Revit–Forma Assignment#1

Revit–Forma Assignment#1

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Assignment#1 Revit–Forma tutorial for the Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Center site

You’re basically building a bridge between real‑world Washington Heights and your BIM model. Let’s walk it cleanly, start to finish.

1. Install and set up the Forma–Revit connection

  • Install the Forma Add‑In for Revit
    • In Forma, open the sidebar → Extensions → Add extension → choose the Revit add‑in and run the installer, then restart Revit.
  • Check Revit version
    • Use Revit 2022.1 or later for the current integration features (toposolids, better conversion).

2. Create the geolocated site in Forma

  • Start a new site
    • Go to Forma → Create new site.
  • Search for the address
    • Use: 3940 Broadway, New York, NY 10032 (Audubon Ballroom / Shabazz Center).
  • Define the map area
    • Zoom and pan to include:
      • The Malcolm X & Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center
      • Broadway streetscape and adjacent blocks
      • Enough context for wind/solar analysis and urban relationships.
  • Order site data
    • In the data panel, order at least: Buildings, Roads, Terrain, Satellite imagery.
    • Wait for Forma to generate the 3D context and terrain—this is your georeferenced base.

3. Build conceptual massing and site logic in Forma

  • Toggle visibility
    • Use the left sidebar to show/hide terrain, buildings, roads, property lines, etc., so you can focus on the Shabazz site.
  • Create or refine massing
    • If you don’t yet have a detailed building model, represent the Center as a Forma building mass (line or 3D sketch building).
    • Sketch plaza edges, ramps, landscape zones, and any proposed interventions (canopies, memorial elements, signage).
  • Run early analyses
    • Use Forma’s sun, daylight, wind, and noise tools to understand:
      • How the façade and plaza receive light
      • Comfort in outdoor memorial spaces
      • Potential shading or wind issues from surrounding towers.
  • Save a “Revit link” version
    • Duplicate your main proposal and rename it something like “Shabazz_Revit_Link”—this is the version you’ll send to Revit so your original stays untouched.

4. Send the Forma proposal to Revit

  • From Forma: Send to Revit
    • Hover over Shabazz_Revit_Link → click the three‑dot menu (⋮) → choose Revit → Send to Revit.
  • In Revit: create a new project
    • Open Revit → New → pick a multi‑discipline or site‑oriented template (e.g., Metric Multi‑discipline).
  • Load the proposal
    • Go to Massing & Site tab → Forma panel → Load Proposal.
    • Select your Shabazz_Revit_Link proposal.
    • Click Options and choose what to import:
      • Terrain (Toposolid)
      • Buildings and context
      • Roads and site limits
      • Trees and vegetation
      • Rooms/floors if you created them in Forma.
    • Click Load, then accept the Open Data Attributions dialog.

5. Understand what you just got in Revit

Forma converts your site into native Revit elements:

  • Terrain → Toposolid
    • A Revit Toposolid is created from Forma’s terrain, preserving height differences and slopes.
  • Buildings → Walls, roofs, floors or masses
    • Simple buildings become basic architectural elements; sketch buildings become mass families with mass floors.
  • Roads and subdivisions
    • Roads often come in as subdivisions on the toposolid and sometimes detail lines—you can clean these up.
  • Trees and context objects
    • Imported as generic models or site components you can replace with your own families.
  • Rooms/floors from Forma
    • Any floor plans you defined in Forma become separated by internal walls and room objects in Revit, useful for area checks.

6. Clean and refine the Shabazz site in Revit

Now you turn that imported skeleton into a precise, respectful model of the memorial and its urban setting.

  • Fix terrain and materials
    • Edit the Toposolid to correct slopes, add building pads, and create subdivisions for different materials (plaza paving, grass, water, asphalt).
  • Correct roads and paths
    • Delete unnecessary detail lines.
    • Set road subdivisions to proper asphalt or concrete materials.
  • Refine context buildings
    • For key neighboring structures, replace generic masses with more accurate geometry if you have data or need better shadows/visibility.
  • Insert or build the detailed Shabazz Center model
    • If you already have a Revit model of the Center, link or insert it and align it to the imported site.
    • If not, use the imported mass as a reference and model:
      • Historic Audubon Ballroom façade
      • Memorial spaces, exhibition areas, circulation
      • Entry sequence from Broadway and surrounding streets.

7. Iterate: send Revit changes back to Forma

Once your Revit model feels solid, you can push it back to Forma for more analysis.

  • Prepare a clean 3D view
    • Create a dedicated 3D view showing only the elements you want Forma to see (site, building, key context).
  • Update the proposal in Forma
    • In Revit → Massing & Site tab → Update Proposal.
    • Choose the corresponding Forma proposal and send the updated geometry.
  • Refresh and re‑analyze in Forma
    • In Forma, refresh the project and re‑run sun, wind, and daylight analyses on your more detailed Shabazz Center model.
    • Use this to test façade shading, plaza comfort, and visibility of memorial elements in different times of day/year.

8. Optional: add Dynamo‑powered intelligence

If you want to go further:

  • Parametric façade or memorial elements
    • Use Dynamo to drive panel spacing, inscription locations, or lighting density based on analysis results.
  • Program‑driven layouts
    • Read room data (areas, functions) from the Forma‑derived Revit model and auto‑generate layouts that respond to visitor flow or exhibition needs.