Indigo for Revit

Push button simplicity

By integrating directly with the Revit interface, Indigo for Revit is totally user-friendly, providing a simple, easy to use interface without compromising on options or features. It provides automatic, intelligent conversion of materials while enabling the user to adjust and fine-tune manually. Producing impressive architectural visuals is easy with Indigo; the process mirrors real-world photography with nearly identical results. No other software is required - just hit the render button!

Unrivaled realism

A superior unbiased renderer, Indigo for Revit uses cutting-edge techniques, efficiently rendering images without the approximations commonly found in other rendering systems. Using spectral colour throughout, from the physically-based sky model to the reflective properties of materials, Indigo for Revit is capable of producing the most photorealistic images available.

Glass engineers currently use Indigo to assist them in material design; this same powerful engine is now available for Revit.

Effortless Networking

Harness the power of your IT network to drastically accelerate the rendering process. With the addition of Indigo node licenses, you can distribute the workload across multiple computers, exploiting spare processing power. Simply start network render, and all available nodes will begin lending a hand!

There's more information available on the Indigo for Revit website.

Credit: Michael Ruehr's RevitworX blog.

Autodesk Exchange | Apps for Revit

Safe. Easy. Powerful.

Easily extend the power of Autodesk software using apps created for the end user community.

Many of the add-ins posted on the Autodesk Exchange | Apps for Revit website have already been covered here on the Revit Add-ons blog. I'll cover the additional ones soon.

Go to the Autodesk Exchange | Apps for Revit Website. 

Credit: Michael Ruehr's RevitworX blog.

A Better Browser: Kiwi Codes PROJECT Browser 2013

Kiwi Codes is very pleased to announce the imminent arrival of Project Browser for Autodesk Revit 2013.

Project Browser borrows the hugely successful interface from Family Browser and extends that to provide complete Project and Family Management in the one application.

Some of the features include:

1. Tabs that separate common view types which minimizes the amount of scrolling through Project Browser especially on large projects
2. Totally customizable fonts, sizes and colors.
3. Easily add custom folders.  Drag and Drop views into these custom folders. 
4. Custom folders available for all view types including schedules, legends etc.
5. Quick Filters to filter the Project Browser by common view parameters, phases and view templates.
6. Family Browser built into Project Browser.
7. Powerful search feature to find any View/Family in Project/Family in Library quickly
8. Query Builder to build custom tabs and quick filters for reuse.  These can be shared between other members of the project team.

From customer user testing we have reports of significant time savings using Kiwi Codes Project Browser.

Actions speak louder than words so please view demonstration video here.

Kiwi Codes intends on releasing Project Browser for Revit 2013 in Late April 2012.  Please visit this blog to get latest details on features and pricing.

Credit: Steve Stafford's Revit OpEd blog.

Autodesk 360 Structural Analysis for Autodesk Revit 2013

Autodesk® 360 Structural Analysis for Autodesk® Revit® 2013 enables structural engineers to conduct analysis in the cloud as a part of the BIM process. With Structural Analysis, engineers and designers can extend design models from Autodesk® Revit® 2013 or Autodesk® Revit® Structure 2013 software directly to the cloud helping to minimize disruptions to workflow and allowing users to continue to design as analysis is completed. Once the analysis is conducted, results can then be visualized and explored within Autodesk Revit 2013 or Autodesk Revit Structure 2013 software. To take advantage of the integration, the Autodesk® 360 Structural Analysis for Autodesk® Revit® 2013 plug-in must be downloaded.

Subscription customers may download this product enhancement here.

Revit Extensions for Autodesk Revit 2013

Revit® Extensions for Autodesk® Revit® 2013 extend the capabilities of Autodesk® Revit® 2013, Autodesk® Revit® Architecture 2013, Autodesk® Revit® MEP 2013, and Autodesk® Revit® Structure 2013 software in key areas, including structural analysis, modeling, reinforcement, interoperability and construction documentation. This download contains all previously released Revit Extensions and updates (see all the Autodesk Subscription posts on this blog for additional details). In addition, this download includes enhancements to the positioning extension and improvements to the reinforcement extensions (dynamic model update, beam reinforcement).

