Coordination height

[hertz hound]

My past experience with coordination drawings has always been drawing each floor at 0,0,0. On this job the trades are all drawing each floor at elevation with AutoCAD MEP. I can understand why you would do this with Revit, and that may have something to do with it. So how often is this done? The floor elevation is referenced from sea level and works well with tying it in with the site work (e.g. first floor @ 25' 11-1/4). Sanitary rim of one of the manholes outside is 25' 2".

So how would you guys set up project navigator to handle this? I have been thinking of a few scenarios, but for right now I am working outside of project navigator to get the coordination part done. I will worry about sheets later. Is there a way to set this up now? I really don't want to do double work or start moving floors up and down as I send and receive them. Can you work elements in reverse? And set the floor elevations to minus elevation. How will elevation tags work if the drawing is not set to 0,0,0?

Thanks for any replies. I do have a lot of questions on this subject!

[StykFacE]

My past experience with coordination drawings has always been drawing each floor at 0,0,0. On this job the trades are all drawing each floor at elevation with AutoCAD MEP. I can understand why you would do this with Revit, and that may have something to do with it. So how often is this done? The floor elevation is referenced from sea level and works well with tying it in with the site work (e.g. first floor @ 25' 11-1/4). Sanitary rim of one of the manholes outside is 25' 2".

So how would you guys set up project navigator to handle this? I have been thinking of a few scenarios, but for right now I am working outside of project navigator to get the coordination part done. I will worry about sheets later. Is there a way to set this up now? I really don't want to do double work or start moving floors up and down as I send and receive them. Can you work elements in reverse? And set the floor elevations to minus elevation. How will elevation tags work if the drawing is not set to 0,0,0?

Thanks for any replies. I do have a lot of questions on this subject!

Using the Project Navigator is the way to go. With this tool, you can take advantage of Levels, Constructs, and Views. Below is an example on how to set it up:

Start your project. Click the Pencil icon to the right of "Levels" to bring up the Levels dialog box. Input your levels and elevations as needed. Simply follow the requirements of the job is all.


Now on to creating your Constructs.


Create a construct for each workable floor. (In this example I renamed the first Level as "Datum". This is simply my preference, since most of the time I work on jobs with a +100'-0" as the First Floor or Ground Level. Copy my method, or use your own - either way, this level doesn't need a Construct since you won't be designing anything on this level) Remember to use the Division Checkbox to associate the Construct to the proper level. I keep it easy: Name "Floor 01" for both the Level and the Construct, and so forth for the rest. No need to complicate things.


After you get all your Constructs set up, now you can create Views. You can use Views however you like, whether it be to associate one floor in Plan View, or whither it be to associate all the floors to have a combined 3D View.


In this example I want to make a View of All Floors.


Right-click to Select All the Levels.


Include all the Constructs.


And now you have a "complete 3D Model".


If you open this up, you'll notice that everything is elevated +100'-0" since the Constructs are XREF'ed and inserted at their respective Level height you set up in the beginning of the job (of course, you'll be looking at blank Modelspace unless you start designing and putting some objects/models in each Construct).

When you work in each Construct, you are working in 0,0,0 space. The "View" is what brings it all together and places each Construct at the correct Z elevation. This way, all your Elevation Tags are represented from AFF instead of +124'-0" or whatever it may be due to the "sea level" you'll be working with.

It'll take some time getting used to, but when you do you'll never go back to the old way. This is similar to how Revit works, although Revit is still WAY better at things like this.

Hope this helps you some.

[hertz hound]

When you work in each Construct, you are working in 0,0,0 space. The "View"
is what brings it all together and places each Construct at the correct Z
elevation. This way, all your Elevation Tags are represented from AFF instead of
+124'-0" or whatever it may be due to the "sea level" you'll be working with.

That is the part I am trying to get my head around. If my first floor drawing is done at 0,0,0 I will need to submit it at let’s say +124'. So before I submit it I will need to move the drawing up to 124'. Every drawing I bring in from the other trades will be at 124' and I will have to bring down to 0,0,0, so I can work with them to avoid clashes.

I thought bringing in the other drawings as elements was the way to do it. That would also include my own drawing. I would work on the element drawing at elevation and trade those drawings. Then they would be xrefed into constructs of the same name to a minus value to bring them to 0,0,0. To do that I would have to work project navigator in reverse. Then even crazier the view would bring it back up to the correct elevation for a combined 3D view. Or leave itat 0,0,0 for a single level view for tagging with the right elevation..

Now the other way if everyone submitted there models at zero I would not have a problem working in project navigator. I would just save the drawings as a construct in the respective floor folder.

What is more common, to trade drawings at elevation or at 0,0,0? Trading them at zero seems to make more sense. Maybe at elevation makes more sense tothe bim manager because it is less work for him? I don't know, but I do know the contract drawings were all done in Revit. I thought that may have something to do with it.

[KeithBrown]

If you are using navisworks you can just elevate your drawing to the correct elevation in navisworks once. If you save it in the fileset it will always remember. In autocad mep if you the other trades are elevating their drawings you can just bring their drawing into your project and assign it to level one. This way project navigator will always bring it into your drawing at the correct elevation.

In the Midwest (Chicago) all drawings are traded at 0,0,0 predominantly and navisworks is used to elevate the models.

[StykFacE]

That is the part I am trying to get my head around. If my first floor drawing is done at 0,0,0 I will need to submit it at let’s say +124'. So before I submit it I will need to move the drawing up to 124'. Every drawing I bring in from the other trades will be at 124' and I will have to bring down to 0,0,0, so I can work with them to avoid clashes.

I thought bringing in the other drawings as elements was the way to do it. That would also include my own drawing. I would work on the element drawing at elevation and trade those drawings. Then they would be xrefed into constructs of the same name to a minus value to bring them to 0,0,0. To do that I would have to work project navigator in reverse. Then even crazier the view would bring it back up to the correct elevation for a combined 3D view. Or leave itat 0,0,0 for a single level view for tagging with the right elevation..

Now the other way if everyone submitted there models at zero I would not have a problem working in project navigator. I would just save the drawings as a construct in the respective floor folder.

What is more common, to trade drawings at elevation or at 0,0,0? Trading them at zero seems to make more sense. Maybe at elevation makes more sense tothe bim manager because it is less work for him? I don't know, but I do know the contract drawings were all done in Revit. I thought that may have something to do with it.

This can be easily handled by simply creating a new Category under Constructs for your other trade models, and dragging/dropping these files from Windows Explorer right into the Project Navigator. AutoCAD MEP will then prompt you with the criteria you'll need to input, which will dictate the file's elevation by associating the correct Level. This makes it VERY easy to XREF these files into your drawing at the proper elevation without adjusting their elevations. I'll put it this way: If you are spending time moving any file, whether your own or one of the other trade's files, then you are doing something wrong. Trust me, Project Navigator takes care of all this.

As for your file, what you'll do is simply eTransmit the View that combines all the levels to the general contractor. When you do this, make sure it Binds the XREF's. This creates a complete model in one single file, all at the correct elevations.