Revit Technology Conference 2010

Rodd Perey
Associate Director, Architectus

For the sixth time, the Revit Technology Conference (otherwise known as RTC), was held in Australia, recently on May 20-22 in the Sydney suburb of Manly. The event was not only the largest RTC to date, but also widely thought of as the best. The conference is a unique, independent “for users, by users” event covering Building Information Modeling and workflows centered around Autodesk Revit. RTC offers unvarnished advice from the people who use the technologies to drive their businesses—and the industry as a whole—forward. Business leaders, thought leaders, innovators and implementers were there, all ready to give away their secrets to aid in the quest for a better, smarter industry, and a stronger, more sustainable environment.

The conference attracted over 300 participants (up 35% from 2009) from 10 countries, who chose from 72 classes, labs, discussion forums, and presentations with five simultaneous streams. Most of the participants at the first conference came from architecture and interior design, but now with the emergence of Revit MEP and Revit Structure, and the increasing use of applications such as Navisworks and ProjectWise, the conference has seen a dramatic increase in the number of attendees from engineering disciplines. The 2010 conference hosted delegates from contracting, public works, project management and education. A diverse range of professionals were represented, including principals, office managers, architects, engineers, students, academics in related fields, CAD/BIM managers, construction managers, contractors, quantity surveyors, subcontractors, developers, project managers, property owners, draftspersons, designers, digital modelers, and visualization artists. Many firms chose to send a number of participants to cover the range of subjects on offer, although all conference delegates also had access to the class materials online.

The conference is focused on training and the exchange of ideas, and has established its reputation as having the best presenters, sourced worldwide, and the best content: be it high-level discussion forums, innovative solutions, or expert technique. RTC 2010 featured some of the luminaries of the Revit world, including Jim Balding of WATG’s Wimberley Labs, Phil Read of HNTB, Steve Stafford of AEC Advantage, Martin Taurer, erstwhile Revit Evangelist in both Australia and Japan, and Lars Moth-Poulsen, an expert on Bentley’s GenerativeComponents. We also had a record four speakers from Japan providing an interesting view on the first wave of BIM implementation in that country.

Keynote Session and Revit Showcase

As in previous years, the conference opened with a welcome address by the conference convener, Wesley Benn, who set the stage for the keynote speaker, Paul Doherty, an American technology expert based in Shanghai. He delivered an inspiring and entertaining keynote address, with an exciting analysis of the external forces that are reshaping our industry, and demonstrated how, by inserting fresh thinking, communicating a strong direction, and leading by example, we and our organizations can prosper. We learned how to leverage our digital assets to provide value beyond the standard deliverables, how BIM is being adopted in global markets, and about social media and the effects on BIM. With real-world examples using Revit from high-profile projects in the US, Dubai, India and China, this keynote address provided context, strategies and next steps to provide an environment of increased value.

After the keynote was the annual Revit Showcase, featuring the most innovative work of attendees over the previous year or two. As something of a coffee-table session, this shows what is being achieved by the unsung heroes of BIM around the world.

Principals’ Day

After the success of the first Principals’ Day held at the 2009 RTC conference in Melbourne, this stream provided an insight into the rapidly changing world of BIM to office managers, directors, and owners of businesses, who may not have direct experience with software applications but need to understand the impact of BIM in general, and Revit in particular, on their businesses. This year, Principals’ Day focused on the current position of BIM in the industry, with the emergence of national standards and guidelines; the growing uptake of BIM in professional consultancies within architecture, engineering and allied fields, as well as the increasing penetration of BIM methodologies into the construction industry; implementation challenges, and the cultural changes that accompany BIM; and also the business benefits that can be derived from skilled use of the technology.

Glenn Cunnington of Humphrey & Edwards got things going with his viewpoint on “BIM + its Implication on the Average Practice,” examining the cultural change that goes with the paradigm shift, followed by Jim Balding’s “Revit for Principals,” which brought his considerable experience to the subject of implementing Revit in an office, and the issues faced by project managers and team leaders who may not be hands-on users of Revit. Andrew Gutteridge of Arkhefield discussed national initiatives in BIM and IPD in his “Industry Update.” He also joined some other of the panelists in an open forum discussion chaired by Wesley Benn on the issues important to principals.

Architecture, Structure, and MEP Streams

The conference sessions were divided into Architecture, Structure, MEP, Presentation & Visualization, General, and BIM Manager streams. For the first time, the sessions were rated for their degree of difficulty and prior experience required. With five sessions being held concurrently for most of the conference, attendees could tailor an individual program suited to their interests and level of expertise. Case studies kept the conference relevant, with current real-world examples of Revit and BIM use. There is an annual call for papers, which garners a very creative range of submissions and allows the content to evolve through the years.

