Advantages and Use Cases for Revit MEP

Introduction

Autodesk Revit on its own is a comprehensive BIM software that offers both 3D and 2D perspectives on a project and offers a lot of use cases and tools for architects, contractors, designers, and, of course, MEP engineers.

Originally, Revit was released in the year 2000, a Building Information Modeling (BIM) software that was most suitable for architects – since it allowed for the creation of a data-rich model with both geometrical and construction information in mind. The needs of MEP engineers were only satisfied in 2006, with the release of Revit MEP as a separate product.

Revit MEP

It should also be noted that, while Revit MEP was a separate project for a while, it still retains the important features of Revit software, in general. For example, Revit MEP models are parametric, just as any other BIM model – meaning that the general model constantly updates itself whenever there is any change in one of the connected resources or links. This could also be a two-way street, too, transferring changes from a Revit model to one of the linked sources, practically eliminating the chance of a miscommunication in regards to outdated model data.

Even though Revit MEP was pretty much discontinued as a separate entity back in 2013, it doesn’t mean that it stopped existing altogether – all of the separate branches were rolled into one complex solution that is Revit as we know it today. The definition of Revit MEP did not really change, either – it’s still a BIM solution, it’s still created by Autodesk, and it has a lot of different appliances and tools for MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) professionals.

Features of Revit MEP

The overall workflow of a BIM solution such as Revit offers a lot of versatility and productivity improvements, as well as a simplified documentation workflow. Some of the features that MEP specialists can use in Revit are:

• Pressure loss reports;
• Autodesk 360 integration;
• Parametric components;
• Construction documentation;
• Performance analysis of an entire building;
• Calculations for pressure, flow, and other parameters.

Revit MEP actually offers over 140 plugins built specifically for various MEP-related purposes, to make the entire project more MEP-friendly. It is worth noting, though, that some of these apps may conflict with each other when they’re working within a similar feature set.

Use cases for Revit MEP

Some of the use cases for Revit MEP that could be utilized by mechanical, electrical, or plumbing engineers to improve communication between different departments, reduce overall risks, improve the design speed of the project in question, and so on. The usage of a single platform for most of the project’s stages allows different teams to achieve better results with less confusion and better accuracy. It also helps stakeholders with making informed design choices, which, in turn, leads to higher overall building quality.

It’s also way easier to check for conflicts when it comes to plumbing or electrical systems with Revit MEP since Revit’s clash detection features are great and offer a fine number of notifications about any potential parts of a project that may collide when built in reality.

Revit also offers the ability to share your project’s information with people that do not actively work inside of Revit – it can be done with a variation of exporting process. For example, exporting to Excel is available when it comes to accounting and purchasing operations or processes.

Conclusion

Revit MEP is a highly versatile solution that is made to make the life of mechanical, plumbing, and electrical engineers easier. It also has all of the benefits of Revit itself, such as the uniform information source, the collaboration possibilities, and so much more than that.