12990 2.0
VAV-11 13998 2.1
VAV-12 14045 2.1
VAV-13 12000 1.8
VAV-14 12000 1.8
VAV-15 15660 2.25
VAV-16 1968 0.5
VAV-17 2123 0.5
VAV-18 28611 4.2
VAV-19 13786 2.1
VAV-20 18586 2.8

1. Click on each VAV Box, select Element Properties, and verify that the Hot Water flow
for each box is set in accordance with this table.

ADDING A NEW PIPE TYPE

2. Select the Piping Menu from the Menu Bar.

3. Click on Pipe and the select the Element Properties button on the Options bar.

Note that only one pipe type is available and that is PVC. The PVC pipe in Revit MEP is
provided with DWV fittings so it is not an appropriate choice for drawing hydronic supply
and return pipe. We will have to create a new pipe system

4. Select the Edit/New button in the Element Properties dialog.

5. Click on the Duplicate button in the Type Properties dialog.
6. Enter “Hydronic Hot Water” for the new type.
7. Click in the value field for pipe material. Select Copper from the drop down list.
8. Click in the value field for connection type. Set the connection type to soldered.

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9. Click in the value field for class. Set the class to “K”
10. Click on the value field for Elbow. Note that a standard elbow is not available for
use. Apply the values you have set and click OK twice to close the dialogs.
11. Select the Pipe Fitting command from the menu bar.
12. Pick the Load button in the Options bar and browse to the \pipe\fittings\elbows
folder in the Revit MEP 2009 Imperial Library. Select “pipe elbow.rfa” and pick Open.
13. Let’s go ahead and load all the appropriate fittings at this point.
14. Load the following fittings using the same process that we used to load the elbow.
15. \pipe\fittings\caps\Pipe Endcap.rfa
16. \pipe\fittings\crosses\pipe cross.rfa
17. \pipe\fittings\tees\pipe tee.rfa
18. \pipe\fittings\transitions\pipe transition.rfa
19. \pipe\fittings\unions\pipe straight coupling.rfa
20. Return to the Element Properties dialog for pipe and select the Edit/New button.
Verify that the Hydronic Hot Water type is selected in the Type drop-down list.
21. Set all values in accordance with the following illustration:

22. Click on the Apply button, the click OK twice to close the dialogs.

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ADJUSTING THE MECHANICAL PIPE SETTINGS

1. From the Pull-down menus, click Settings -> Mechanical Settings…

The Mechanical Settings dialog will display.

Note the settings listed under Pipe Settings. Verify that the settings match those in
the illustration above.
2. Click on Conversion and verify that the elbow angle increment is set to 1 degree.
This setting controls the angle increment for automatic routing of pipe.

3. Click on Main and verify that the settings match those in the illustration above.

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4. Click on Branch Settings and verify that the settings for pipe type and offset match
those listed hereinbefore for main settings.
5. Pick Rise Drop and verify that Rise/Drop Annotation Size is set to 0’-0 1/8”.
6. Do not modify Single and Two Line Symbology for this exercise.
7. Click on Sizes.
8. Pick Copper as the Material.

The sizes dialog allows you to customize the choices available for creating layouts
and using the sizing routines. If a size is not available in the size list, you cannot
select the size for creating pipe. If not used in sizing, an existing pipe or new layout
cannot be resized to a size that is not available.

9. Pick OK.

CREATING THE HYDRONIC SUPPLY SYSTEM

1. Pick on one of the VAV Boxes on the first floor.

2. The Options Bar will change and a ribbon of buttons will display for creating different
types of pipoing systems. Select the button for Creating a Hydronic Supply System.

3. Once you have click the “Create Hydronic Supply System” button, another ribbon of
buttons will display. Select the button for “Edit System”.

4. Once the button for Edit System has been picked, a Hydronic System Toolbar will
display. pIck the button for “Add to System”.

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5. The “Add to System” command will prompt you to select the other pieces of
equipment that make up the hydronic supply system. Select each VAV Box. Ignore
the warning that the element is part of another system.

6. Following selection of all the VAV Boxes, select the fourth button from the left. This
button will prompt you to select the Equipment (the Boiler). Either pick on the boiler
or select it from the drop-down in the Options Bar.
7. Pick Finish.
8. Hover the cursor over a VAV Box and press the Tab key multiple times until a logical
diagram displays showing the connections to the boiler and the HW Coil on each VAV
Box.

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9. Pick once while the logical diagram is being displayed. The logical diagram will
change to a single line path.

10. Pick the layout path button on the Options Bar.

11. Select the path options 1-6 to see what solutions are being suggested. I like
network solution option number 3 with some minor adjustments.

The main running vertically may need to be moved slightly to the left to avoid some
ductwork.
12. Click the Finish command in the menu bar.
The final pipe layout will be created. Note that the pipe system is not sized at this
point.

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 The pipe is being displayed as single line using annotation scale for the fittings. This
creates a sort of hybrid schematic layout.
13. Zoom into an area of piping near a couple of the VAV Boxes and examine the pipe
layout.

87
14. Change the display settings to Hidden Line with Fine Detail and zoom up to a larger
scale. Cut a section similar to the following illustration.

The section view shows a piping arrangement that can work.

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 The one problem that we have is that a couple of the runouts were located very close
together and in one case, the runout could not connect to the main.

The lower runout can be moved to the south about 1’-0” to fix the problem.
1. Pick the horizontal runout.
2. Select the Move Command.
3. Pick a point, point the cursor in the South direction (orthogonally) and enter 1’ 0” for
the displacement distance. The pipe will move down.
4. Pick the left end of the runout pipe, drag it back a couple of feet, then drag it back to
the main and when it snaps, pick and the pipe will connect with a tee.
5. Pan over to the other end of the runout.
6. The runout pipe is ended at point 1. The end of the runout does not line up exactly
with the rise or drop pipe at point 2 so we can’t just click on the end and drag a pipe
over to connect. Click on the end of the runout, right click, and pick Draw Pipe from
the pop-up menu.

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7. Extend the runout toward the coil connection by drawing a pipe in a North direction
about ½ the distance from the end of the runout to the drop pipe from the coil.

8. Cut a section view to the left of the extended runout looking in an East direction.

9. Change to the Section View. You will note that there is an elbow at the end of the
drop pipe from the Coil. Delete the elbow. Click on the end of the drop pipe, right

90
 click, and pick Draw Pipe. Extend the pipe at the 10’-6” elevation toward the runout
but do not try to connect the two pipes.

10. Switch back to the First Floor Piping View.

11. Pick the Align Command, select the centerline of the pipe from the coil, then the
centerline of the runout pipe. They will align in the plan view.
12. Pick the Trim Command and pick the ends of the two pipe. Trim will Join the two
pipes together if the are in perfect alignment.

CREATING THE HYDRONIC RETURN SYSTEM

1. Click on one of the VAV Boxes.

2. Pick the Create Hydronic Return System from the Options Bar. It is right beside the
button for creating a Hydronic Supply System that we used in the previous exercise.
3. Once you have clicked the “Create Hydronic Return System” button, another ribbon
of buttons will display. Select the button for “Edit System”.

4. Once the button for Edit System has been picked, a Hydronic System Toolbar will
display. pIck the button for “Add to System”.

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5. The “Add to System” command will prompt you to select the other pieces of
equipment that make up the hydronic supply system. Select each VAV Box. Ignore
the warning that the element is part of another system.
6. Following selection of all the VAV Boxes, select the fourth button from the left. This
button will prompt you to select the Equipment (the Boiler). Either pick on the boiler
or select it from the drop-down in the Options Bar.
7. Pick Finish.

8. Hover the cursor over a VAV Box and press the Tab key multiple times until a logical
diagram displays showing the connections to the boiler and the HW Coil on each VAV
Box.

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9. Pick once while the logical diagram is being displayed. The logical diagram will
change to a single line path.

10. Pick the layout path button on the Options Bar.

11. Select the path options 1-6 to see what solutions are being suggested. I like
network solution option number 1 with some minor adjustments.

12. We will have to reroute a portion of the return line to keep it inside the building were
it is entering the Equipment Room. Other minor changes may need to be considered
once we view some cross sections of the building.

13. Pick the Finish Command on the Menu Bar. A warning that “No Autoroute solution
was found” simply means that something did not get connected correctly. We will
investigate the piping and make manual corrections as necessary.
14. Following several adjustments to the routing of some runouts and a change in the
routing of the mains back to the equipment room, along with the addition of labels,
the piping should look similar to the layout on the following page.

Special Notes: The piping in the following layout was sized using a B&G System Syzer
Calculator and the sizes were manually applied to the pipes.

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ADDING HYDRONIC SUPPLY PIPING TO THE SECOND FLOOR

1. Open the Second Floor Piping View using the Project Browser.
2. Click on a VAV Box. Pick the Edit System button on the Options Bar.
3. Select Hydronic Supply 1 in the Select a System dialog that displays.
4. Pick the Add to System button and select any VAV Boxes that are not highlighted.

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5. Pick the Select Equipment button and since the boiler is not visible in the Second
Floor Piping View, select the boiler from the System Equipment drop-down list
that displays in the Options Bar.
6. Pick the Finish button.
7. Hover over a VAV Box with the cursor and press the Tab Key multiple times until
the hydronic supply system logical layout displays as dashed lines.

8. Pick once, then select the Layout Path button.

9. Scan through the solutions using the Intersections path method and when you
get to solution 6 of 6, click on the Modify command in the Menu Bar.
10. Pick on the vertical run of pipe (the main) and move it over to the right side of
the corridor and pick Finish in the Menu Bar. The Second Floor Piping View
should look similar to the following example.

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We need to make some adjustments in the piping arrangement at the top two VAV
Boxes and we need to extend the main to drop in the chase behind the Janitor’s
Closet.
Change the detail level to Fine and change the scale to 1”=1’-0” so that we can see
what is happening at the two VAV Boxes.

96
Use a couple of sections to view the problem. Then modify the routing of the pipe
and reconnect so that the final arrangement is similar to the following example.

Complete the piping on the second floor as a separate exercise. Begin by

establishing the risers from the first to second floor. Then route the return piping
and connect to the VAV Boxes. The following is a partial layout of the second floor
piping. The return piping has been stopped just outside the janitor’s closet.

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TIPS AND TRICKS FOR USERS THAT ARE CREATING DUCTWORK AND
PIPING SYSTEMS

DISPLAYING REVIT MEP SYSTEMS BY COLOR

When you create duct or pipe running through your model, you may notice that the duct and/or pipe is displayed
using different colors after you have connected the duct or pipe to a connector on a terminal or piece of
equipmen t. Revit displays your systems in various colors to make it easier to understand and view your model
at a quick glance. You can set up a filter to apply colors by System Type, or by System Name, whatever you
want. Check out the Filters applied to the default template in RME 2009 as a guide.

Note: The template applied to you current project contains filter settings that were based on the default template.

1. Select an HVAC Plan View, right click and pick Properties.

2. In the Element Properties dialog, select the Edit button for Visibility/Graphics
Overrides.
3. Click on the Filters Tab.

Note that you can add filters for other pre-defined systems and you can add new
systems.

ADDING FILTERS TO CONTROL THE DISPLAY OF MEP SYSTEMS BY COLOR

You need to use Filter Settings to accomplish this task.

1. Select Settings -> Filters…

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Once the filter has been defined, you can apply the filter to visibility/graphics in any view.

2. Select a view in the Project Browser that you want to apply these filters on, go to Properties -> Visibility
Graphics Overrides… -> Filters tab. Here you will select a filter you defined in the previous step and define
visual overrides for elements that are returned by the filter.
3. Go to that view, note that your Filters have been applied and there is a visual difference between your
systems.

Keep in mind that Filters can be part of a View Template, so you don’t need to define these for each individual
view.

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CREATING A PIPE BEND OR ELBOW.

Click on an existing segment of pipe. Right click to get the pop-up menu. Click Create
Similar.

This allows you to create another segment of pipe with the same properties as the pipe
you just drew.

Select the end of the segment that you just drew and pull your cursor in the direction
that you want the next segment to be drawn. This example will illustrate turning 90
degrees to the North. Any angle would work so long as it represents a bend fitting
(elbow) that is in the elbow family.

When you select the end of this second segment, an elbow fitting will be placed in the
model automatically. No need to extend pipes and trim.

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CREATING A PIPE TAKEOFF WITH A TEE FITTING.

Creating a Tee fitting in an existing line is equally simple. Select the pipe, right click and
pick Create Similar, pick on the pipe where you want to place the tee, and then pull your
cursor away in the direction of the takeoff pipe segment.

When you select the endpoint for the takeoff segment, the Tee will be created
automatically on the main segment.