The Architecture stream covered Revit Architecture, and the tools and workflows used in architectural practice. The basics—often skipped over in many other conferences—were covered by labs on New Features, Scheduling, and Site Tools. Stewart Caldwell from Russell and Yelland showed another way with “SketchUp: Advanced features and Revit integration.” We saw great Revit use in practice with Ashley Beckett’s well-received “Case Study: Brisbane Supreme Court and District Courts” with its review of Architectus’ use of Revit and BIM on this ambitious project (see Figure 1). His colleague Katia Gard followed with her presentation, “Introducing Revit as a Design Tool for Students,” which provided a viewpoint on an area outside of the mainstream of Revit use.

Toby Maple showed us how it is done with his session “RDB Link: Linking your model to Access,” demonstrating how a thorough and structured approach to Revit has allowed him to push the limits with his work at HASSELL. And Peter Giampa had to put up the ‘Full’ sign on his presentation “Throw Away Your Yellow Trace: Conceptualize Your Design in Revit”—surely, an area of huge interest to those who are out there actually “doing BIM.”

Phil Read also filled his fantastic lab on “Stairs and Railings.” So simple, so complex! Phil showed how the Stair tool in Revit could be used to create almost any stair, with some great examples created from generous amounts of lateral thinking applied to Revit’s stair components and what they could do (see Figure 2). And a tip on using a wall-hosted generic model as a railing for complex or organic geometry was worth the price of admission alone. No surprise that it was one of the top rated sessions.

Stephen Taskin’s “Revit: Make me a SUPERMODEL” also displayed some great solutions to modeling issues, some derived from Steve’s ‘hobby’ of modeling a number of his favorite buildings. Michelle Leonard and Melanie Tristram from Jasmax went “Into the Interior: Interior Design Projects using Revit Architecture,” covering a lot of territory: base building issues, advanced families, scheduling and tagging, and design options.  Belinda Hodkinson of Suters continued the theme with her “Adding Interior Design into an Integrated Workflow” which looked at phasing interior projects, setup and scheduling.

The Structure stream covers Revit Structure, and the tools and workflows used in structural design and the use of Revit Structure with analysis and detailing tools and collaboration applications. New features in the 2011 release were discussed. Doug Wallace then dived straight into “Integration of Structural Engineering Design into the BIM Model,” covering workflows to and from analysis tools such as ETABS and RAM, formulas in Revit, and the Excel Model Generator. Damien Legrand showed the alternative of “Structural Analysis using Robot.” Brendon Picton of GHD presented “Complete Detailing for Concrete and Steel Work,” an example of which is shown in Figure 3. Other presentations included “Achieving IPD:  Revit Structure to Steel Shop Detailing” by Shane Brown and “Revit Structure: Forgotten Tools” by Ben May of Irwinconsult, who also conducted a lab on “Mastering Parametric Trusses in Revit Structure,” providing attendees with a comprehensive view of Revit Structure.

The MEP stream focuses on Revit MEP, its inbuilt analysis and system design functions, connections to CAM and detailing applications, and collaboration. Following the new features presentation, Andrew Bagnall from GHD gave us his “Case Study: Lessons learnt – Architects and Engineers in an Integrated Working Environment,” reinforcing just how important collaboration is to the MEP disciplines. We also had Karl de Wet’s “Real Life, Up-to-date MEP Collaboration and Documentation.” Roy Qian of Aurecon brought it all together with ‘Modeling MEP Electrical Systems in Non-US Countries Using API Programming,” another example of how intrinsic Revit’s API has become to advanced workflows. Michael Warwick of Stephenson & Turner got specific with Green Star Lighting in MEP, and Michael Alder of Arup showed us his battle scars with “One Year On: Lessons Learnt,” a look at the implementation of Revit MEP in Arup.

Presentation and Visualization Stream

The Presentation and Visualisation stream discussed the creation of high quality graphics from a model, with both the internal capabilities with Revit, and through the use of a range of applications, including 3ds Max Design, SketchUp, Piranesi and Autodesk Impression. Things got going with Dan Jurgens from Bates Smart Architects and Zac Aratoof Atomic 3D, presenting  “Visualize Revit Conceptual Designs Fast with 3ds Max, Mental Ray and V-Ray,” with a comprehensive explanation of the techniques involved (see Figure 4). This was also presented as a lab. Jason Howden of Archaus showed us another aspect to visualization with “Win More Work with Revit and 3DS Max Design,” which took us back to the basics with a comparison of model export methods and techniques to save time by focusing on the most crucial aspects of the image. Adrian Esdaile from Walter Barda & Associates kept it real with his well received “Rendering in 2D and 3D: Not What You Thought...” that looked at what you can do inside Revit.

