Hey - Where Did Revit Put That Door?

Glorious Morning!

I'm digging through a massive upgrade project that I somehow got talked into assisting with (another firm had been working on it up to this point, but between them being incompetent, slow, and error prone, we were asked to de-fuck the project).

It's actually the kind of thing I could see some Reviteer jizzing in their pants over the opportunity to show off their mad scheduling skills because the client (for some reason) wants schedules showing every piece of conduit and cable throughout the project (in addition to drawings showing the same information).

Fortunately for me, the people doing it used ACAD for their drawings (with .cal files referenced into them showing the backgrounds that came from an old set of drawings that were scanned and converted).  It's not what I would call the 'best' way of doing it, but they apparently tried converting the scans into CAD linework and the results were terrible.  Drawing over the top with CAD linework would normally be how I would do it on a smaller project, but this is multiple large buildings across a huge facility (and our scope/budget doesn't include time/money to do anything like that - and sure as hell doesn't include resources for modeling or dicking around with Revit for the rest of our lives).

The schedules are all done in Excel, and while it was a little bit tedious, I was able to completely redesign the first (relatively small) building despite them having put the panel feeding the system we are designing at damn near the diagonally opposite corner from where it actually needed to be.  Someone also added some devices and modified the floor plan (which I had to fake in, since the background isn't really editable).  All I have to do now is punch in a few quick dimensions (thank you polyline!) and doublecheck the conduit schedule to make sure that I have all of the cables shown properly.

Some automation would be cool - but at the same time, it's difficult to guarantee that said automation won't fuck things up worse than these morons did in the first place (especially if that automation is being utilized by similar morons).  I've mentioned in the past how many errors I run across on other people's work simply because I'm spending a little more time (key word 'a little') to go through and actually look at how everything is being designed rather than say 'well, it's in Revit, so that's good enough'.

Case in point.  Over the last few year or so I've had a fairly large data center project (approx. 9000 s.f.) come back around a few times with changes and added scope.  I've talked about it before - because the architect on the project Revited up a model of the main area and a few ancillary rooms (in a much larger existing building).

They have multiple disciplines working with that model (HVAC/Pluming/Fire Protection, Electrical, etc.), which makes it especially amusing when I receive their latest and greatest model (exported into ACAD of course) to use as my background, and I notice that (since my systems extend beyond their area of work) that it doesn't actually line up with the rest of the building.

Also of note is a solid wall shown between the foyer and the main area - where I know there is a door, but most likely due to one of the 1/4 billion or so view settings that I always harp on, it just ain't there.  I also have a .pdf of the drawing they (and the rest of the Reviting disciplines) are submitting too, and it isn't there either - so it's not just the export.

Then, while trying to figure out how to merge their plan and the overall plan, I notice that their entire plan is actually rotated a fraction of a degree.  Again, I go look at the .pdf and sure enough - you can zoom way in and see little jogs in the line indicating that they aren't squared up.  I use my trusty 'ALIGN' tool to fix that, but there is still something wrong.  Columns that should be at 30' spacing are actually shown at 29'-11 39/64.  Not a big deal - until you get to the other end of the room and walls are off by over 3".

Until I started noticing these fuckups, I was almost to the point of giving them the benefit of the doubt that someone had gone out, taken measurement, and accurately modeled the rooms that were being modified.  In reality, either nobody gave a fuck - or nobody noticed.  As always, Revitbots will point to the user (and not Revit) as the problem, which would be fair, except that this shit which wouldn't have flown pre-Revit, somehow gets a pass now.

If I were (god forbid) using Revit and was tied to this shitty model in order to produce my drawings, I wouldn't have a choice but to fake it and put mine out just as half-assed as everyone else, and fuck that.  My only other choice would be to try to cajole the dipshits responsible for it to fix their fuckups (which, at this stage in the game, is almost certainly not going to happen - except maybe that door...)




Fuck Revit, Fuck Autodesk for foisting Revit on the design industry, Fuck Autodesk again for continuing to stand behind Revit, and fuck them one last time just for good measure.  Fuck Revitbots, Revitards, Reviteers, and Revit Gurus.

And if you don't like it - FUCK YOU.  Go fix your fucked up model fucktard!

Sincerely,
SkullFuck

Next Time: A-typical