Hint: Always pick on the pipe centerline because if you want to put in a vertical tee with
a riser, picking on the edge of the pipe will not achieve that result. If picking on the
centerline, you can simply enter your new elevation in the options textbox for elevation
and a riser will automatically be drawn, then you can simply select the end of the next
horizontal segment and that will be drawn at the new elevation. Try it, you will like it.

If you pick on the edge of the pipe, you can draw a tee with a horizontal takeoff, but if
you try to put in a new elevation, you will get undesirable results.

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REPLACING AN ELBOW WITH A TEE

Zoom into the bend so you can see what is happening here. Click on the elbow.

Note that there are two little plus signs. Clicking on the plus sign at the base of the
elbow will turn the elbow into a Tee fitting with a new pipe extending in the direction of
the plus that you clicked. The following illustration shows what happens when you click
on the plus sign at position 1.

Converting a Tee back to an elbow is equally as simple. Click on the Tee and look for a
minus sign at the end of the tee that is not connected to a pipe. Click on the minus sign
and the Tee will convert to an elbow turning away from the direction of the minus sign.

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CREATING MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT

As soon as you begin to use Revit MEP on a project, you will no doubt notice that there
are certain pieces of equipment that are not in the library. You may
visit www.seek.autodesk.com to see if the piece of equipment has been posted on the
content website, however; there is the possibility that you may not find it in any
location. If this is the case and you need the equipment in order to proceed with the
layout of the model, you may have to create the equipment.

The following exercise will teach you how to create a piece of mechanical equipment that
can be used on a project. We will be making the equipment as a parametric family part
so that additional sizes can be added to the library without having to reconstruct the 3D
model of the part. The family part will be usable on other projects as well.

CREATING A TITUS PARALLEL FAN TERMINAL WITH HOT WATER

HEATING COIL

Open the Revit MEP 2009 Training\Docs\Parallel Fan Terminals.pdf file. This pdf file
contains two pages that display all the dimensions that are needed to create a base fan
powered terminal box, a fan powered terminal with HW coil, and a fan powered terminal
with electric coil. For purposes of the initial exercise, we will create the basic box, then
add the HW coil as a separate exercise.

1. Select File -> New -> Family from the pull-down menu.
2. The New Family Select Template dialog will display and you will be prompted to
select a template for the new part. Select the Mechanical Equipment.rft template
file.
3. There are three templates that are provided for the creation of new mechanical
equipment family parts. The choice is obvious since a VAV Fan Terminal is not
hosted by a ceiling or wall component.
4. Select Open. The new file will open as Family 1 – Floor plan: Ref. Level

The family template contains two reference planes and one reference level to get you
started. They are:

• Reference Plane Center (front/back)

• Reference Plane Center (left/right)
• Reference Level 0’-0”

Hint: Switch to a front elevation view to see the reference level

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Several processes could be used for creating this part, however; I have chosen the
process that I feel produces the most reliable and consistent results for a parametric
part. We will create reference planes representing each surface of the model, lock the
surfaces of the model to the planes, and control the plane locations with dimension
parameters. The reference plane will in turn control the size and shape of the solid
model.

The default insertion point for the VAV box should be a physical point on the casing that
can be used to control the box location relative to other features of the building such as
ceilings, lights, beams, etc. A logical point would be the bottom of the casing at a
corner. We will assume that the corner nearest the round inlet would be a good
location. That point will be the intersection of the two default reference planes that are
being displayed in the floor plan view that you see on the screen and in the preceeding
illustration.

To determine where the origin is defined for an existing part, select each reference plane
in turn, select Element Properties, and find one that has the “Defines Origin” parameter
value checked. Once you find two reference planes with the values checked, their
intersection is the origin of the 3D model.

5. Pick the Reference Plane Center (left and right) and copy it to the right side at a
distance of 36”. Pick the new plane, click on Element Properties, and name the new
plane “Right side of VAV Box”
6. Pick the Reference Plane Center (front and back) and copy it to the north (in the up
direction) at a distance of 40”. Pick on the new plane, click Element Properties, and
name the new plane “Back of VAV Box”.

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The new reference planes should look similar to the following illustration.

Note that the control panel dimensions are fixed. i.e. they do not change as the unit
size changes. We will add reference planes to control the location and shape of the
panel just in case the panel changes size in the future. Note that the location of the
panel relative to the front corner of the casing does change for different box sizes.

To create the reference planes that control the electrical panel location and size:

1. Pick the original left/right reference plane and copy it to the west (left) at a distance
of 6-1/4”. Pick on the new plane, click Element Properties, and name the new plane
“Side of control panel”
2. Pick the original front/back reference plane and copy it to the north (up) at a
distance of 3” and repeat the process copying it at a distance of 23”. Pick the first
new plane and name it “Front of control panel”. Pick the second plane and name it
“Back of control panel”.
3. The Centerline of the Primary Air Inlet in the plan view is determined by dimension A
in the catalog. Copy the reference plane representing the left side of the box to the
East (to the right) a distance of 6”. Name this plane “Centerline of Inlet”.
4. The round inlet will protrude from the front of the box about 3-3/8” so we will add a
reference plane to control the length of the extrusion that represents the inlet. Copy
the bottom reference plane (the horizontal front/back plane) to the South 3-3/8”.
Click on the added plane and name it “Face of round inlet”.

A plan view of the reference planes should look similar to the following illustration:

105
Note that I have added the outline of the box to give you an idea about where we are
going with these reference planes.

5. Change to a front view. Add a new reference plane using the Reference Plane

command from the menu bar. Draw the plane at 17” above the Ref.
Level 0’-0”.
6. The new reference plane will represent the top of the VAV Box casing. Click on the
new plane, pick Element Properties, and name the new plane “Top of VAV box”.
7. Add another reference plane at ½ the distance or 8-1/2” above the Ref. Level 0’-0”.
This plane will be used to locate the centerline of the inlet, the discharge, the
induction air inlet, and the heating coil. Click on the new plane, pick Element
Properties, and name the new plane “Vertical Centerline of VAV Box”. See the
following illustration for an example of the reference levels in the Front View.

It is time to create some of the model parts. This will eliminate some of the confusion
with so many different reference planes.

1. Change to the floor plan view

2. Select Solid Form -> Solid Extrusion

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3. Click on the Rectangle button on the Options Bar.

4. Set the depth to 1’-5” (the text box on the Options Bar)
5. Select Finish Sketch from the Menu Bar.

A Solid Extrusion will be created from the rectangular shape. The extrusion will be 1’-5”
in depth and will be the same dimensions as the distance between the reference planes.

6. Click on the back surface of the extrusion. Drag it down slightly, then drag it back
until it snaps into position aligned with the reference plane. A padlock icon will
display and you can click on the lock to lock the surace with the reference plane.

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7. Perform a similar function with each of the four surfaces of the VAV Box that are
visible in this work plane.
8. Switch to a Front View.
9. Drag the top surface of the VAV Box down slightly, then snap it back into the top
reference plane. Click on the pad lock to close it and lock the top of the VAV Box
and the reference plane together.
10. Perform a similar function with the bottom of the VAV Box.

CREATING THE CONTROL PANEL

1. Return to the Front Elevation View.

2. Create two additional reference planes. One plane must be 6” above the Centerline
plane and the other plane must be 6” below the Centerline plane.
3. Name the top plane “Top of control panel”
4. Name the lower plane “Bottom of control panel”
5. Return to the Floor Plan view.
6. Select Solid Form -> Solid Extrusion
7. Click on “Set Work Plane” in the Menu Bar. When the dialog pops up, select “Bottom
of Control panel” from the list of choices and pick “Bottom of VAV Box” as the view
to create the Solid Extrusion in. Set the Depth to 1’-0” on the Options Bar.
8. Pick the Rectangle method of drawing the extrusion and pick the two points show in
the following illustration.

9. Click on the padlocks and lock the control panel faces to the reference planes.
10. Return to the Front Elevation View.
11. Pick Finish from the Menu Bar.

Lock the top and bottom faces of the control panel to the horizontal reference planes
made for controlling the control panel.

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CREATING THE PRIMARY AIR INLET

1. Change to the Front Elevation View.

2. Pick the Vertical Reference Plane representing the Centerline of the Inlet. (It should
be located 6” from the left edge of the box). Use the Copy command to copy the
vertical reference plane 3” to the left of center and 3” to the right of center.
3. Pick Solid Form -> Solid Extrusion
4. Pick on the little down arrow on the Options Bar and pick “Arc from center and
endpoints” from the drop-down menu.
5. Set the depth of the solid extrusion to 3-3/8”
6. Click on Set Work Plane (Menu Bar) and set the work plane to Reference Plane: Front
of VAV Box.

Hint: You must draw each Arc as a half-circle in a CounterClockwise direction.

7. You will be prompted to pick the center of the arc first. Move the cursor to the
elevation view and pick the intersection of two work planes that define the location of
the inlet connection centerpoint. (The Centerline of the box and the Centerline of the
inlet.)
8. Pick the intersection of the horizontal centerline and the right offset reference plane,
then pick the intersection of the horizontal centerline and the left offset reference
plane. An Arc should be drawn representing the top half of the round inlet.
9. Repeat the Arc command. Pick the intersection of the horizontal centerline and the
left offset reference plane, then pick the intersection of the horizontal centerline and
the right offset reference plane. An Arc should be drawn representing the bottom
half of the round inlet.
10. Pick Finish from the Menu Bar.

The Extruded Solid representing the Primary Air Inlet should be added to the model.

Your elevation view should look similar to this illustration.

Switch to the 3D View. The model is developing nicely.

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CREATING THE INDUCTION AIR INLET

The model needs an induction air inlet, a discharge, and the appropriate connectors
before it is ready for use. The induction air inlet and air discharge will be constructed as
a Void Forms.

1. Change to a Front Elevation View.

2. Copy the reference plane representing the right side of the VAV Box 1” to the left.
Name the reference “Induction air opng right side. Copy the new reference plane
16” to the left. Name the copied reference “Induction air opng left side”.
3. Copy the Reference level that is located at the vertical centerline of the VAV Box 7”
up and 7” down from centerline. Name the new reference level that is above the
centerline the “Induction air opng top” and name the new reference level that is
below the centerline the “Induction air opng bottom”.
4. Change to the Front View.
5. Select Void Form -> Void Extrusion
6. Pick on the little down arrow on the Options Bar and pick Rectangle from the drop-
down menu.
7. Set the depth of the solid extrusion to -20” (that is minus 20 inches)
8. Click on Set Work Plane (Menu Bar) and set the work plane to Reference Plane: Front
of VAV Box.
9. Move the cursor to the elevation view and pick the intersection of the induction air
opng left side work plane and the induction air opng bottom work plane. Then move
to the upper right and pick the intersection of the induction air opng right side work
plane and the induction air opng top work plane.
10. Pick Finish from the Menu Bar.
11. Switch to a 3D View and verify that the VAV Box now looks similar to the following
illustration.

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CREATING THE DISCHARGE AIR OUTLET

Repeat the process for the discharge air connection. The discharge air connection is
centered on the same centerline intersection as the induction air. Add new reference
planes to define the discharge air left side, discharge air right side, discharge air bottom,
and discharge air top. The discharge air void form should protrude into the box 1”.
Once the discharge air connection is completed , the back of the VAV box should look
similar to the following illustration:

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ADDING DIMENSION PARAMETERS

In order for the VAV box to represent an entire family of boxes, it must be capable of
changing size and shape based on a table of dimension from the catalog. We will add
dimensions to the box by dimensioning the reference planes that are locked to the
various solid and void extrusion faces. The dimensions will be edited to become
parameters of the family elements and when the parameters change, the underlying
dimensions will change resulting in a change in the size and shape of the VAV boxes.
>>> PARAMETRICS <<<

1. Change to the Floor Plan View.

Special note: There is one basic rule for adding dimensions to a parametric part. Add
overall or binding dimensions first and in the order in which they bind.

We are going to dimension the reference planes, not the extrusion surfaces.

2. Pick the Dimension command in the Menu Bar.

3. You will be prompted to “Select references, then click in empty space to place
dimension”
4. Hover over the reference line along the left side of the VAV box and pick.
5. Hover over the reference line along the right side of the VAV box and pick.
6. The dimension line will display and you may drag it down to the approximate location
shown in the above illustration. (see the 3’-0” dimension) Pull the cursor out to the
left or right of the reference lines to actually locate the dimension and pick.
7. Repeat the procedure and create the 3’-4” dimension shown in the illustration.

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8. Hover the cursor over the 3’-4” dimension until a box displays around the dimension
text. Right click (do not press the left pick button on the mouse or this procedure
will not work) and pick Edit Label in the pop-up menu that displays.

9. A listbox will display in place of the dimension text. Click on the down arrow and
select the <Add parameter…> command in the pop-down list.

