Discover the step-by-step process of transferring project standards from one project to another, eliminating the need to recreate elements such as family types, mechanical settings, and annotation styles. The article provides a clear demonstration of how this can be achieved in a typical HVAC plan design project.
Key Insights
- The transfer of project standards allows us to carry over specific elements from one project to another, such as family types, mechanical settings, and annotation styles, saving time and effort in recreating these elements.
- The process involves opening a new project, locating the Manage tab, and selecting Transfer Project Standards under the Settings option. It's essential to ensure you are copying from the correct file and selecting all the items you wish to transfer.
- Once all the desired elements are selected, an overwrite function allows them to be added to the new project, effectively duplicating the mechanical components and annotations from the previous project, ready for use in the new one.
Note: These materials offer prospective students a preview of how our classes are structured. Students enrolled in this course will receive access to the full set of materials, including video lectures, project-based assignments, and instructor feedback.
In this video, we'll look at the process of transferring project standards. You don't need to open any files yourself, so feel free to just sit back and listen. Transferring project standards allows us to bring elements from one project to another such as family types, mechanical settings, and annotation styles.
Here's an example: Let's say I have a fully designed HVAC project where I've created specific families, established mechanical settings, and developed custom annotation styles. If I start a new project, I don't want to recreate all of these elements from scratch. Instead, I'll use the Transfer Project Standards feature.
First, I'll open the new project by going to File > New > Project. As we've done previously, I'll select Browse… and choose the Mechanical Default template.
Now, in this tab is my brand-new project. I haven't yet linked any external files, but I can still transfer project standards beforehand. In another tab, I have my previous project—the one containing all the families and settings I want to reuse.
To transfer these settings, go to the new project tab, click on the Manage tab, and find Transfer Project Standards under Settings. Click to select it.
Learn Construction
- Nationally accredited
- Create your own portfolio
- Free student software
- Learn at your convenience
- Authorized Autodesk training center
Now, I want to ensure I'm copying from the correct file, so I'll choose the BIM 321 HVAC Design file that's currently open. You can check all items or select specific ones; in this case, I'll select Check All.
You'll notice items like Browser Organization or Cable Tray settings—though since this is specifically a mechanical project, Cable Tray settings might not be crucial, but bringing everything over ensures completeness. Most importantly, I'm interested in transferring items like duct settings, duct sizes, duct types, mechanical properties, and various annotations.
Once I'm satisfied with the selections (again, I'm transferring everything in this scenario), I'll click OK. Revit will then prompt me, asking whether to overwrite existing standards or copy only new ones. For this demonstration, I'll select Overwrite to update all existing standards in the new project.
After a moment, the process is complete. While there may not appear to be an immediate visible change, all those mechanical components and annotations created in our previous project are now available in this new project, making future design tasks much quicker and more efficient.