BIM Manager Stream

The BIM Manager stream covered a wide range of issues faced by those who need to be the internal expert on issues such as implementation, auditing and quality control, system development and content creation, training, standards, collaboration and coordination—all with a wide array of software applications. It also covered the emerging discipline BIM Management provided as a separate service, and downstream use of the model for construction and facilities management. For those facing the challenges of the cultural and organizational changes that accompany BIM as BIM/CAD managers, model managers, IT managers or design technology managers, insight and experience was provided by a number of speakers.

Michelle Leonard’s “Establishing a BIM Protocol: Guidelines for Working Collaboratively with BIM” set the scene, with its detailed examination of Jasmax’s experience in the establishment of their protocol and its three major elements: model setup, model sharing and the contractual issues that accompany collaboration. Model coordination with Navisworks and best-practice setup for collaboration were covered in depth.

Navisworks was again on display when Ryan Hanlen of Architectus presented his “Case Study: BIM Management – 1 Bligh Street.” One of a number of case studies featured at the conference, this major Sydney CBD project (shown in Figure 5) and exemplar of BIM processes was used as a reference point by Bligh for his examination of the new role of BIM Management on a project basis. He discussed the collaboration protocols established by Architectus in their role as BIM Manager, specific techniques used to combine information from various sources, workflows, how the team dealt with large Revit models, and the construction stage use of the model by the contractor Grocon.

This was followed by a change of gear. The “Design Collaboration Round Table” convened by Wesley Benn, with a panel of three others, was an open discussion that moved the debate on from the issues of “Lonely BIM” and implementation, and toward the snowballing area of collaboration across disciplines and into construction and beyond. Major projects are now being completed using BIM as a key technology, and this has highlighted some unforeseen (and known, but not resolved) issues on which the attendees and panel had some unique insights: opportunities that were lost, benefits that were gained, the difficulties flowing from the differing need for precise information by various parties at early project stages, workflows, and pitfalls as well as pratfalls made this an engaging debate.

Next, Steve Jolley of Bentley Systems presented “Plug-In and Third Party Applications: How Bentley Helps Revit Users,” which looked at the i-model plug-in and the ProjectWise application which provide a range of simulation, analysis, and review tools for use in collaborative environments, as well as the Luxology rendering engine for visualization. Interoperability is a crucial aspect of this environment, which is especially suited to complex multi-disciplinary projects where BIM is becoming a prerequisite. Specialist design, detailing analysis, and simulation tools from a range of sources can be combined into a workflow, allowing best-of-breed applications and seamless data exchange.

“Getting started with the Revit API,” from Kristian Parsons of Westfield offered an introductory course into the Revit API, which, as we saw from sessions elsewhere at the conference, is being used by many firms to gain additional value from BIM. Rod Howarth’s “How the Revit API Has Saved Our Company Time and Money”—one of the top rated sessions—was a case in point, with some real inventiveness and immediate usefulness in the tools Rod has created for Bornhost+Ward.

Neil Munro’s “Internal Collaboration: Lessons Learnt” was a case study of the experience of the multidisciplinary firm Opus International Consultants in internal collaboration with linked Revit models. Neil stressed the importance of getting the setup right, and his guidance will help others avoid the pitfalls. “Helping Hands: Build Your Own Revit Help Files and Tutorials” by Wayne Morrell of HASSELL covered more familiar CAD Manager territory in an entirely new way. Wayne showed how, by using Adobe’s Captivate product to create new tutorials and guidance and linking this to elements within Revit, and combining with and replacing parts of the Revit Help system, company standards could be reinforced, BIM quality increased, and mistakes avoided. This flowed on to Melanie Tristram’s “Closing the Loop – Internal Standardization Audits” demonstrating Jasmax’s advanced techniques for model quality assurance (see Figure 6).

Other sessions included Stuart Wearn’s (of Mitchell Brandtman)“BIM QS: What's In It For Me?” which covered both the myths and the genuine benefits of using BIM data for costing. He provided an expert view on how costing information is derived, and how architects and engineers should structure models if they are to be used for costing purposes. A more motivational angle came from “Getting the Most Out of the Data: Better Projects, Better Outcomes” by Martin Taurer, which encouraged and tutored on how to go a little bit further with the value that BIM can provide. Lars Moth-Poulsen of Bentley Systems then brought us into the world of computational design with “Design with GenerativeComponents:  Let the Genius Loose,” showcasing and explaining in some detail Bentley’s GenerativeComponents product that has generated such a buzz. The theme of informing better and more creative designs through the use of BIM data and parametric controls was reinforced with Dominik Holzer’s “Optioneering in Collaborative Design Practice,” which showed how optioneering processes can facilitate collaborative multidisciplinary design leading to optimal solutions.