The Parameter Properties dialog will display. We will be added a number of Family
parameters that would be classified under the Dimensions group and would not
necessarily need to appear in schedules or tags. The parameters will all be displayed as
Type parameters that are controlled through the Family Types dialog. They will not be
classified as per-instance dimensions because they are cataloged components that do
not vary on a per-instance basis.

10. Since the first dimension we are classifying is the VAV Box Width in the catalog and
is notated as “W” in the manufacturer’s catalog, we will name the parameter “W” to

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 match the catalog so that it will be easy to add more boxes to the family later on by
translating dimensions directly from the catalog cut sheets to the family.
11. Repeat the same process for the 3’-4” dimension, naming that parameter “L” in
accordance with the manufacturer’s catalog.
12. Dimensions must be added to match the catalog dimensions. See the following
illustrations and add dimensions accordingly.

13. Add the dimensions in this illustration to the plan view of the VAV Box.

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14. Add the dimensions in this illustration to the front view of the VAV Box.

ADDING CONNECTORS

The VAV Box can connect to ductwork, piping, and electrical services if the proper
connectors are added to the mode.

1. We will begin by adding the Primary Air Inlet Connection. Switch to a 3D Model
View.
2. Orient the view (if necessary) so that the Primary Air Inlet is accessible for selection.

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3. Click on the Duct Connector Command.
4. You will be prompted to “Place a connector by picking an edge loop of a face” Pick
on the edge circle as shown in the above illustration.
5. A rectangular duct connector will display at the end of the inlet. Pick Modify.
6. Pick on the connector and select Element Properties. The Element Properties dialog
for the connector will display. Set the element properties in accordance with the
following illustration.

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7. Move the slider down on the right side to scroll up and expose the rest of the
Element Properties for the connector element.

8. Click on the little button with the = symbol that is to the right of the value column of
the Radius parameter. And Associate Family Property Dialog will display.

9. Select the Parameter whose value you want to associate with the connector radius.
The correct choice is the “R” parameter which was assigned to the offset reference
plane controlling the radius of the Arcs that formed the inlet solid extrusion.
10. Pick OK twice.
11. The inlet connector should display correctly in the 3D view.

Creating the Induction Air Inlet and Discharge Outlet connectors is similar to creating
the Primary Air Inlet with the exception that the Induction Air and discharge Air
connectors are rectangular in shape. The Electrical Connector will be placed on the side
of the Control Panel. See the following illustrations which will assist you in creating the
remaining connectors.

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Discharge Air Outlet Induction Air Inlet
Flow Configuration = Calculated Flow Configuration = Calculated
Flow Direction = Out Flow Direction = In
System Type = Supply Air System Type = Return Air
Shape = Rectangular Shape = Rectangular
Height Parameter = J Height Parameter = E
Width Parameter = F Width Parameter = C
Connector Description = Discharge Air Connector Description = Induction Air Inlet

Electrical Connector
Power Factor = 1
Apparent Load Phase 1 = 3.60 VA
Voltage = 120.00 V
System Type = Power – Unbalanced
Load Classification = Power
Power Factor State = Lagging
Number of Poles = 1
Connector Description = Power

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COMPLETING THE FAMILY SETTINGS AND ADDING VAV BOX SIZES TO
THE FAMILY

1. Pick Settings -> Family Categories and Parameters…

The Family Categories dialog will display.

2. Verify that the settings for the VAV Box are similar to this illustration.
3. Pick Settings -> Family Types…

The Family Types dialog will display.

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4. Click on the New button and name the first VAV Box “Size 2-6”
5. Set the dimension in the value column to match this illustration. Pick Apply and OK.
6. The 3D Model will adjust to match the dimensions. Look at the 3D model to make
sure it does not appear broken.
7. Add new family types with the appropriate dimensions to populate the family of
terminals.

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CREATING A VAV BOX SCHEDULE

Revit can create schedules of equipment included in the Project. The schedule is created
from parameters associated with the elements that are to be scheduled. Parameters
that can be scheduled are called shared parameters.

In this exercise, we will add some shared parameters to the VAV Box that we created in
the previous exercise, then we will populate the parameters with information relevant to
the VAV Boxes and schedule the results.

CREATING SHARED PARAMETERS

1. From the pull-down menu, select File -> Shared Parameters…

A message may display letting you know that a shared parameter file does not exist. If
this is the case, you may create a shared parameters file. A folder has been provided in
the Revit MEP 2009 Training folder for shared parameters. The folder is Revit MEP 2009
Training\Shared Parameters\.

2. An Edit Shared Parameters dialog will display. If a shared parameters file does not
exist, you must create one using the Create button at the top of the dialog. Name
the shared parameters file “Training.txt”. Note that the .txt extension is added by
Revit.
3. The second step is to create a new shared parameters group. Pick on the New…
button in the groups frame. Name the new parameters group “VAV Boxes”.
4. Pick on the New… button in the Parameters frame.
5. Enter the each of the new parameters in the Parameter Properties dialog as follows:

Name Discipline Type of Parameter

CFM Minimum Hvac AirFlow
CFM Maximum Hvac AirFlow
Inlet Size Hvac Duct Size
Pressure Drop Hvac Pressure
Remarks Common Text

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 a

6. Once all of the above parameters have been entered, select the OK button to save
them and exit the dialog.

The Shared Parameters file has been saved in the project folder. Back in the office, you
may want to saved the shared parameters file in a location where all users have access
to the file on every project, not just the current one.

ADDING SHARED PARAMETERS TO THE VAV BOX

1. Pick a VAV Box and once highlighted, select the Edit Family button on the Options
Bar.
2. Once the VAV Box Family has been opened, go to the pull-down and select Settings -
> Family Types…

The Family Types dialog will display.

3. In the Parameters frame, pick the Add… button.

4. In the Parameter Type frame, select Shared Parameter. The pick the Select button.
5. The Shared Parameters dialog will display. Select the correct group, in this case
select VAV Boxes. Then select the first shared parameter “CFM Maximum” and pick
OK.
6. The parameter will display in the Shared Parameters dialog in the Name field of the
Parameter Data. Pick on the drop-down list under “Group parameter under” and
select Mechanical – AirFlow. Set the parameter to “Type”. Pick OK.

The new shared parameter will display in the Family Types dialog under Mechanical
AirFlow.

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7. Follow the same procedure to add the other shared parameters to the Family Types
parameters. The family types dialog should appear similar to the following example:

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Minimum and Maximum CFM values and inlet size values can be added for each of the
VAV Boxes in the family based on data from the manufacturer’s catalog.

Inlet Size CFM Minimum CFM Maximum

6” 80 500
8” 145 900
10” 230 1400
12” 325 2000
14” 450 3000
16” 580 4000

8. Following the addition of the parameter values for each VAV Box in the family, OK
the Family Types dialog and save the Family File.

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9. Pick “Load into Project” from the Menu Bar. OK the action when prompted and
choose to overwrite the existing VAV Box parameters.
10. In order to validate the process, select one of the VAV Boxes in the project and
select Element Properties. Select the Edit/New button in the upper right side of the
dialog and verify that the new parameters were added under the various categories.

CREATING A SCHEDULE USING THE NEW SHARED PARAMETERS

1. Select Schedule/Quantities from the Menu Bar. The New Schedule dialog will
display.

2. Under the Category List Box, pick Mechanical Equipment. Enter “VAV Box Schedule”
for Name. Leave Phase as New Construction. Pick OK.

The Schedule Properties dialog will display.

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3. Select each available field in the left listbox and click on the Add-> button to move
the field to the Scheduled fields list box. Move the final fields up or down to get
them in the order shown above. Pick OK.

A raw schedule will display with all mechanical equipment listed. The schedule must be
“cleaned up” using the Filter tab of the Schedule Properties dialog.

4. Right-click on VAV Box Schedule in the Project Browser and pick Properties. In the
Element Properties dialog, select the Edit Value button for the Filter parameter.
Format a filter as follows:

The schedule also needs to be sorted in ascending order. Select the Sorting/Grouping
tab and create a sort by Mark in Ascending order. OK the dialog and the schedule
should look similar to the following example:

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EXPORTING THE SCHEDULE TO EXCEL

The VAV Box schedule (or any other schedule created in Revit MEP using the
Schedule/Quantities command) can be exported to a spreadsheet program such as
Microsoft Excel.

To export a schedule:

1. Open a schedule view by clicking on the schedule in the Project Browser.

2. Click File -> Export -> Schedule
3. In the Export Schedule dialog, specify a name and folder for the schedule and click
Save.

The Export Schedule dialog will display.

4. Under Schedule appearance, select export options:

• Export column headers: Specifies whether Revit MEP column headers export.
• One row: Only the bottom column header exports.
• Multiple rows, as formatted: All column headers export, including grouped
column header cells.
• Export group headers, footers, and blank lines: Specifies whether sort group
header rows, footers, and blank lines export.
5. Under Output options, specify how you want to display the data in the output file:
• Field delimiter: Specifies whether fields in the output file are separated by tabs,
spaces, commas, or semi-colons.
• Text qualifier: Specifies whether the text in each field of the output file should be
enclosed by a single or double quote, or no annotation.
6. Click OK.

Revit MEP saves the file as delimited text, a format that can be opened in spreadsheet
programs, such as Microsoft® Excel or Lotus® 123.

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ELECTRICAL
BEGINNING A NEW REVIT MEP PROJECT

This exercise requires that the preceding exercise, “Getting Started – Preparing the
background files for linking” be completed before continuing. The “cleaned up”
architectural and structural background files should be in the Link Files folder at this
point.

NEW PROJECT STARTUP

1. To startup a new Electrical Project in Revit MEP, select File -> New -> Project from
the pull-down menu.

The New Project Dialog will display.

A new project can be started without a template by selecting the none radio button. You
will be prompted to please select an initial unit system for the project. Choices will be
imperial or Metric. Please note that when starting a project without a template, little or
no content is loaded in the project.

A new project can be started using a Template file. A default template named
Mechanical-default.rte will be used unless the operator chooses to browse for a different
template.

Note: In this exercise, we will be browsing to \Revit MEP 2009 Training\Templates to

select the Electrical–Class.rte template file. You are encouraged to create custom
templates for each discipline. All Revit templates use the (.rte) file extension

2. Under Create New, select Project.

3. Click OK.

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TIP: As an alternative, you can start a new project by clicking New on the Standard
toolbar, or pressing CTRL+N. Revit MEP bases the new project on the default template.
If no default template exists, an empty project window opens. For information on
specifying the default template file see Setting Options.

Note that the title bar along the top of the screen will read Revit MEP 2009 with the
current project name in brackets. It will probably read something like [Project 1 – Floor
Plan: 1 - Elect]. We will give the project a new name when we run the Save as
command.

NEW PROJECT SETTINGS

1. Once the new project is open, go to the Settings Pull-down menu and pick Options…
at the bottom of the drop-down.

2. In the General Tab, Verify that the username is your login name. This is the
username that will be used to checkout and assign workset elements for editing.
3. Under View Options, set the default view discipline to Electrical. Choices are
Mechanical or Electrical.
4. Select the Graphics tab at the top of the Options dialog.

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Some users prefer to have a black background (similar to AutoCAD) in the graphics
screen area. Pick on the Invert background color toggle if you wish to change the
screen background to black.

5. Pick OK.

We will be using an Architectural Background file that was prepared in Revit

Architecture. The file has pre-defined levels and views. We want to begin our new MEP
Project using the same levels that were created by the Architect. Note that Revit MEP
begins with default levels, 1 – lighting, 2 – Lighting, 1 – Ceiling Elec 2 – Ceiling Elec, 1 –
Power and 2 - Power. We will delete them prior to linking the Architectural and/or
Structural backgrounds, and then we will Copy and Monitor the Architects levels.

6. Under Elevations, double-click on East Elec. The graphics screen will change to
display the East Elec Elevation View. Select level 1 and level 2 by using a crossing
window selection method or by holding down the Ctrl key and picking on the lines.
Both levels should be highlighted in red indicating that you have selected both levels.
Press the Del Key.

A warning dialog will display. The dialog is warning you that all current views will be
deleted. Select the OK button.

Note in the Project Browser that all plan views have been deleted.

CREATING A CENTRAL PROJECT FILE

On most building projects, MEP team members are required to work on a project
concurrently. Since multiple team members cannot work on the same elements in the
same project at the same time, the work must be managed by dividing the work into
types of work or into regions of the project.
Team members are assigned a specific functional area of work. This involves
simultaneously working on and saving different portions of the project. Revit MEP
projects can be subdivided into worksets to accommodate environments like this.