Positioning

The positioning extension has been enhanced to take into account a new element type of “fabric sheet” which has been implemented in Autodesk Revit 2013 software products. Elements can be grouped according to their family types, sizes and materials.

Reinforcement of Beams

An enhanced feature has been implemented to help detect supports for beams. The support analysis is performed on the bottom plane of a beam which is appropriate for slanted and vertical columns. Additionally, walls are considered as potential supports.

New Revit 2013 SDK Samples

The Revit 2013 SDK includes new working samples that are related to the new add-in integration functionality, except for the RoutingPreferenceTools which demonstrate some of the MEP related enhancements.

ModelessForm_ExternalEvent and ModelessForm_IdlingEvent

Both of these display and show how to interact with a modeless form. One way to do this is to use the Idling event initially provided in Revit 2012, which we have discussed so much and in such depth in the past.

The ModelessForm_IdlingEvent sample should clarify many of the issues we dealt with.

The ModelessForm_ExternalEvent sample demonstrates an easier way to implement this interaction using the new external event interface.

ProgressNotifier

The ProgressNotifier sample displays progress information for an action in a stack data structure for easier analysis. It demonstrates how to subscribe to the ProgressNotify related events, access properties in the event handler arguments, and organize the subtransaction progress information into a stack.

BuildEdge Roof: One Click Roof for Revit

Design a pitched roof in seconds!

BuildEdge Roof is a time saving, intuitive add-in that enhances Revit's offerings by allowing designers to create a Revit roof in seconds. BuildEdge Roof - One Click Roof for Revit.

There's more information available on the BuildEdge website.

Credit: Michael Ruehr's RevitworX blog.

Sumex Parameter Manager

Since 2005, Sumex Design has been at the forefront of developing AEC content, from specifications, to CAD files, to Revit components; we have created 8000+ Revit Families for over 300 manufacturers and successfully implemented BIM into their AEC toolboxes.  BIM is as much about data as it is about graphics.

Being specifiers as well as seasoned content developers, we understand that a critical part of implementing BIM is processing the information in the model.  Without a painless strategy for data management, the widespread adoption of new BIM standards becomes an uphill battle. At Sumex Design, we’re sharing our expertise and techniques with the world, by creating data management tools.

We know you have options, and that you’re already spending enough for your software every year, so we’re keeping costs low.  At $249.00 USD, the Sumex Parameter Manager will add invaluable new functionality to your current workflow and save you countless hours of time processing, updating and organizing your BIM library.


What the SPM Does:

The Sumex Parameter Manager allows a Revit user to Add, Remove and Replace parameters in Revit Families in bulk. This means no more opening, modifying, saving and closing every family one at a time to add the attributes. Not only does it allow for updating families in bulk, but leverages “Schemas” that can assign specific attributes based on specific criteria.

Whether you want to add parameters to your Revit project categories, the families loaded in a project, or your entire family library, the Sumex Parameter Manager has the ability to manipulate parameters in both projects and families

SOFiSTiK BiMTOOLS

The SOFiSTiK BiMTOOLS are a number of free Tools for Autodesk Revit Structure with the help of which the efficiency can be increased with the development plan by up to 50%.

The BiMTOOLS be released in stages. Each planned 2 functions in a 3 week cycles is to be released. The final release of all functionalities is planned for September 2011.

The SOFiSTiK BiMTOOLS contain the following features:

Drawing Template / Template Project (Vetting)

The existing standard drawing template has been adapted to German drawing standards. It has been realized as new concepts and view adjustments made ​​in the name of the existing families in the template.