The BIM Manager stream emerged as the largest offering at the RTC in 2010, reflecting the collaborative transformation that is occurring in the AEC industry, and the complex as well as arcane issues faced by those charged with the responsibility to make the systems work—and work well. Its strength is recognition of the fact that as we move from BIM creation based around the needs of 2D and written documentation to a BIM process where the data is available for collaborative purposes and the model is used to improve construction efficiency, more and more benefits are realized.

General Stream and Sustainability

The General stream covered those aspects of Revit that are relevant to all disciplines. Family creation was a focus, with classes and labs pitched at different levels of experience by Steve Stafford with “Families – General”; Michelle van Kolck (nee Louw) from PDT with a lab on “Family Creation”; Michael Vagg from Bornhorst + Ward  with “Using Formulae to Make Advanced Families”; and Sam Saliba of KarelCAD with “Adaptive Points, Reporting Parameters, Generic Model Points Based – What this means for Advanced Families Creation.” These sessions covered a range from the most fundamental aspects of the creation of quality families to advanced techniques and the powerful new features available in Revit 2011.

Project setup and best practice techniques were covered by sessions including “Revit Can't Do That!” presented by Steve Taskin from Altis Architecture, Adam Sheather of Advanced 3D Technologies, and Tim Waldock & Toby Maple, dispelling some of the myths about Revit and revealing some of its hidden features; “Should I Model or Should I Draft?” the time-honoured question answered by the always highly-rated Sam Saliba; “How to Develop an Office Style” by Kerry Thompson; “Locking Down Revit Drawings” by Tim Waldock from PTW; and “Tips & Tricks and Classic Cock-ups” by Chris Needham and Steve Stafford, which showed users to learn the right way from mistakes others have made. Aimee Bellete, formerly of Humphrey & Edwards and now of Fisher and Buttrose, presented a case study that showed the technique behind the Documentation winner from the 2009 conference (shown in Figure 7). Revit fundamentals were covered with “Keying into Keynoting” by Melanie Tristram, “Scheduling: From Beginning to Beyond’ by Russell Hamblin of Thomson Adsett, Rodd Perey’s “Phasing” lab, and the lab on “Scheduling” by Clay Hickling of GHD.

Within the General stream, there was a nascent Sustainability stream, reflecting the keen interest in this area. “Revit for BCA Section-J Building Envelope Compliance” by Ibrahim Thanawalla of CADGroup examined the use of Revit to assure compliance with government building codes. This was followed by “Natural and Artificial Lighting Analysis” by Martin Taurer, presenting the work of Jun Inoue of 3D Innovations who was an unfortunate late cancellation. “Automated Green Building Assessment: Case Studies from Roads to Hospitals and Supermarkets” by Delwyn Jones showcased the use of LCADesign for life cycle analysis of projects with reference to current examples. Ibrahim Thanawalla returned with “Revit – Ecotect for Shadow & Daylight Analysis,” demonstrating one specific and important use of Ecotect’s capabilities.

Since the 2008 conference with its tea ceremony and Revit case study, RTC’s relationship with the Revit pioneers of Japan continues to strengthen. Two sessions were offered: “Revit Japan: Establishing a National Guideline” by Tadafumi Nitta and Kouhei Utida, and “Case Study: The RUGjp Chapel” by Mayu Nakagawa and Misako Kobayashi. Both showed dedicated collaboration on common projects by the local Revit User Groups of Japan. The National Guidelines is a particularly ambitious project from this enterprising group.

Worthy of special mention was the “ANZ Content Creation Guidelines: Peer Review Workshop” which reported on mapping out the next steps for this important initiative, which sprung from the great debate of the 2009 conference. Much has been done, and much remains to be done, and we look forward to enhanced collaboration, facilitated by quality content that works across all disciplines. See what has been achieved at the AusBIM wiki: http://ausbim.com/Wiki/tiki-index.php.

“An Afternoon with Autodesk” put Rob Malkin, Sales Director, Architecture, Engineering & Construction (AEC) Australia and New Zealand at Autodesk, into a very positive session about the future direction of Revit, and the ways in which user concerns are being addressed.