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Worksets function similarly to External References (xrefs) in AutoCAD, with the
additional ability to propagate and coordinate changes between designers. Team
members adding elements to worksets can see the latest changes from other team
members and be sure the project design is progressing in a well-coordinated manner.
Viewing the latest work of other team members is accomplished by saving their work to
the central file and to local files on their own hard drives followed by a Reload Latest.
Team members working in other disciplines can reload the latest linked background files
containing collaborative work to view the latest changes and additions to the project.
This ability to reload changes is also similar to the workflow in AutoCAD xrefs.
After enabling work sharing and creating a central file, you can begin creating subsets of
a project that can be worked on independently. These subsets (or worksets as they are
referred to in Revit) are typically discrete functional areas, such as laying out work on a
specific level or departmental area, laying out ductwork, piping, equipment or controls,
etc.
Observe that if you select File from the pull-down menu, the Save to Central command
is grayed out. This means that you cannot create a central file at this point. Revit
disallows the Save to Central command until you have enabled Worksharing.

ENABLING WORKSHARING

1. Select File -> Worksets… from the pull-down menu. A Work sharing dialog displays.
2. Select OK. A Worksets dialog displays. In the Worksets dialog, click the new button
and a New Worksets Dialog displays.

3.
4. Enter Linked backgrounds for the New Workset name. Click OK. The Linked
backgrounds workset will be added to the worksets list. The workset is editable and
the Owner of the workset is set to the current username. Make the Linked
Backgrounds workset the Active workset by clicking down on the drop-down in the
upper left corner and selecting it.
5. Create additional worksets as shown in the following illustration.

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6. Pick OK.
7. Right click in a clean spot in the toolbar menu ribbon just below the pull-down menu.
8. Pick the Worksets toolbar and locate it within the toolbar menu ribbon. See the
following illustration.

Click on the down arrow and select Linked Backgrounds as the current workset.

ADDING ELEMENTS TO A WORKSET – LINKING THE BACKGROUND FILE

We are going to add the architectural background file to our workset at this point.

1. Select the command to link a Revit file to your project. File -> Import/Link ->
Revit… Dismiss the Save Reminder if it displays.
2. Browse to the C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training\Link Files folder and select the
ColdStream Training Building – arch – Link.rvt file.
3. Click on the down arrow beside the Open button and In the Open Worksets
dropdown, select Specify.

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4. In the Positioning Frame, make sure that Auto - Origin to Origin is selected. Pick
Open
5. In the linking Worksets Dialog
6. click on Door and Window Tags in the Name column and click on the Close button.
7. Click on Furnishings in the Name column and click on the Close button.
8. Click on Plumbing Fixtures in the Name column and click on the Close button.
9. Click the OK button.

Note that you are in an elevation view. That is because there are no predefined levels
or plan views at this point.

10. Move your cursor into the area of the elevation view until an outline appears around
the link. Click to select the link, then right click and pick Element Properties.
11. Click on the Edit/New button, then click on the Room Bounding value under
Constraints so that a check mark appears in the toggle.
12. Click OK twice to return to the graphics screen. Click Modify.

BEST PRACTICES WHEN USING WORKSETS

9. Close worksets from the Worksets dialog box to globally turn off element
visibility, instead of turning them off in the Visibility/Graphics dialog box.
10. Specify visibility when creating worksets. When creating new worksets, there is a
check box in the Workset dialog box that makes a workset visible by default in all
views. Select this check box only if necessary.
11. Verify that the same Revit® build is installed on all computers that share worksets.
12. Use the Reload Latest command available on the File menu to update your copy of
the project without changing the central file. This saves time by eliminating the need
to reload the file during the save-to-central process.
13. Use Review Warnings available on the Tools menu in order to identify and fix posted
warnings prior to allowing local copies.
14. Periodically open the central file with the Audit option selected and then save the file.
If corrupted elements are encountered during the audit, they are deleted if possible
and the user is notified.
15. Periodically save to central with the Compact Central File (slow) option selected. This
option is used to reduce file size when saving workset-enabled files. The process of
compacting rewrites the entire file and removes obsolete parts in order to save
space. Because the Compact process takes more time than a normal save, it is
strongly recommended that you only do this when workflow can be interrupted.
16. Ensure that a sufficient number of backups are being created. At a minimum, you
should have at least one backup for each member of your worksharing team in
order to increase the likelihood that each team member’s data is saved as part of the
backups.

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USING COPY/MONITOR TO ADD LEVELS TO THE MODEL

The levels in the MEP model should match the levels in the Architectural and Structural
models in order to effectively collaborate the work between disciplines. The
Architectural model contains levels that we can use to create levels in our MEP model by
using the Copy/Monitor command.

9. Select the Copy/Monitor button.

10. Select Link from the drop-down. Move the cursor into the screen area and hover
over an element in the link file. A border should highlight around the link. Pick with
the left mouse button when you see the highlight. A side screen menu will display
the Copy/Monitor commands.

11. Select the Options command. The Copy/Monitor Options dialog will display.
12. Select the Levels tab and turn off the toggle for “Reuse levels with the same name.”
Click OK
13. Pick the Copy command from the Copy/Monitor menu on the left side of the screen.
14. Select the First Floor Level, Second Floor Level, and Roof Level in the elevation view
on the screen. Close the warning dialog following each Level selection.
15. Pick Finish Mode from the Copy/monitor menu on the left side of the screen.

CREATING FLOOR PLAN VIEWS

Observe the graphics screen. Zoom into one of the level heads and you will notice that
you now have copies of the Architectural levels. The Project Browser does not display
any plan views of these new levels.

15. From the pull-down menu, select View -> New -> Floor Plan…

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16. Dismiss the Save command dialog if it displays. The New Plan dialog will display.
17. Turn off the toggle for “Do not duplicate existing views”
18. Hold down the Shift Key and select Second Floor from the list. All three Floor Plan
Views should highlight.
19. Pick OK and the three floor plan views will be created in the Project Browser.

CREATING CEILING PLAN VIEWS

The ceiling plan views that are created under the Electrical Discipline lighting category
are used for locating ceiling mounted lighting fixtures. Wiring and switches will not
display in these views, therefore, these views cannot be used to place wiring for the
lighting.
The lights, wiring, switches, and other appurtenances will display in the yet to be
created First and Second Floor Lighting views under Power + Floor Plans.
1. From the pull-down menu, select View -> New -> Ceiling Plan…
2. Dismiss the Save command dialog if it displays. The New RCP dialog will display.
3. Turn off the toggle for “Do not duplicate existing views”
4. Hold down the Control Key and select the First and Second Floor from the list.
5. Pick OK and the two ceiling plan views will be created in the Project Browser. They
will be located under the Electrical ??? sub-discipline.
6. Select the First Floor Ceiling Plan in the browser, hold down the Control Key and
select the Second Floor Ceiling Plan. Both should be highlighted.
7. Right click with the mouse and pick the Apply View Template command in the pop up
menu. Select the Electrical Ceiling from the list and pick OK. The views will be
reclassified to the Lighting sub-discipline under Electrical.

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ADJUSTING VIEW PROPERTIES IN THE CEILING PLAN VIEW

8. Double click on the Lightinng First Floor Ceiling Plan view. Note that the
Architectural Background is not being displayed correctly and the ceiling grid does
not display.
9. Right click on a clear area in the graphics view window. Pick View Properties in the
pop-up window that displays.
10. Click the Edit button in the value column of the Visibility/Graphics Override
Parameter.
11. Select the Revit Links Tab.
12. Click on the By Host View button under Display Settings.
13. Select the By Linked View radio button. Select the Reflected Ceiling Plan: First
Floor from the drop-down list. Pick OK.
14. Pick OK twice to return to the graphics screen
15. Repeat the steps for the Second Floor Ceiling Plan view.

CREATING LIGHTING FLOOR PLAN VIEWS UNDER POWER

1. Select the First Floor plan view under Power + Floor Plans
2. Right click and pick Duplicate View -> Duplicate. The view will be duplicated and a
new view will display in the browser with the name Copy of First Floor.
3. Select the “Copy of First Floor” view, right-click, and pick “Rename…”
4. Rename the new view First Floor Lighting and pick OK. If prompted to rename
existing or similar views, select No.
5. Double-click on the new view in the browser. Right-click in the view and select View
Properties in the pop-up menu. Click on the Edit button in the Visibility/Graphics
Overrides parameter.

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6. In the Visibility/Graphics Overrides dialog, Model Categories tab, scroll down to the
Lighting Fixtures and Lighting Devices and verify that the Visibility parameter is
checked. Click OK.
7. Scroll down to Extents in the Instance Parameters of the Element Properties dialog,
click the Edit Value button of the View Range parameter, and verify the following
settings:

Primary Range
Top Second Floor Offset 0’-0”
Cut Plane Associated Level (First Offset 4’-0”
Floor)
Bottom Associated Level (First Offset 0’-0”
Floor)

8. Perform the same procedure for the Second Floor plan by creating a Second Floor
Lighting view. The Extents for the Second Floor must be set to the following:

Primary Range
Top Level Above (Roof) Offset 0’-0”
Cut Plane Associated Level (Second Offset 4’-0”
Floor)
Bottom Associated Level (Second Offset 0’-0”
Floor)

9. Select the First Floor view under Power + Floor Plans, right click, pick Rename… and
rename the First Floor view to First Floor Power.
10. Double-click on the new view in the browser. Right-click in the view and select View
Properties in the pop-up menu. Click on the Edit button in the Visibility/Graphics
Overrides parameter.
11. In the Visibility/Graphics Overrides dialog, Model Categories tab, scroll down to the
Lighting Fixtures and Lighting Devices and uncheck the Visibility parameter for each
of the two elements. Click OK.
12. Select the Second Floor view under Power + Floor Plans, right click, pick Rename…
and rename the Second Floor view to Second Floor Power.
13. Double-click on the new view in the browser. Right-click in the view and select View
Properties in the pop-up menu. Click on the Edit button in the Visibility/Graphics
Overrides parameter.
14. In the Visibility/Graphics Overrides dialog, Model Categories tab, scroll down to the
Lighting Fixtures and Lighting Devices and uncheck the Visibility parameter for each
of the two elements. Click OK.

MOVING THE BUILDING ELEVATION SYMBOLS

The Electrical Template provides the 4 standard building elevation views, North, East,
South, and West. The elevations are represented by 4 Elevation Symbols that display
on the plan view. The symbol is a square with a triangular shaped arrow representing
the elevation view direction.

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When a new Architectural background is linked into an electrical project, the elevation
symbols may need to be adjusted.

5. Select all four of them by windowing each one with the CTRL Key pressed.
6. Pick the Move Command.
7. Select a point in about the center of the array of elevation symbols. (About where
the “g” is in “building” in the preceeding illustration.)
8. Move the cursor to a point near the center of the building and pick with the left
mouse button.

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SAVING THE CENTRAL PROJECT FILE FOR THE FIRST TIME

We now have our basic background linked into our project. This is a great time to save
our work.

1. Select File -> Save as…

2. The Save As dialog will display.
3. Click on the Options button in the lower right corner. The File Save Options dialog
will display.
4. Note that in the Options dialog, Make this a Central File after save is checked and
grayed out. This means that you don’t have an option to not make this a Central
File. The first save will be to Central so pathing for the central file should be to a
shared file folder on the network back in your office. Select OK to close the dialog.
5. For the purpose of this exercise, browse to the Revit MEP Training\ColdStream
Training Building\ELECT folder. We will save the MEP Central Project file in this
folder. Change the file name to Training – Elect – Central.rvt.
6. Note that it is very important to name the Central File with a unique name to
differentiate it from the local file that we will be creating next.
7. Pick the Save button.

The Electrical Central File will be saved for your project. Following this save, if you pick
the File pull-down, you will note that the Save to Central command is no longer grayed
out so it is a usable command. Note also that the Save to Central toolbar button is no
longer grayed out.

CREATING A LOCAL PROJECT FILE

Each day, you will be working on your local copy of the Central Project File. When your
workday is completed, or at intervals during the day, you will be saving your local file
back to Central so that other team members can see the changes you have made to the
Central Project File and vica-versa.

1. To create a local project file for the first time, select File -> Save As…
2. In the Save As Dialog, change the file name to ColdStream Training Building – HVAC
– <username & current date>.rvt

Note: The name of the file must be different from the Central File name. If each team
member is saving their local file in the shared folder on the network, then each local file
should have the name of the user and the current date appended to the file name I.E.
Training –Elect – Tony Tedder 041608.rvt. A naming convention such as
this will differentiate the new local file from other user’s local files (assuming that two
users are not using the same name). The date is important as well since it may
become necessary at some time in the future to open a local file and save it as Central
to reconstruct an unrecoverable Central File. The latest version of the local file cannot
be determined for certain without the date appended to the local file name.

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The local project file should be saved to the user’s protected space on the
network or on the local drive of the user while the central file must be
maintained on the network shared space.

