Explore the initial steps in the BIM 323 course where you will learn to open up and manage files in Autodesk Revit. This brief overview guides you through the process of opening and upgrading the BIM 323 Electrical Starting Dataset in a new version of Revit, managing linked files, and setting up the user interface.
Key Insights
- This BIM 323 course allows users to enhance their skills in managing files in Autodesk Revit. The first step involves downloading the BIM 323 File Downloads folder and opening the BIM 323 Electrical Starting Dataset.
- When opening the BIM 323 Electrical Starting Dataset, users may encounter several warnings. This is due to the upgrading of the model from an older version of Revit to the current one. The upgrading process is fine and necessary for the course.
- Part of the initial process also includes managing linked files, such as the HVAC model and the architectural file. It's important to note that these linked models may also need upgrading. The user interface also gets upgraded to include the System Browser, which allows users to create the systems in the browser.
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.
Welcome to BIM 323. I'm excited to have you here. Step one for starting our course is to download the content folder, which is the BIM 323 File Downloads folder.
Inside that folder, you'll find several subfolders and our BIM 323 Electrical Starting Dataset. That's the file we need to open. There are two options for doing this.
Actually, three, but we'll avoid the third option. Option one is to right-click and select "Open With, " and then we can pick the version of Autodesk Revit. The second option is to open it through Revit.
We'll open up Revit first and then open the file. The third option is to double-click the file. We'll avoid that because we might have different versions of Revit installed, and we don't want it to pick a version for us.
So, let's jump into opening it from Revit. You'll open up Revit and then open a model. Click "Open, " and I will find the Downloads folder.
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Find the BIM 323 Electrical Starting Dataset and click "Open." Be prepared for a lot of warnings. We are opening this project in a newer version of Revit, so it will notify us that it's upgrading the model, and that's perfectly fine.
We're upgrading it from version 2024 to our current version of Revit, and this may take a moment. Let me explain quickly. In this class, we will dive into many electrical Revit topics.
This is not an engineering course, so we won't get into the finite details of balancing loads, completing calculations, or calculating voltage drops, and we won't perfectly balance our loads. However, we will cover some basic electrical concepts since they are necessary for operating the Revit electrical systems. I'm excited to work through this course with you.
Here is our first warning: The distribution system of the electrical main bus is set to "None." That's okay.
We'll assign a distribution system shortly. We have another similar warning. It's okay to click "OK" and let this continue running.
You can click "Close" when it tells you about schedules for analytical elements that haven't been assigned. We will assign them. So click "Close, " and that will open our project.
Now, Revit will notify us that it can't find two references. What do you want to do? That's fine. We can click "Open Manage Links" to correct the problem, but I want to walk through this manually so we know where to go if we face further issues.
So, I'll click "Ignore" and continue opening the project. We will notice that the project opens in a generic overall view, and there’s not much to see. What we’re looking at are scattered elements like light fixtures and outlets.
We have a few outlets and light fixtures to get us started with the project. Let's bring those links in. Go to the "Insert" tab and then select "Manage Links."
When this opens, we see two backgrounds. The first one is the HVAC model. I'll select this.
Click "Reload." There's an arrow next to "Reload" that I can pull down, and it says "Reload From." I'll select that, browse to the HVAC model, and open it.
It is also in our course file downloads. So, I'll go to the "Linked Revit" folder and find the "background-hvac" file, then click "Open." A warning will appear that the model also needs to be upgraded, and that's okay.
If we want to avoid future upgrades, we can open it separately, let it upgrade, save it, and then it will be in the current version of Revit. For now, it’s perfectly fine to let the upgrade process occur as we proceed.
Once the upgrade is complete, we’ll receive a warning telling us that the nested links inside that model will not appear, and that’s okay. We don’t want circular references. Click "Close, " and this should update.
The status right now is a warning. Now, we have a blue check mark letting us know that it’s loaded. Let’s go ahead and close this window and view the result.
Now we see the HVAC model loaded, as well as a few of the electrical components. Let’s move on. Go back to the "Insert" tab, then select "Manage Links."
This time, we’ll look for the architectural file, which is called "Background Architectural." Click the "Reload" button and find the small down arrow next to it.
Pull it down, select "Reload From, " and to recap, we are in the "BIM 323 File Downloads." Go to "Linked Revit, " find "Background-Architectural, " and select "Open." We’ll get the same message about upgrading the linked model, and that’s okay.
It’s a temporary change. If we don’t want to repeat this process, we can open the model separately, upgrade it, save it, and we’ll be good to go. This one goes a bit quicker.
We’ll get the blue check mark, and then we can close this window. If successful, we’ll see the full architectural model. We’re working on a school building, so we have the two wings, gymnasium, library, and this is the building where we’ll create our electrical systems.
To understand and navigate the systems, we need to upgrade our user interface. Go to the "View" tab. In the "View" tab, you’ll find the "User Interface" button.
It says "User Interface, " and it has a small wrench icon. Click the down arrow next to "User Interface, " and check the box next to "System Browser." This will load the System Browser, and we can enlarge it by stretching the window.
Hover directly over the break between the browser and the model view, then drag it open to increase the size. Now, find the "Systems Browser, " select "Analytical Systems" (currently none), and "Electrical Analytical Systems." Here, we can see unconnected elements and a switchboard that has an error.
We will work on creating the systems in this browser. At the same time, we’ll have the "Properties" window open, as well as the "Project Browser." Now that our user interface is set up, press "Z" then "E" on your keyboard to zoom to the extents, filling the center window with our model. Now, we can save the project.
File, Save. In our next step, we’ll return and analyze the building to understand the power needs and start designing a distribution model for our electrical system.
