Revit Prison Planet

Welcome!

So, the latest project I've been tasked with is a massive maximum security prison complex.  Well, at least I was for a few minutes, when I was pulled off to handle an emergency tenant finish-out, which they needed by tomorrow, so I issued it today (since I didn't have to wait for two hours for the shell building that we did to convert to the latest version of Revit).

Then it was back to prison (which I was able to jump right back into because it didn't take 20 minutes to load up).  What it did take was a little bit of time to figure out what the first guy who started cleaning up the drawings had done.  The first thing I noticed was that he had kept the copious amounts of ductwork shown on their drawings (he put it on a layer that would shade it, but there was just WAY too fucking much of it (and it makes the .pdf set that I got from the engineer look like unadulterated shit).

Part of the reason they were leaving it was that there are a number of fire/smoke dampers throughout the building - but these can be shown without having to leave ALL of the ductwork on, so it ALL went bye-bye.  Then I started going back and fixing all of the fuckups on the floor plans themselves - of  which there were many.

The first thing I noticed was that a number of doors appeared to be missing - but it turned out they were just on a layer that was inexplicably turned off (unfortunately while off, the other guy moved the plans - leaving the doors and some other items floating in space - or overlapping other plans).  Some quick adjustments and I had it back on track.

Then it was on to the standard removal of various headers, structural elements overlapping and wiping out sections of plan, and general 'prettying up' that I like to do so that my plans don't resemble the result of work done while buttchugging flat champagne mixed with expired rave drugs.  That's when I noticed that there are entire sections of plan that (for one reason or another) are doubled-up.

When I say 'doubled up' I mean that there is one set of plans overlapped by another set of plans (but offset *just a little bit*).  It seems to occur in the same part of the plan on multiple levels, so it's either view range fuckups that are allowing me to see the pans above/below the floor I am on - or someone accidentally angled the walls in this part of the plan so I'm actually seeing lines showing the top and bottom of the wall.

Neither of those would be that surprising - and the only trick to fixing it is figuring out which ones are correct, and which ones to delete.  I'll probably just make my best guess and tweak it where necessary

After discussing the project with the guy who sold it - it turns out all we are doing is a one-for-one replacement of all of the existing devices and reusing existing wiring (not that I would've known that based on the tiny amount of information I was given going in).  Oh - and this, despite the fact that it doesn't even remotely meet code - although the AHJ may be giving them some wiggle room, since the place is manned by guards 24/7.

The salesman said he attempted to sell them on the same kind of facility management system that we designed for the massive project I just got through designing, but they turned it down.  Not strictly because of cost though, but (in their words): 'some of their guards are as bad as the inmates when it comes to messing around with stuff'.

I could definitely see opportunities for a bored guard to screw with his buddies by remotely setting off fake alarms and laughing as everyone ran around trying to figure out what was going on.  Honestly, prison guard would be one of the most boring jobs imaginable - but with the constant danger that one of the inmates (who are bored, and most of whom have nothing to lose) will decide to attack you.

That, and the occasional prison riot.

I hear the train a comin'
It's rollin' 'round the bend
And I ain't seen the sunshine
Since, I don't know when
I'm stuck in Revit Prison
And load times keep draggin' on
But that train keeps a-rollin'
On down to San Antone

When I was just a Revit newbie
My Mama told me, "lad
Always be a good boy
Don't ever play with CAD"
But I deleted a man's model in Reno
Just to watch him die
When I hear that hard drive spinnin'
I hang my head and cry

I bet there's CAD folks eatin'
In a fancy dinin' car
They're probably drinkin' coffee
And smokin' big cigars
Well, I know I had it comin'
I know I can't draw free
But those people keep a-movin'
And converting models tortures me

Well, if they freed me from this Revit
If that railroad train was mine
I bet I'd move it on a little
Farther down the line
Far from Revit Prison
That's where I want to stay
And I'd let that lonesome whistle
Blow my Revit blues away

(Apologies to the late, great Johnny Cash)

-ullfuckSk

Next Time: Cloud With A Chance Of Bullshit