Keeping all files on the network is an acceptable method of saving the local project file
although it does represent a substantial increase in network traffic.

LAUNCHING REVIT AND WORKING ON AN EXISTING PROJECT EACH

DAY

1. Each morning before you launch Revit, copy the current Central File to your local
folder, renaming it in the process. The new local file should be named using the
same naming convention suggested hereinbefore for creating a local project file. I.E.
the file should contain your user name and the current date. When you open the
new local file for the first time, Revit will recognize that it is not the central file due
to the name change and will display a warning dialog which you can dismiss by
selecting OK.
2. Once the project opens, perform a Save as… and save the file to your local file,
making sure to retain the username and current date format.
3. Select Reload Latest from the File pull down and reload the latest saved local file (I
know, you just saved the file). According to Autodesk, this step is necessary in order
to stabilize some issues with Revit.
4. Perform a Save to Central. Check the Compact Central File checkbox and the Save
the local File after ‘Save to Central’ checkbox in the Save to Central Dialog Box. See
the dialog in the following illustration.

The process defined in steps 1-4 is necessary in order to ensure that you are starting
each day with the latest project changes. Many firms have found that this process can
be automated using a script.

Now you are ready to proceed with your work.

Do not edit the Central File.

Develop a habit of using the Save to Central.. command in the File pull-down any time
you make changes that might affect other users. You will be reminded to Save to
Central on a regular interval depending on the value in the Settings… -> Options dialog,
General tab.

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Check the Save the Local File after “Save to Central” checkbox in order to keep
your local file synchronized with the Central File. Compact the Central file at least once
a week or more often if necessary. This can result in a substantial reduction in the size
of the central file.

Check to relinquish borrowed elements if you have edited any elements borrowed from
other users and you have completed the editing session. Posting the work to central will
allow the original owner of the elements to see your edits and take ownership of the
elements again. Relinquish any User-created worksets that you wish to share with other
workers.

Reminder: The Save to Central command posts your latest additions and changes to the
central project file and those changes can be viewed by all team members simply by
selecting the File -> Reload Latest command.

SETTING AN ACTIVE WORKSPACE

Each day when you begin your work, or at intervals during the day as you work, you
may want to work on a different region or level of the building, or a different component
of the building system within a region or level. These work elements may be divided
into worksets and if they are, you will need to make that particular workset active and
editable. You will also need to become owner or borrower of those elements before
proceeding.

You may make a new workset active by selecting the workset from the Worksets Toolbar
dropdown or you may use the Worksets dialog.

1. From the pull-down menus, pick File -> Worksets… The Worksets Dialog will display.

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2. Note that all the current worksets are not editable. Select the workset that you will
be editing and click on the Editable button. In this case, select Spaces and make it
editable.
3. Select Spaces in the Active workset dropdown in the upper left corner of the dialog.

CREATING AN ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

ADDING SPACES TO THE LINKED BACKGROUND

The Space element contains the Electrical Lighting Calculation data and Electrical Loads
data that can affect the HVAC load analysis. As lights are added to the spaces, the
Average Estimated Illumination will be calculated and the Room Cavity Ratio used to
determine the fc levels will be displayed in the Parameter Value field. The user can
input various reflectance values in accordance with space requirements.
The Average Estimated Illumination can be used to determine when the correct number
of luminaires has been placed in the space to meet a specific footcandle level of
illumination.

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ADDING SPACES

Spaces are exclusively used for the MEP disciplines to analyze volume and determine
lighting levels. They contain parameters that maintain information about the areas in
which they have been placed. Spaces cannot be added to a project with a linked
Architectural background unless the linked file Room Bounding parameter is turned on.
We did this in a previous exercise.

1. Click on the worksets toolbar and select Spaces from the dropdown list of worksets.
2. In the Design Bar menu, click on the Space command.
3. Move the cursor to the link file area and position it inside a room. Note that the
space object will display with diagonal lines to the room corners and a default tag
“Space”.
4. Pick with the left button to locate the first Space Element in the room.

5. Continue the process and locate space elements in each room on the first and second
floor.
6. Move the cursor back to the first space on the first floor and when the diagonal X
displays, pick on the X, right click and pick Element Properties.
7. In the Element Properties Dialog, scroll down to Identity Data. Note that the Room
Name and Number are displayed but greyed out. Add the Space Name and Number
to match the Room Name and Number. Repeat this process for each space that you
added to the first and second floors.
8. Return to the First Floor Power Plan View. Perform a ZE macro command.
9. Use a crossing pick to select the entire plan view.
10. Select the Filter button and turn off all categories except Spaces. Pick OK.
11. Select Element Properties and in the dialog, Set the Upper Limit to the Second Floor
Level and the Limit Offset value to 0’-0”. Pick OK
12. Set the Second Floor Power Plan View as the current view. Perform steps 9, 10, and
11 on the Second Floor. Set the Upper lImit of the second floor spaces to the Roof
Level and the Limit Offset value to 0’-0”. Pick OK.

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PLACING LIGHTS

Lighting elements can be located on a face or a work plane. The easiest way to work
with lights is to select a hosted light family and located them by selecting the ceiling grid
of the current level as the hosting element.

Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down list
in the upper left corner and set Lighting as the active workset.

1. Double click on the Ceiling Plans First Floor in the Project Navigator.
2. Zoom to Sage Room 102 (the upper left corner room).
3. Load the Electrical Design Bar and pick Light Fixture.
4. From the drop-down light selections, look for a 2’ x 4’ troffered light. If you do not
find any troffered lights, select the Load button on the options bar. Select Electrical
Components in the Imperial library folder, then Select the Lighting Fixtures folder.
5. Select the Troffer lIght 2x2 Parabolic and Troffer light 2x4 Parabolic by holding down
the Ctrl Key and picking each .rfa file. Pick Open.
6. Click on the down arrow on the left side of the Options menu bar to display the light
fixture families that are loaded in the project. Select the Troffer light - 2’ x 4’
Parabolic: 2’x4’ (2 Lamp) – 277v.

7. Pick on the Place on Face Icon located on the Options tool bar. Check the Rotate
after Placement checkbox. The light fixture will display at the cursor when you
drag the cursor into the area of the space and hover over a ceiling grid
component. Place lights at the intersections of the ceiling grid at
approximately the locations shown in the following illustration. Hint: the lights will
snap to the intersections of the ceiling grid at the midpoint of the long edge of the
light. After placing the first light, move the light 2’ to the East or West to locate it
correctly, then copy the light to the other locations.

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8. Select all 12 light fixtures. Hint: Use a window selection method
9. Right click and pick Element Properties.
10. Change the workset to Lighting if it is not already set.
11. Note: If the workset must be changed in this dialog, then you should make the
Lighting workset your active workset when you exit this dialog.
12. Under Identity Data, Parameter Mark, enter “A” in the Value Column. Dismiss the
error message that displays after entering the Mark.
13. Select Edit/New in the Element Properties dialog and in the Type Properties dialog,
enter LITHONIA for Manufacturer.
14. Enter 64.00 VA for Apparent Load.
15. Enter T8 TROFFER 2'X4' 2 LP T8 #A12 LENS for description.
16. Scroll down to the Photometrics Type Parameter. Click the Ellipsis button on the right side of the value
column for Photometric Web File. Browse to C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training\ies data\ and
select the 2SP8_2_32_A12_ADDE.ies data file.
17. Click the Modify command on the menu bar, then select the Space object in the Sage
Room. Pick Element Properties. Under Instance Parameters ELECTRICAL –
LIGHTING, look at the Average Estimated Illumination which has been calculated at
49.87 fc with a Room Cavity Ration of 2.84. This value does not meet our target
value of 60 fc for the meeting room space.
18. Select all of the 2x4 light fixtures, Select Edit/New in the Element Properties dialog.
Click on the Duplicate button in the Type Properties dialog. Enter 2'x4'(3 Lamp) - 277V for the name of the
duplicated fixture. Pick OK.
19. Scroll down to Apparent Load. Enter 96.0 for the value. Change the description to
read T8 TROFFER 2'X4' 3 LP T8 #A12 LENS. Scroll down to the Photometrics Type Parameter, click on
the Ellipsis button on the right side of the value column and Browse to C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training\ies data\

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 and select the 2SP_B_3_32_7815LS_1_3_ADDE.ies data file. OK out of the Element Properties
dialog.
20. Click the Modify command on the menu bar, then select the Space object in the Sage
Room. Pick Element Properties. Under Instance Parameters ELECTRICAL –
LIGHTING, look at the Average Estimated Illumination which has been calculated at
64.33 fc with a Room Cavity Ration of 2.85. This value exceeds the target value of
60 fc for the meeting room space and is acceptable for our design.
21. Select a Ceiling light - Flat Round: 100W – 277v Fixture, use the Place on a Face
method to locate two round light fixtures in the approximate locations shown in the
following illustration.

Hint: Move the cursor to hover over the horizontal ceiling grid line and place the
light fixture on the grid. Move the light to center in the tile after placement. Click
on the light and check the Element Properties to make sure that the light is located
at 10’-0”.

ADDING A LIGHT SWITCH

1. From the Electrical Design Bar, select Device. Select “Lighting Switches – Single
Pole” from the drop-down menu.

2. Verify that the “Place on Vertical Face” button is clicked. A circle with a slash
displays at the end of the cursor until the cursor pointer is moved along the face of a
wall. The switch will display. Place three switches on the inside walls at the
locations shown in the following illustration.

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3. Right-click on the switches, pick Element Properties, and change each Switch Voltage
to 277 V.
4. Verify that the workset is Lighting.

CREATING A POWER CIRCUIT

Circuiting of the lighting fixtures in the Sage Room cannot be completed without the
addition of an Electrical Panel. We will locate the panel board on the Electrical Power
plan. Double-click on the Power, Floor Plans, and First Floor Plan – Electrical Power view
in the project browser.

1. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, Add a workset for
Electrical Equipment. Click on the drop-down list in the upper left corner and set
Electrical Equipment as the active workset.
2. Click on the Design Bar Electrical Equipment command. Select the Lighting and
Appliance Panelboard 480V MLO: 125A. Click on the Place on Vertical Face button,
3. Move the cursor along the Equipment room wall and place the panel in the
approximate location shown in the following illustration.

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Hint: If the panelboard is a recessed configuration, press the spacebar once to change it
to a surface mounted configuration.

1. Right-click on the panelboard, pick Element Properties, and enter LP1 in the value
column of the Panel Name Parameter and set the maximum number of 1-Pole
breakers to 30. Pick OK.
2. Click on the Distribution System down arrow on the Options bar and set the
distribution system to 480/277 Wye. Note: this step is necessary before a
power circuit can be established.
3. Click on one of the light fixtures that you just located in the ceiling of Room 102.
The Options bar will change. Click on the Creat Power Circuit button on the Options

bar. .
4. A new button cluster will display in the Options bar.

5. Click on the first button in the cluster (the Edit Circuit button).
6. A Power Toolbar will display with a button cluster.

7. Select the Add to Circuit button. (the first button in this cluster).
8. All electrical elements will change to half-tone except the light you selected. Pick the
other light fixtures and switch that make up the wiring circuit you are creating.
9. Pick the Select Panel button (the fourth button in the toolbar), then select the
panelboard you added in the Equipment Room.
10. Click on the Finish Circuit button.
11. Select File -> Worksets. When the Worksets dialog displays, click on the drop-down
list in the upper left corner and set Power as the active workset.
12. Hover the cursor over one of the lights. Press the Tab Key. The logical circuit layout
will display.

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13. Press the mouse pick button. The logical layout will turn red. Pick on the Generate
Arc Type Wiring button that is located to the right of the 4 button cluster of circuit
editing buttons. The logical circuiting layout will change to a wiring layout. Click on
the Modify button.

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14. Observe the wiring layout in and around the Storage Room. Note the wiring diagram
shows two arcs that cross over. Sometimes this is unavoidable, but in this case it
can be modified so as not to show a crossover. Zoom into the region around the
Storage Room.
15. Click on the wire that is connecting the round light to the 2x4 light. A grip will
display at the control vertex point of the arc. Drag the vertex as shown in the
following illustration.

16. Pick a new location for the grip (and the arc).
17. Zoom into the area around the round light and click on the little round circle
(alternate node location for the end of the arc) that is to the North of the current
location of the end of the arc.

18. Pick Modify, then Zoom back out and view the space following the adjustment to the
wiring display.

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19. Many clients prefer to display ticks representing the numbers and types of
conductors on the home runs but not on the other wiring. Click on Settings ->
Electrical Settings…. -> Wiring.
20. Change the settings in accordance with the following illustration:

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21. Click OK to exit the dialog. Verify that the changes were made in the wiring plan
view.
22. Click on the Panel.