Family templates / template-Family (Vetting)

The existing families were re-arranged and adapted to the above described drawing template. Among others were brought to drawing units, dimension types and text types in a consistent format.

Save/Restore Selection Add-in from Tom Pesman

This add-in has 2 buttons, one to save the current selection and the other one to restore the saved selection. You can also put the icons in the Quick Access Toolbar or assign Keyboard Shortcuts to it.




Download this free add-in from the product website.


Credit: Luke Johnson's What Revit Wants blog.

Revit Software Developer's Kit (SDK)

Focused on integrating analysis and visualization applications with the Revit Building Information Model, the Revit .NET API allows you to program with any .NET compliant language including VB.NET, C#, and managed C++. The Software Development Toolkit (SDK) provides extensive .NET code samples and documentation to help you get started developing with the Revit API for Autodesk Revit Architecture/MEP/Structure.

The Revit API is built into every copy of Revit and enables you to:

• Access all elements in the building information model
• Query element properties
• Change element properties
• Perform additions of elements – with the types of elements that can be programmatically added expanding with each new Revit release
• Managed assemblies to work with Revit API (i.e., RevitAPI.dll and RevitAPIUI.dll) are present in every Revit installation under \Program.

The SDK is  included in every Revit product.  There are two ways to install the Revit SDK :

• From the main page of the Revit installer, click “Install Tools and Utilities” and choose “Revit Software Development Kit”.
• Alternatively, you can also find the SDK in the extraction folder, under:
• <extraction folder>\support\SDK\RevitSDK.exe

You can also download the updated Revit SDK from the Autodesk Developer Center.

Credit: Luke Johnson's What Revit Wants blog.

CRUG Tools for Revit

The CRUG Revit Add-ins, courtesy of Charlotte's Revit User Group, are a small software package, that when installed, display an extra set of tools within the Revit ribbon. These tools are FREE and designed to work with Revit Architecture, Revit MEP & Revit Structure.

Tools include:

• Type Catalog Creator - Quickly and easily create and edit Revit type catalogs.
• Upload Screenshot - Uploads a Revit screenshot for a chance to be featured on the Revit User Group website.
• Case Check - Scans the entire drawing & fixes any case errors found in room names, sheet names, views, etc.
• Renumber - Easily renumbers views already placed on sheets.
• Wall Filter - Filters a selection of walls based on it's parameters (Base Offset, Height, Room Bounding, etc)
• Find Rooms - Scans the entire project for rooms matching the entered criteria.
• FTP Login - Allows the user to quickly log into an FTP site in a folder view.
• Convert - Converts units in various categories including area, flow, distance, volume & temperature. (Over 4,500 combinations)
• Update - Easily update the Revit User Group addin for future releases.

Download these free add-ins from the CRUG product page.

Credit: Luke Johnson's What Revit Wants blog.

Project Vasari 2.5 Released: "Get Some Perspective!"

Overview

Autodesk® Project Vasari is an easy-to-use, expressive design tool for creating building concepts. Vasari goes further, with integrated analysis for energy and carbon, providing design insight where the most important design decisions are made. And, when it’s time to move the design to production, simply bring your Project Vasari design data into the Autodesk® Revit® platform for BIM, ensuring clear execution of design intent.

Project Vasari is focused on conceptual building design using both geometric and parametric modeling. It supports performance-based design via integrated energy modeling and analysis features. This new technology preview is now available as a free download and trial on Autodesk Labs.

Latest Updates

• Editable perspective views
• Improved automatic zoning for energy models
• New extrude face tool

For more information, see the Autodesk Labs Project Vasari page.

Free Room & Door Renumbering Add-in from CTC (Updated)

Renumbering within Revit Architecture software made easy.

Renumbering rooms and doors within Revit Architecture can be a tedious and frustrating process. This free tool from CTC makes the process easy.

