The tools we use every day evolve to help meet our needs. From using hand drawn blueprints to computers, each time we push forward to make something better, simple and unique. One of the biggest pushes in Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing (MEP) is better usage of our tools. Starting with AutoCAD to Revit, this transition can save time and make your workflows much smoother for your business.

AutoCAD to Revit Transition Changes

When transitioning from AutoCAD to Revit, you may notice some changes in visual graphics, format, layout and more. You will notice that nothing is just lines, arcs, and circles inside Revit. The database is more on the 3-Dimensional (3D) graphics, for instance, seeing an actual pipe instead of seeing a line or a rectangular shape with some curves in there for elbows.

With that we can also notice the format of Revit is more advanced. Systems hold some standard MEP content with an extra set of tools to help guide your project. Due to this format, the layout is more unique because of unity and integration. Autodesk is working to combine different disciplines into one source database to make communication and drawing transfer simple. Exporting and importing drawings from Revit to AutoCAD (and vice versa) adds more time onto the project.

Above: On the left is a 2D view of some drawn pipes. On the right is a 3D view of the same area, and as you can tell it appears as a pipe.

One big factor that has caught people’s attention in the transition in the calculations Revit has programmed in it and the ability to adjust those factors. Revit has the capability to gather information based on what location your project is in to how many people you will roughly have in any of the spaces that are in your project.

For instance, if we take a school building in Omaha, Nebraska and have roughly 20 people in each room Revit will be able to calculate the air flow that is needed to cover not only the room, but the entire building. This puts your mind at ease on spending less time trying to personally calculate all of what is going on and trying to factor in extra variables. It will also be able to do this for electrical loads and plumbing as well. With all the designing, what Revit also has is multiple views all put in nice and neat alphabetical categories.

Above: In this view we see a schedule already set up with some calculations set up based off of some of the factors.

The ability to have multiple views and sections is something AutoCAD and Revit have, which is a commonly known fact. The difference between the two is sheet placing and creation. Revit has a capability to allow you to separate your MEP drawings into more specific disciplines which will allow your callouts and sections to be more specific. You won’t need follow the AutoCAD setup of multiple layers to find which one you need to properly use. With that when it is time to place everything on a sheet it is a drag and drop onto the sheet with Revit fully knowing where it is located and what sheet or view to specially find it at. This saves you time to get your views done at a rapid pace.

Above: As you can see in this drawing, we have some views brought onto a sheet and automatically named.

Above: In this screenshot the call outs are more in-depth and show what is going on in the callout area. You can even tell that the scale is automatically set while the sheet scale is different.

Conclusion

This transition from AutoCAD and Revit is a crucial to your company’s success and has many advantages that allow you to push forward with your project. From instant changes such as 2D to 3D visual graphics to formatting, calculations, interface and view separation, you’ll see your project from a different perspective, giving you more capabilities and better understanding to design your project.

The format that is given allows you to see what extra capabilities to help design your project. The layout is easier to understand and more efficient to get the project going. The factor of calculations being able to take in so many variables from room size, people count and the surrounding environment for all of MEP. Another key factor is Revit’s ability to separate specific views, placing them on sheets with automatic indication and location of where it is on the sheets. With these factors, making the switch is a bonus and will get you ahead of the game.

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This blog is written by MEP Technical Specialist Zach Rico. If you have any questions or need help with your MEP needs, please email us at whyATG@atgusa.com.