23. Click on the Edit Circuits on Panel button. located on the Options bar. The Edit
Circuits dialog will display.

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Note that the circuit that was just created has been assigned to circuit number 1. You
can edit the Load Name and/or the Trip Amps. Clicking on the circuit name will highlight
the row and make several edit buttons at the lower left corner of the dialog active. You
can Insert additional circuits, delete circuits, move the circuit down to another number
on the left side of the panel, or move the circuit to the even breaker numbered side of
the panel.

24. Create a circuit for the round light in the Janitor Closet. Use the same techniques
learned from creating the circuit in the meeting room area. The resultant circuit and
wiring should look similar to the following illustration.

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TAGGING ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS AND DEVICES

1. Click on the Tag command in the Electrical Design Bar Menu. . Pick By
Category in the fly out menu. Click an object to tag. Click on a light. A dialog may
display informing you that no tags are loaded for the light object.

Pick the Yes button.

2. Browse to the Imperial Library\Annotations\Electrical folder, press down on the Ctrl

Key, and select the Lighting Fixture Tag.rfa. Pick Open.

3. Click on the Tags button on the Options Tool Bar. The Tags Dialog will display.

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1. Click on the loaded Tags column for Lighting Fixtures and set the tag to Lighting
Fixture Tag: Standard. Click OK.
2. Click on the Leader check box on the Options bar and remove the check mark.
3. Click on one of the lights to place a tag. Note that the tag is displaying a question
mark. The data field value for the Lighting Fixture Type Mark is empty.

4. Click on a light fixture and pick on the Properties button When the Element
Properties dialog displays, scroll down the list of parameters in the Type Parameters
listbox and note that the Type Parameter value is empty. Click on the Edit/New
button in the upper right corner of the dialog.
5. The Type Properties dialog will display. Scroll down to the Type Mark parameter and
enter an “A” in the value field. Pick OK twice to close the dialogs.
6. Click on the By Category Tag and tag the lights. Note: When the leader toggle is
turned off, the light tags will be placed in the center of the light. To move the tag,
click on the tag. A move icon will display and you can click and hold the tag while
you move it to another position. For example, you could move the tag to the upper
left corner of each light.
7. Click on the By Category Tag and pick on the Panel. When the dialog displays
stating that no tag is loaded for this type, browse to the Revit MEP 2009
Training\Library folder and select the Electrical Panel Tag.rfa file. Pick Open.
8. Pick on the Panel and place the tag. Zoom into the panel and tag, select the tag,
and move it to a location above the panel so the panel object can be seen along with
the tag.

9. Click on the By Category Tag and pick on the Home Run Wire. When the dialog
displays stating that no tag is loaded for this type, browse to the Revit MEP 2009
Training\Library folder and select the Electrical Home Run Tag.rfa file. Pick Open.

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10. Pick on the Home Run Wire and Locate the tag as shown in the following example:

Sage Rm. Lighting Circuit

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COMPLETING THE FIRST FLOOR LIGHTING PLAN

Create lights and lighting circuits for the other spaces on the first floor in accordance
with the following illustration:

First Floor Lighting Plan

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COMPLETING THE SECOND FLOOR LIGHTING PLAN

Create lights and lighting circuits for the second floor in accordance with the following
illustration:

Second Floor Lighting Plan

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EDITING CIRCUITS ON THE LIGHTING PANEL

Pick on Lighting Panel 1, then click on the Edit Circuits on Panel Button.

The Edit Circuits dialog will display for Lighting Panel 1 (LP1).

Click on the Rebalance Loads button.

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Note the changes in the loads on phases A, B, and C following the rebalance command.
Circuits were moved to different phases and renumbered. The circuits were updated in
all of the plan views at the same time.

PLACING RECEPTACLES

Receptacle elements (Devices) can be located on a face or a work plane. We will place
receptacles in the First and Second Floor Power plans that we prepared at the beginning
of these exercises.

1. Double-click on the First Floor Power Plan to make it the active view.
2. Right-click in the view area and select View Properties from the pop-up menu.
3. Click on the Edit Values button for Visibility/Graphics Overrides. In the Model
Categories tab, verify that the toggle for “show categories for all disciplines” is
checked, then scroll down to the Furniture and Furniture Systems categories and
verify that both categories have check marks in the Visiblity checkboxes.
4. Click OK twice.

The furniture systems should display in the plan views.

If furniture does not display, then the Furnishings workset was closed when the
Architectural Background file was linked to the project. You will have to remove and
relink the background. Set the open option to “Specify”, then open the Furnishings
workset in the Worksets Dialog when linking the background.

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5. Select Device in the Basics or Electrical Menu Bar.
6. Select Duplex Receptacle Standard from the drop-down selection list.

7. Move the cursor into the model viewing area. Note that the receptacle will not
display unless placed on a vertical face (by default). When you move the cursor
near a wall, the receptacle will display and you can place it on the wall. The
receptacle will orient properly to the wall.
8. Place receptacles in the Sage Room (both standard and GFCI) in accordance with the
following illustration:

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9. Wiring the receptacle requires that we locate a Power Panel that can support the 120
Volt, 1 Phase device.
10. Select Electrical Equipment from the Electrical Menu Bar, then pick the Lighting and
Appliance Panelboard 208 V MLO: 225 A Panel. Move the cursor to the approximate
location shown in the above illustration, press the spacebar once to rotate the
panelboard to a surface mount configuration, and pick the location along the wall.
11. Pick on the panelboard, right-click and pick Element Properties. In the Element
Properties dialog, set the panel name to PP-1 and the maximum number of 1 Pole
breakers to 42. Pick OK. Click on the Distribution System dropdown along the
Design Bar and select 120/208 Wye.

CREATING THE POWER CIRCUIT

1. Pick on one of the Receptacles. A Create Power Circuit icon should display on the

Options bar.
2. Pick on the icon while the receptacle is selected. The design bar selections will
change to display a 4-button tool cluster. Pick on the left button (the Edit Circuit

Button)
3. A Power Toolbar will display with 4 buttons. The Toolbar will display the name of the
circuit you are editing. Pick the first button on the left (the Add to Circuit button)

. Select each of the receptacles that you want to include in the first circuit.

4. Pick on the Select Panel button and pick the PP1 panel from the plan or from
the drop-down in the Options Bar, then pick Finish.
5. Hover the cursor over one of the receptacles and press the Tab Key. Do not press
the pick button yet and do not move the mouse. A logical circuit diagram should
display.

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6. Verify that all devices which should be included in this circuit are included in the
dashed line layout. If acceptable, press the pick button to accept the logical layout,
otherwise; cancel and edit the circuit.

Once the logical layout is accepted, it will turn red.

7. Click on the Arc Wiring button that displays on the Options Bar

The logical diagram will be replaced with actual wiring including a home run.

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8. Label the panel and home run using the techniques learned in the previous exercise
for wiring lighting circuits.
9. Circuit overload warnings will display if you select too many receptacles and overload
the 20A breaker rating in the panel. Zoom into the area around the director’s office,
secretary, and conference room.

Select one of the receptacles, pick on the Create Power Circuit button, the Edit Circuit
button, and then the Add to Circuit buttons. Begin to select the receptacles in these

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three offices with the intent of putting all of them on one circuit. The 20A breaker will
support 20A x 120V x 0.8 breaker rating factor = 1920 VA. Each receptacle is rated at
180 VA so 1920/180 = 10 receptacles maximum at 80 % breaker rating. The circuit
contains 11 receptacles so when the last receptacle is selected, a warning will display.

This warning may be dismissed or the selected receptacles may be reallocated to a

different circuit. In the case of one receptacle in a cluster of offices such as this, the
possibility of all receptacles being connected and used concurrently is very remote and
the warning may be dismissed.

10. Complete the receptacle layouts and wiring in accordance with the following
illustrations for the first and second floor power plans.

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First Floor Receptacle Layout

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Second Floor Receptacle Layout

EDITING CIRCUITS ON THE RECEPTACLE PANEL

Pick on Power Panel 1, then click on the Edit Circuits on Panel Button.

The Edit Circuits dialog will display for Power Panel 1 (PP1)

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Click on the Rebalance Loads button.

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Note the changes in the loads on phases A, B, and C following the rebalance command.
Circuits were moved to different phases and renumbered. The circuits were updated in
all of the plan views at the same time.

CONNECTING MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT

In order to connect Mechanical Equipment, the HVAC Project must be linked using the
File -> Import/Link -> Revit…. Command from the pull-down menu.

1. Open the First Floor Power View.

2. Browse to the Revit MEP 2009 Training\Project\HVAC folder and link the Training-
HVAC-Central.rvt file. Select the drop arrow next to the Open button and pick
Specify for worksets. When the worksets dialog displays, close all worksets except
the Mechanical Equipment workset.
3. When the link is complete, right click First Floor Power (in the navigator), select
Properties in the pop-up menu, Select Visibility/Graphics Overrides and scroll down
to find Mechanical Equipment. Turn on visibility for Mechanical Equipment, select the
Revit Links tab and set the Training – HVAC – Link and click on the Half-tone toggle
to turn it on. OK out of the dialog boxes. The VAV Boxes, Boiler, and Pump should
be visible in the Electrical First Floor Power View as half-tone elements.

First Floor Power view with HVAC project linked in (note HVAC Equipment in view)

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Since you are working on a link file (similar to an AutoCAD Xreference), you will not be
able to click on a VAV Box and create a power circuit because the connectors on the VAV
Box are not available through the link.

The method we will use to wire the equipment is to place a Junction Box or Disconnect
device next to each piece of equipment. We will edit the device to add the load
information and then we will wire the devices.

For the purpose of this exercise, we will use Junction Box Load devices at each piece of
equipment. The VAV Boxes each contain a fan motor and they are available as 277v-1
Phase devices. The Junction Box Load device is made for applying an equipment load
that can be circuited to the panel.

4. Select Device from the Electrical Menu Bar.

Loads for the 277V VAV Boxes on the first floor are as follows: VAV-1,2,6,9, and 10 are
803 VA each. VAV-3,4,5,7, and 8 are 360 VA each. VAV-11 is 1496 VA.
Loads for the 277V VAV Boxes on the second floor are as follows: VAV-12,13,14,15, and
19 are 886 VA each. VAV-16 and 17 are 360 VA each. VAV-18 and 20 are 1496 VA
each.

5. Select the Junction Boxes – Load: 4” Square 277-1 device

6. Locate a junction box at each VAV Box by allowing it to snap to the midpoint of the
outside edge of the control panel on each VAV Box.
7. Pick each JBox, select Element Properties, scroll to the bottom of the listing and set
the load to the values listed above. Set the Mark to the same Mark as the VAV Box,
i.e. if you edit the JBox at VAV-1 then the first JBox mark could be VAV-1. This will
facilitate labeling the JBoxes later with a mark that identifies the equipment being
served.

8. Once the JBoxes are edited, select one JBox and create an Electrical Power Circuit.
Use the same techniques outlined hereinbefore for circuiting lights and receptacles.
Note that two circuits will be required unless you change the breaker for the circuit
to a 35 Amp breaker.

Your final layout should match the following example.

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First Floor Power Wiring

Add Junction Boxes to the Second Floor Power view and wire them in a similar fashion.
An example of the second floor power plan view is on the following page.

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Second Floor Power Wiring

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PLUMBING
BEGINNING A REVIT MEP PROJECT

This exercise requires that the preceding exercise, “Getting Started – Preparing the
background files for linking” be completed before continuing. The “cleaned up”
architectural and structural background files should be in the Link Files folder at this
point.

8. To startup a new Plumbing Project in Revit MEP, select File -> New -> Project from
the pull-down menu.

The New Project Dialog will display.

A new project can be started without a template by selecting the none radio button. You
will be prompted to please select an initial unit system for the project. Choices will be
imperial or Metric. Please note that when starting a project without a template, little or
no content is loaded in the project.

A new project can be started using a Template file. A default template named
Mechanical-default.rte will be used unless the operator chooses to browse for a different
template.

Note: In this exercise, we will be browsing to \Revit MEP 2009 Training\Templates to

select the Plumbing–Class.rte template file. You are encouraged to create custom
templates for each discipline. All Revit templates use the (.rte) file extension

9. Under Create New, select Project.

10. Click OK

TIP: As an alternative, you can start a new project by clicking New on the Standard
toolbar, or pressing CTRL+N. Revit MEP bases the new project on the default template.

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If no default template exists, an empty project window opens. For information on
specifying the default template file see Setting Options.

Note that the title bar along the top of the screen will read Revit MEP 2009 with the
current project name in brackets. It will probably read something like [Project 1 – Floor
Plan: 1 - Mech]. We will give the project a new name when we run the Save as
command.

