Filters for Quality Control
BIM QC Versus Paper QC
We all are too familiar with scrubbing redlines while developing a set of construction documents. The problem with most people moving into a 3D world and a BIM process is that we all still think that is how we check a job. Do not take this wrong—I still think we need to publish documents to review them on paper to make sure they are branded with the company standard and show design intent and constructability. However, working in a 3D environment requires other QC methods and model checking to take place. Developing a BIM QC process is essential when moving into a 3D environment. Depending on your deliverable there may be several checklist items that need to take place.
For this article I will focus on leveraging filters. For the beginner and most seasoned Revit Structure users this is a simple technique that can be implemented hundreds of ways depending on your needs. Revit MEP users are very familiar with filters because they use them to display systems in the model. For example, they can show hot water piping in the color red while cold water piping is the color blue, and so on.
What Is a Filter?
Figure 1: Where to find filters
A filter allows you to select items in your model based on their properties. These properties could be a comment placed in the comment field, the length of the entity, etc. I am suggesting that you add your own property to all structural elements in your model. To do this we need to talk about project parameters.
What Is a Project Parameter?
Figure 2: Where to find project parameters
Project parameters allow you to add a parameter to all structural objects in your model. Once this parameter is in place we can give structural objects values and use a filter to control the display of the objects that fit the criteria of the filter. Let’s go through the steps of adding a project parameter called QC_Status. We can use this parameter to add values to structural elements such as Check Connection, Needs Approval, Clash Issue, and so on. First, open up the project parameters dialog box and select Add. Once you do this, the Parameter Properties dialog box opens and we need to add a parameter name and properties shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2: New project parameter settings
The type of the parameter is set to text so we can enter any alpha or numeric value. The group data is where the value will appear in the properties of the selected item. The tooltip description is something new in Revit 2015 that will display when hovering over an object. On the right-hand side you select all the structural objects in your model to which you want to add the parameter.
Figure 4: Properties of selected structural column
Figure 4 above shows the QC_Status parameter that was added to the selected column. Now all structural components in your model will have this common parameter. The next step would be to add values to this parameter so a filter can be applied. For this lesson, let’s assume we are not engineers, but possibly EITs or skilled designers. As we develop a model we may have areas of concern that we would like to flag so the engineer can check our design on some beams. Figure 5 shows the value “Verify Size” has been added to the two selected beams.
Figure 5: Verify size parameter value added
Now we can create our filter to highlight the areas of concerns in our design. Select visibility graphics for the view to which you want to apply the filter. Then in the filter tab, select Add.
Figure 6: Add new filter
Create a new filter called Struct Sizing Concern as shown in Figure 7. Once that is created we need to define the criteria of the filter.
Figure 7: Add new filter
Figure 8 shows the properties for the new parameter filter we created. This filter will look at all structural beam systems, columns, framing, and foundations for a QC_Status parameter value equal to “Verify Size.”
Figure 8: Filter properties
Once you select OK, after the properties are established, make sure you select the new filter in the list before exiting the “Add Filters” dialog box. This will apply the filter to your view. Filters are view specific, so this same filter can be applied to any other view that makes sense.
Figure 9: Filter properties
Now that the filter is applied to the view we need to apply the overrides to the graphics. Figure 10 below shows the settings used.
Figure 10: Filter graphic overrides
Figure 11: View results
You can see from Figure 11 that the two structural beams that meet the criteria of the filter have the graphic overrides applied to them. This is a very simple technique that can go a long way. These project parameters and filters can be part of your project start-up template so they do not have to be created all the time. Another consideration is to create quality control views in your template with the appropriate filters already applied. The point is to leverage all the tools you can to help perform better quality control checks to your models. This process is a lot different than a piece of paper and a red pen, but essential.