Other Conference Highlights

RTC 2010 featured an enhanced Exhibition area that showcased a range of products with application in the BIM world: RevitTV with their special tools for Revit; LCADesign with their lifecycle analysis tools for sustainable designs; Z Corporation and 3D Printing; and Benn Design with Revit content. Local Autodesk resellers AEC Systems, KarelCAD, and CADGroup were represented, offering advice on a range of solutions, training and content within the AEC space.

A couple of special sessions are becoming a hallmark of the event. Glorious Gadgets returned, this time demonstrating Apple’s iPad before its release in Australia, and the Midte Digital Touch pen which allows any surface to become a tablet, including screens. We saw how it can benefit designers and speed up markup activities. Delegates also witnessed the amazing Emotiv EPOC headset, which interprets brainwaves and facial muscle movements (shown in Figure 8).  Geoff Mackellar, CTO for Emotiv, demonstrated the use of the headset to navigate through a building model in Autodesk Navisworks using thoughts and facial gestures. It had to be seen to be believed!

A special social event session was the movie and pizza night, which featured the 2009 movie, Watchmen, that had sets designed in Revit. Phil Read demonstrated these in his pre-film address with images from the Revit model and matching stills from the movie.

A long standing feature of the conference is the Competition, offering a range of prizes in different categories. Humphrey and Edwards continued their very strong performance, scooping up the prizes in the Presentation and Documentation categories, as shown in Figure 9. The winners in the Integration and Innovation categories are shown in Figures 10 and 11 respectively.

The conference culminated with the Gala and Farewell Dinner where delegates were invited to join together to network, meet old friends, make new contacts and enjoy a sumptuous dinner. Befitting RTC’s comfortable size, this event provides the forum for fun and games and the prize giving ceremonies.

Future Directions

RTC has come a long way since the first conference was held in October 2005. The inaugural conference, created from the vision of Wesley Benn, was an intimate affair, attracting 89 attendees to the historic Hydro Majestic Hotel at Medlow Bath near Sydney. A single stream of sessions was offered. In subsequent years, the conference grew steadily, both in numbers as well as in the range and depth of the sessions offered. The second conference was held at Port Stephens, NSW, and was attended by 120 delegates. 2007 introduced the RTC Roadshow, the only time the conference has been held in this way. The conference, in a one day format, toured Brisbane, Sydney, Auckland, Melbourne, and Perth, introducing large numbers to RTC.

In 2008, returning to a three-day format, the conference was held at Brighton Beach, NSW. Attendance numbers were affected by a late change of venue, but still attracted 165 attendees. This conference greatly increased the number of classes in order to cover the rapid uptake of Revit in engineering disciplines, with three and sometimes four classes held concurrently for a total of 32 sessions with 26 speakers. 2009 witnessed exponential growth despite the serious setbacks of the global financial crisis and the swine flu epidemic. Held in Melbourne, attendance increased to 218, allowing for four continuous streams covering 65 sessions delivered by 45 speakers, with the introduction of Principals’ Day, the “Presentation and Visualization” and “BIM Manager” streams, as well as lab sessions, a much expanded exhibition area, and the first gadget session. The 2009 conference also sparked the great Revit content debate, which has led to the creation of the AusBIM wiki, and the ANZ Revit Content Guidelines project.

As RTC consolidates its success, preparations are underway for the 2011 conference, which will be held from May 26-28, 2011, at the Sheraton Mirage Resort and Spa, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. Also, for the first time, RTC will be held in the USA as well, tentatively from June 23-25, 2011, in Orange County, California, bringing the Revit/BIM focus, industry participation and expertise to a new audience. At both events, RTC will continue to offer advice and training from some of the world's top instructors and industry experts, bringing relevant techniques, honed in practice, to attendees.  It will continue to attract the support of key industry players, and will remain a complement to Autodesk University (with which many will be familiar), offering an event targeted to the specific needs of users with Revit at the centre of their workflows. Growth in attendance has allowed the conference to cover a broader and deeper range of subjects, but RTC will always pride itself on its intimate, friendly, and casual nature.

Those wishing to stay informed about the Revit Technology Conference should join the RTC Community group on LinkedIn. Make a suggestion, start a discussion, and have your say.

About the Author

Rodd Perey is a practicing architect and Associate Director at the Asia-Pacific based architecture, interiors, urban design and planning firm of Architectus. He is a member of the RTC Committee and a number of industry organizations. He has spoken at a number of events, including AU Japan, Futurarc, and Autodesk’s AEC Day. He is featured as an Autodesk Sustainability Leader, and his work at Architectus has received an Autodesk BIM Experience Award. He was a participant in a feature article in the Japan based A+U Magazine. Rodd has experience across a wide range of architectural project types, and is always looking for ways to improve BIM workflows.