11. Once the new project is open, go to the Settings Pull-down menu and pick Options…
at the bottom of the drop-down.

12. In the General Tab, Verify that the username is your login name. This is the
username that will be used to checkout and assign workset elements for editing.
13. Under View Options, set the default view discipline to Mechanical. Choices are
Mechanical or Electrical.
14. Select the Graphics tab at the top of the Options dialog.

Some users prefer to have a black background (similar to AutoCAD) in the graphics
screen area. Pick on the Invert background color toggle if you wish to change the
screen background to black.

15. Pick OK.

We will be using an Architectural Background file that was prepared in Revit

Architecture. The file has pre-defined levels and views. We want to begin our new MEP

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Project using the same levels that were created by the Architect. Note that Revit MEP
begins with default levels, 1 – Mech, 2 – Mech, 1 – Ceiling Mech, and 2 – Ceiling Mech .
We will delete them prior to linking the Architectural and/or Structural backgrounds, and
then we will Copy and Monitor the Architects levels.

16. Under Elevations, double-click on East Elec. The graphics screen will change to
display the East Elec Elevation View. Select level 1 and level 2 by using a crossing
window selection method or by holding down the Ctrl key and picking on the lines.
Both levels should be highlighted in red indicating that you have selected both levels.
Press the Del Key.

A warning dialog will display. The dialog is warning you that all current views will be
deleted. Select the OK button.

Note in the Project Browser that all plan views have been deleted.

CREATING A CENTRAL PROJECT FILE

On most building projects, MEP team members are required to work on a project
concurrently. Since multiple team members cannot work on the same elements in the
same project at the same time, the work must be managed by dividing the work into
types of work or into regions of the project.
Team members are assigned a specific functional area of work. This involves
simultaneously working on and saving different portions of the project. Revit MEP
projects can be subdivided into worksets to accommodate environments like this.
Worksets function similarly to External References (xrefs) in AutoCAD, with the
additional ability to propagate and coordinate changes between designers. Team
members adding elements to worksets can see the latest changes from other team
members and be sure the project design is progressing in a well-coordinated manner.
Viewing the latest work of other team members is accomplished by saving their work to
the central file and to local files on their own hard drives followed by a Reload Latest.

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Team members working in other disciplines can reload the latest linked background files
containing collaborative work to view the latest changes and additions to the project.
This ability to reload changes is also similar to the workflow in AutoCAD xrefs.
After enabling work sharing and creating a central file, you can begin creating subsets of
a project that can be worked on independently. These subsets (or worksets as they are
referred to in Revit) are typically discrete functional areas, such as laying out work on a
specific level or departmental area, laying out ductwork, piping, equipment or controls,
etc.
Observe that if you select File from the pull-down menu, the Save to Central command
is grayed out. This means that you cannot create a central file at this point. Revit
disallows the Save to Central command until you have enabled Worksharing.

ENABLING WORKSHARING

9. Select File -> Worksets… from the pull-down menu. A Work sharing dialog displays.
10. Select OK. A Worksets dialog displays. In the Worksets dialog, click the new button
and a New Worksets Dialog displays.

11.
12. Enter Linked backgrounds for the New Workset name. Click OK. The Linked
backgrounds workset will be added to the worksets list. The workset is editable and
the Owner of the workset is set to the current username. Make the Linked
Backgrounds workset the Active workset by clicking down on the drop-down in the
upper left corner and selecting it.
13. Create additional worksets as shown in the following illustration.

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14. Pick OK.
15. Right click in a clean spot in the toolbar menu ribbon just below the pull-down menu.
16. Pick the Worksets toolbar and locate it within the toolbar menu ribbon. See the
following illustration.

Click on the down arrow and select Linked Backgrounds as the current workset.

ADDING ELEMENTS TO A WORKSET

We are going to add the architectural background file to our workset at this point.

13. Select the command to link a Revit file to your project. File -> Import/Link ->
Revit… Dismiss the Save Reminder if it displays.
14. Browse to the C:\Revit MEP 2009 Training\Link Files folder and select the
ColdStream Training Building – arch – Link.rvt file.
15. Click on the down arrow beside the Open button and In the Open Worksets
dropdown, select Specify.

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16. In the Positioning Frame, make sure that Auto - Origin to Origin is selected. Pick
Open
17. In the linking Worksets Dialog
18. click on Door and Window Tags in the Name column and click on the Close button.
19. Click on Furnishings in the Name column and click on the Close button.
20. Click the OK button.

Note that you are in an elevation view. That is because there are no predefined levels
or plan views at this point.

21. Move your cursor into the area of the elevation view until an outline appears around
the link. Click to select the link, then right click and pick Element Properties.
22. Click on the Edit/New button, then click on the Room Bounding value under
Constraints so that a check mark appears in the toggle.
23. Click OK twice to return to the graphics screen. Click Modify.

USING COPY/MONITOR TO ADD LEVELS TO THE MODEL

The levels in the MEP model should match the levels in the Architectural and Structural
models in order to effectively collaborate the work between disciplines. The
Architectural model contains levels that we can use to create levels in our MEP model by
using the Copy/Monitor command.

16. Select the Copy/Monitor button.

17. Select Link from the drop-down. Move the cursor into the screen area and hover
over an element in the link file. A border should highlight around the link. Pick with
the left mouse button when you see the highlight. A side screen menu will display
the Copy/Monitor commands.

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18. Select the Options command. The Copy/Monitor Options dialog will display.
19. Select the Levels tab and turn off the toggle for “Reuse levels with the same name.”
Click OK
20. Pick the Copy command from the Copy/Monitor menu on the left side of the screen.
21. Select the First Floor Level, Second Floor Level, and Roof Level in the elevation view
on the screen. Close the warning dialog following each Level selection.
22. Pick Finish Mode from the Copy/monitor menu on the left side of the screen.

CREATING FLOOR PLAN VIEWS

Observe the graphics screen. Zoom into one of the level heads and you will notice that
you now have copies of the Architectural levels. The Project Browser does not display
any plan views of these new levels.

20. From the pull-down menu, select View -> New -> Floor Plan…
21. Dismiss the Save command dialog if it displays. The New Plan dialog will display.
22. Turn off the toggle for “Do not duplicate existing views”
23. Hold down the Shift Key and select Second Floor from the list. All three Floor Plan
Views should highlight.
24. Pick OK and the three floor plan views will be created in the Project Browser.

25. Select the three floor plan views in the HVAC category, right click and select Apply
View Template.
26. Select Plumbing Plan in the View Template dialog, pick Apply, then pick OK. The
floor plan views will move to the Plumbing category in the Project Browser.

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SAVING THE CENTRAL PROJECT FILE FOR THE FIRST TIME

We now have our basic background linked into our project. This is a great time to save
our work.

5. Select File -> Save as…

The Save As dialog will display.

6. Click on the Options button in the lower right corner. The File Save Options dialog
will display.

Note that in the Options dialog, Make this a Central File after save is checked and
grayed out. This means that you don’t have an option to not make this a Central
File. The first save will be to Central so pathing for the central file should be to a
shared file folder on the network back in your office. Select OK to close the dialog.

7. For the purpose of this exercise, browse to the Revit MEP 2009
Training\Project\PLBG folder. We will save the MEP Central Project file in this folder.
Change the file name to Training – Plbg – Central.rvt.

Note that it is very important to name the Central File with a unique name to
differentiate it from the local file that we will be creating next.

8. Pick the Save button.

The Electrical Central File will be saved for your project. Following this save, if you pick
the File pull-down, you will note that the Save to Central command is no longer grayed
out so it is a usable command. Note also that the Save to Central toolbar button is no
longer grayed out.

CREATING A LOCAL PROJECT FILE

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Each day, you will be working on your local copy of the Central Project File. When your
workday is completed, or at intervals during the day, you will be saving your local file
back to Central so that other team members can see the changes you have made to the
Central Project File and vica-versa.

To create a local project file for the first time, select File -> Save As…

In the Save As Dialog, change the file name to Training – Plbg – <username & current
date>.rvt

Note: The name of the file must be different from the Central File name. If each team
member is saving their local file in the shared folder on the network, then each local file
should have the name of the user and the current date appended to the file name I.E.
Training – Plbg – Tony Tedder 041608.rvt. A naming convention such as
this will differentiate the new local file from other user’s local files (assuming that two
users are not using the same name). The date is important as well since it may
become necessary at some time in the future to open a local file and save it as Central
to reconstruct an unrecoverable Central File. The latest version of the local file cannot
be determined for certain without the date appended to the local file name.

The local project file should be saved to the user’s protected space on the
network or on the local drive of the user while the central file must be
maintained on the network shared space.

Keeping all files on the network is an acceptable method of saving the local project file
although it does represent a substantial increase in network traffic.

LAUNCHING REVIT AND WORKING ON AN EXISTING PROJECT EACH

DAY

5. Each morning before you launch Revit, copy the current Central File to your local
folder, renaming it in the process. The new local file should be named using the
same naming convention suggested hereinbefore for creating a local project file. I.E.
the file should contain your user name and the current date. When you open the
new local file for the first time, Revit will recognize that it is not the central file due
to the name change and will display a warning dialog which you can dismiss by
selecting OK.

6. Once the project opens, perform a Save as… and save the file to your local file,
making sure to retain the username and current date format.

7. Select Reload Latest from the File pull down and reload the latest saved local file (I
know, you just saved the file). According to Autodesk, this step is necessary in order
to stabilize some issues with Revit.

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8. Perform a Save to Central. Check the Compact Central File checkbox and the Save
the local File after ‘Save to Central’ checkbox in the Save to Central Dialog Box. See
the dialog in the following illustration.

The process defined in steps 1-4 is necessary in order to ensure that you are starting
each day with the latest project changes. Many firms have found that this process can
be automated using a script.

Now you are ready to proceed with your work.

Do not edit the Central File.

Develop a habit of using the Save to Central.. command in the File pull-down any time
you make changes that might affect other users. You will be reminded to Save to
Central on a regular interval depending on the value in the Settings… -> Options dialog,
General tab.

Check the Save the Local File after “Save to Central” checkbox in order to keep
your local file synchronized with the Central File. Compact the Central file at least once
a week or more often if necessary. This can result in a substantial reduction in the size
of the central file.

Check to relinquish borrowed elements if you have edited any elements borrowed from
other users and you have completed the editing session. Posting the work to central will
allow the original owner of the elements to see your edits and take ownership of the
elements again. Relinquish any User-created worksets that you wish to share with other
workers.

Reminder: The Save to Central command posts your latest additions and changes to the
central project file and those changes can be viewed by all team members simply by
selecting the File -> Reload Latest command.

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SETTING AN ACTIVE WORKSPACE

Each day when you begin your work, or at intervals during the day as you work, you
may want to work on a different region or level of the building, or a different component
of the building system within a region or level. These work elements may be divided
into worksets and if they are, you will need to make that particular workset active and
editable. You will also need to become owner or borrower of those elements before
proceeding.

You may make a new workset active by selecting the workset from the Worksets Toolbar
dropdown or you may use the Worksets dialog.

4. From the pull-down menus, pick File -> Worksets… The Worksets Dialog will display.

5. Note that all the current worksets are not editable. Select the workset that you will
be editing and click on the Editable button. In this case, select Plumbing Fixtues and
make it editable.
6. Select Plumbing Fixtures in the Active workset dropdown in the upper left corner of
the dialog.

ADDING REVIT MEP PLUMBING FIXTURES TO THE PROJECT

The plumbing fixture families provide with Revit contain connection points for domestic
hot water, domestic cold water, and sanitary waste. Revit does not include connections
for any type of vent piping, trap primers, gas, or other types of piping. You can create
custom families of parts and add other types of connections.

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Plumbing Fixtures that are in Linked files cannot be connected because the connector is
not available through the link. If you have fixtures in a link file, you will have to insert
Revit MEP 2009 Plumbing Fixtures on top of the fixture in the architectural background
so that you can route pipe to the fixtures.

1. Zoom into the Male and Female Toilet area on the First Floor Plan View.
2. Set Plumbing as the active menu in the Menu Bar.

3. Click on the Plumbing Fixtures command.

4. Pick Water Closet – Flush Valve – Wall Mounted: Public – 1.6 gpf
5. The wall mounted Water Closets are made to be hosted by a wall element. The
water closet will not display until you hover near a wall. Move the cursor and locate
the closet on the wall adjacent to the existing closet in the architectural model.

Hint: If you move the closet to a location on top of the existing closet, it will attempt to
turn and mount at 90 degrees to the correct location. Locate it on the wall near to the
existing toilet and then use the align command to locate it on top of the other toilet.
This is the proper way to locate all of the fixtures that must fit on top of an existing
element in the Architectural model.

6. Following the second pick illustrated above, the new closet will move to the right and
align itself perfectly over the existing closet in the architectural background.
7. Add new Revit MEP Plumbing Fixtures on top of all the existing fixtures in the
project.