Room Renumbering

Now you can quickly and easily renumber your rooms in an alphanumeric sequence. This tool allows the user to define the numbering sequence, and does not randomly auto-number like other tools. Revit Renumbering is customizable and allows you to add separators and suffixes to the room number format. The auto-swapping feature will ensure there are no duplicate room numbers. The status text will display the next room number in sequence so the user can monitor the changes. The user can also undo individual room numbers.

Door Renumbering

Now you have the choice to either number doors sequentially, or number them based on the room data. The sequential option numbers doors independent of the room number, and the tool remembers the previous door's number and will maintain the proper sequence on subsequent doors. Room-based door numbering permits auto-numbering using the “From Room” and “To Room” property of the selected door. Revit Renumbering automatically clears the door memory at the end of the Revit session, or allows the user to clear the memory with the simple click of a button.

For more information, visit CAD Technology Center's product page.

Update: This tool has been rolled into CTC's BIM Project Suite as one of the free tools.

More Free Add-ins from Case (Updated)

A few months ago a reported on three free add-ins available from Case. It seems that they may plan on releasing add-ins on a fairly regular schedule, perhaps monthly, because they've added three more since then:

Export Families to RFA Files (By Category)

Revit can export families to a library, but the control that you get is less than sufficient for large models. This exporter will organize your families into subdirectories matching the names of the category that the family originated from.

Reusable and Sharable Selection Sets

This amazing time saver will allow you to save a list of ElementID's for all selected objects to various text files. You can later call these selections back up and reapply them in your model. There is no limit to the number of elements that you can have selected nor the amount of separate selection sets that you can save.

You can also share the selection set text file with anyone on your design team.

Extrude Rooms to 3D Mass

This tool will extrude the boundaries for each room in your model to a 3D mass as a separate conceptual mass family and load it into your model placed exactly where the room is.

The free add-ins are available on the case apps website.

Update 5/8/2016: CASE and the CASE Apps website are no more but, courtesy of WeWork, the CASE Apps are now open source. They may be accessed on GitHub.

Manage Content with OpenAsset BIM

A library of BIM content, leading to enhanced productivity.

BIM Search

Make searching for BIM content faster and more effective by automatically tagging objects with embedded data and custom keywords.

3D View

Display and view a 3D orbiting dwf of Revit families from within the browser.

BIM Parameters

Tag Revit families automatically on upload with embedded parameters.

Control Access

Manage your BIM content library effectively by using OpenAsset BIM access levels.

Revit Plugin

Our simple-to-use Plugin allows you to drag and drop families directly into your Revit project.

Company Library

Create a library of BIM content and make it easily accessible to everyone within your organization.

There's more information available on the axiomic product website.

CodeBook: "Shaping the Memory of Complex Buildings"

CodeBook provides total visibility across the entire building life-cycle.

Everyone involved in the definition, design, procurement, construction and lifetime operation of a complex building benefits with CodeBook at the heart of their operational environment.

CodeBook is a PC-based software management tool. It interfaces with the latest releases of all leading third-party design, CAD and BIM applications, including Revit® AutoCAD®, MicroStation and ArchiCAD.

Increased attention is being paid to the idea of ‘cradle to grave’ – in response to the challenges of climate change and the growing attention on whole life financial cost. In response, CodeBook manages building information from concept to demolition. It carries the origins, structure and life of the building, allowing changes and adaptations to be tracked in real time.

Crucially, CodeBook allows building owners and facility managers to inherit the complete data from design and construction teams – and to utilize it as part of their own management toolset.

CodeBook was launched in 1993, created by an architect to link textual aspects of a design to the graphics. This single information model has proved invaluable to the substantial teams involved in the construction of numerous complex, large buildings. CodeBook anticipated Building Information Modelling  (BIM) and Construction Operations Building Information Exchange (COBie) by many years, but its advantages go beyond both in its scope and value. CodeBook becomes the repository of knowledge of a building. No other application offers similar benefits.

There's more information available on the CodeBook International website.