Helpful Hints: Some of the fixture footprints may not match exactly because they
frequently come from different libraries.

The closest match to the urinal is the Urinal – Stall:Standard

The closest match to the lavatories is the Lavatory – Oval: 25”x20” – Public
The closest match to the sinks in the Break Rooms is the Sink – Island – Single: 18”x18”
– Public.

Place a Sink – Mop: 28”x28” in each of two Janitor’s Closets.

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If you can’t find a plumbing fixture in the families that are loaded in the template, then
there is a Load button on the Options Bar. Load -> Plumbing Components -> Fixtures
and pick the category you want.

Do not mirror plumbing fixtures. Keep in mind that they have connectors for hot and
cold water and waste water. Mirroring a fixture will reverse the orientation of the
connectors. Ie. Hot will be on the right and cold on the left once the fixture is mirrored.

Building plumbing is usually clustered in little groups in the same manner that the toilets
are clustered in groups serving male and female. It is usually easier to create plumbing
supply systems and waste systems for each cluster of fixtures, then manually tie them
together with a building drain or supply main.

CREATING A DOMESTIC COLD WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM

We will begin by creating a Domestic Cold Water Supply System for the cluster of male
and female toilets on the first floor.

1. Zoom into the male and female toilets. Click on one of the water closets and pick
the “Create Domestic Cold Water System” button. You do not get a choice to create
a domestic hot water system because the water closet does not have a hot water
connection.

A new cluster of 3 buttons will display in the Options Bar.

2. Click on the “Edit System” button. A new toolbar will display.

3. Click on the “Add to System” button in the toolbar. Select all the fixtures in the Male
and Female Toilets, then pick Finish.
4. Hover the cursor over a water closet and press the Tab Key. A logical layout should
display connecting the cold water connectors on all the fixtures.

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5. Pick once while the logical layout is being displayed. The dashed line layout will

become a routing plan. Click on the Layout Path button.

You may view routing layouts for several different solution types including Network,
Perimeter, and Intersections.

Before creating a piping system, you must review the Settings and make sure that the
pipe is the correct type and located at the right elevations.

6. Click on the Settings button on the Options Bar. A Settings Dialog will display.

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7. Verify that the settings are in accordance with this example for the Main and Branch
pipes. OK and close the dialog.
8. Try the solutions to see what options you have available. It appears that Perimeter
solution 4 of 5 with an inset of 1’-4” (see the setting box on the Options Bar) is the
most workable solution. Pick Finish.

The final solution looks terrible so what is the problem ? First, reset the detail level to
Fine. That changes the view from a single line schematic view to a double line 3D model
view without single-line annotative scaling of the pipe and fittings. Things are beginning
to look a little better now. Change the View Scale (lower left corner of the model view
window) to 1”=1’-0”. Now you can see the pipe and fittings.

We have a little clean up to do but things don’t look so bad anymore.

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A couple of things appear wrong. The urinal was selected as a cold water device,
however; it did not get connected with piping. Maybe a problem exists at the connection
point of the urinal and the runout to the water closet on the opposite side. If the two
connection points were at almost the same elevation then the runout to the urinal could
not be created automatically because a fitting does not exist to make the connection.
Another possibility is that the urinal connection came in from the top instead of the back
like the water closets and the routing of the runout to the connection point was just too
complex for Revit to figure it out automatically. Some manual routing of pipe is almost
always necessary with plumbing layouts.

CORRECTING A PIPE CONNECTION PROBLEM

1. Create a section view looking toward the East from the left side of the urinal and
water closet.

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The piping to the urinal can be partially added in the section view and finished in the
plan view.

2. Pick the Pipe command in the Plumbing Menu Bar. Set the pipe type to Domestic hot
and cold water.
3. Move the cursor to the connector on top of the urinal. When the connector snap
displays (a circle with an x in it), pick and then press the space bar once. (pressing
the space bar matches the pipe you are drawing to the elevation and size of the
connector on the urinal).
4. Draw the pipe up about 6”, then go to the left to a point inside the chase wall. Turn
down and pick on the horizontal supply pipe going to the water closet that is on the
same wall as the urinal. Note that the supply pipe to the urinal will connect with the
water closet supply. We may not want this and we can correct it in the plan view.
5. Switch to the First Floor Plumbing Plan view. The following example displays the
problem on the left and the fix on the right.

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This is the end of the current plumbing exercise.

THE PLUMBING SECTION IS

INCOMPLETE. ADDITIONAL
EXERCISES ARE FORTHCOMING.

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PLOTTING
Drawings are printed to scale with a titleblock in Revit MEP by using the following
procedures:
1. Create a new sheet view and add a titleblock to it.
2. Add any views (plans, elevations, sections) to the sheet. After you add a view,
change its view scale through the view properties.
3. You can plot multiple views at different scales on the same sheet.

CREATING A NEW SHEET VIEW

1. Right-click on Sheets (all) in the Project Browser.

2. Pick New Sheet…
3. In the Select a Titleblock dialog, pick Load.
4. Select the Titleblocks folder in the Imperial Library folder.
5. Select the E1 30x42 Horizontal.rfa titleblock family file and pick Open.
6. Select E1 30x42 Horizontal: E1 30x42 Horizontal in the Select a titleblock dialog and
pick OK.
7. A new sheet file will open using the E1 30x42 titleblock template.
8. Pick a Floor Plan View (the First Floor Plan) from the Project Browser and drag it over
to the sheet view. A frame will display representing the extents of the First Floor
view at the current view scale. Move the frame around to position the plan on the
sheet and drop it onto the sheet by picking a location.

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9. Click on the blue dot at the right end of the sheet title and scale. Drag it to the left
to resize the line under the sheet title.
10. Pick on the sheet title, hold the pick button down, and drag the title over to locate it
under the plan.
11. Right –click on the A-101 Unnamed sheet in the Project Browser and pick Properties.
12. Change the Sheet Number to M1. Change the Sheet Name to First Floor HVAC.
13. Note the changes in the sheet title block.

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REVIT PERFORMANCE – OPTIMIZATION AND BEST PRACTICES

The following excerpts were taken from a Revit Technical Paper posted on a Blog site
maintained by Kyle Bernhardt of Autodesk. The title of the Technical Note is Revit MEP
2009 Optimization and Best Practices.

VIEW MANIPULATION

The largest impact on view manipulation performance (scroll, pan, and zoom operations)
is the Model Graphics Style settings. The Hidden Line Style, due to the requirement to
dynamically generate gaps and hidden lines when elements overlap in the view, requires
the most processing and thus results in a noticeable performance impact in views with
many visible elements.

In order to streamline project workflow, it is recommended to create both modeling and

sheet views for the same regions of the building. Most work would be performed in the
model views while sheet views would be used for plotting.

• Model views should be configured to utilize the Wireframe Model Graphics Style.
• Sheet views should be configured to utilize the Hidden Line Model Graphics Style.
This will produce the desired appearance for Construction Documentation.
• Utilize dependent views for your sheet views. This allows you to have multiple
regions of an overall level in different views, while not requiring duplicate
annotations.
• Differentiate modeling views from sheet both in view name and sub-discipline.
This will provide a logical organization of the view for users, and help to ensure
proper usage.
• Utilize view templates to streamline the creation of these views and achieve
consistency.
• Utilize duct and pipe color fills only in your modeling views, where the wireframe
model graphics style is used.

Performance in views with the Hidden line Model Graphics Style enabled is directly
related to the number of faces displayed in the view. While elements appear as 2D
Lines in a Revit View, they are 3D Objects made up of faces in the model. It is those
faces that are processed by the Revit graphics system and show up in the view as 2D
Lines. Use the following practices to optimize the performance of your views with the
hidden line model graphics style enabled.

• Avoid using fine detail level when working in mechanical views if not necessary,
as this displays pipes and ducts as 2-Line and 3D. Medium detail level is
recommended for views working with HVAC systems as this displays pipes as 1-
line.
• If using complex 3D components in your Building Service designs, turn off the
visibility of the complex 3D geometry in your sheet views. In place of 3D
complex geometry, utilize model lines that convey the overall component shape

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 in the family definition. Make those model lines visible in the Detail Level defined
in your sheet views.
• If not necessary for documentation of working on a view, set the inside and
outside gap settings for hidden lines to 0. This can provide a substantial
performance improvement.

MODEL MANIPULATION

Revit MEP allows users to create models of building services, often in the form of large
connected networks. The powerful analytical capabilities of Revit MEP, in conjunction
with the Revit Parametric Change Engine, allow data to flow throughout the connected
network when manipulations are made.

Improper structure and configuration of large connected networks has been shown to
have a severe impact on model manipulation performance. In comparative testing,
models have been shown to perform up to 400% better when structured properly.

As the connected network grows, the performance of model manipulations (moving

elements, changing flows, connecting new elements, etc.) is impacted by a number of
factors. Understanding these factors and adhering to the best practices outlined below,
will allow for optimal model performance.

Create logical systems for connected networks, rather than leaving all elements on the
‘Default System’. Associating elements into systems helps to streamline data
propagation and facilitates the analytical uses of systems like pressure drop calculations.

Set correct connector flow directions. Improper flow directions (bi-directional for
example) can result in difficult flow determination and slow regeneration performance.

Create strategic breaks and/or use multiple files. While maintaining the entire design for
a building service in one well connected model allows for full data propagation, the size
of the connected network is directly related to its manipulation performance. Testing
has shown a linear decrease in manipulation performance as a connected network size
grows. The rate of decrease is directly related to the topics under discussion in this
section.

As the performance of connected networks decreases with larger size, the benefits of
data propagation and connectivity are overcome by the need for better model
manipulation performance. Thus, for large projects it is a best practice to employ one or
both of the following strategies to ensure productive manipulations of the connected
networks.

STRATEGIC BREAKS

Creating disconnections in a connected network stops data propagation during model

manipulations, as well as the constraints engine that maintains connections. Product
team testing has determined that strategic breaks in a connected network produce the

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most significant improvements in model manipulation performance. The recommended
practice for this strategy is to create disconnections at logical sections of the connected
network.

For example, in a VAV air distribution system, create disconnections at the upstream
connection point of the VAV box. This allows the VAV flow to still be calculated based
upon the downstream Air Terminals. A Duct System Schedule can then be used to
manually coordinate flow at the Air Handler Unit.

The most efficient way to accomplish such a disconnect, while still maintaining proper
appearance for documentation, is to model the upstream element without connecting to
the VAV and then using the align tool to locate the end of the duct at the same location
as the VAV connection.

MULTIPLE FILES

For large, complex buildings, using strategic breaks as well as the aforementioned best
practices may still not provide optimum model manipulation performance. In these
cases, the model should be built across multiple Revit Project files.

There are two fundamental ways to structure the MEP project files, by MEP discipline and
by region of the building. Both of these approaches have their benefits and drawbacks,
and ultimately it is the choice of the BIM/CAD manager.

By Discipline – This strategy creates separate project files for each MEP discipline, such
as Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, and Fire Protection.

By Region – This strategy creates separate project files for different regions of the
building, keeping all disciplines in each file. An example would be to create separate
project files for each floor of a multi-floor building. Coordination within a region would
be automatic since all disciplines would reside in the same file, Coordination between
regions would be accomplished through link files.

The end of excerpts taken from a Revit Technical Paper posted by Kyle Bernhardt of
Autodesk

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APPENDIX B - NETWORK ISSUES

CREATING CENTRAL FILES ON A PEER-TO-PEER NETWORK

In peer-to-peer networks (for example, networks without a server), the user with the
central file located on his/her computer sees the central file as a local file (not in the
worksets sense), while the other users perceive it as being a remote file. In other
words, the local files identify two different locations for the same central file,
which Revit does not permit.

There is a simple solution to this problem. The user who is hosting the central
file, must map the location to a network drive.

To map a network drive:

17. Open My Computer.

18. On the Tools menu, click Map Network Drive.
19. In Drive, select a drive letter.
20. In Folder, enter the server and share name of the computer or folder you want. For
example, enter \\servername\sharename. (You can also click Browse to find the
computer or folder.)

CREATING CENTRAL FILES ON A VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK (VPN)

When you try to save to the central file using a Virtual Private Network (VPN), you may
receive an error message stating that the central file was copied or moved.

This issue will occur if you have enabled work sharing in a project and the central file is
located on a VPN network.

In Revit®, paths are always normalized to UNC format (\\machinename\folder\etc). All

of the client PCs that host the local files must have the central file path listed in UNC
format. To resolve this issue, you should use the IP address in the central file path.
Follow these steps:

1. Save all local changes from local files to the current central file.
2. Save the central file as a new central file. Use the IP address when browsing to the
folder where you will save the central file. For example, \\<real IP
address>\c\filename.
3. Create new local files from the new central file.

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