By Jarod Schultz
There have been a lot of questions over the years about how to check downloaded Revit families or families created in-house and how they might impact project performance. This method is something that I have used for the last twenty-five years on the AutoCAD platform that is still relevant on the Revit platform.
Revit families are very similar to AutoCAD blocks. When you insert a family into a project and copy them, it has very little impact on the project file size. So the focus should not be on how much a family adds to a project’s file size, but about performance once it is inside the project. To see how a family impacts a large project, do the following:
1. Start a new project with your company template and create at least three levels with corresponding floor plan views. Now switch between the floor plan views and see how much time it takes to switch between them.
2. Now insert your downloaded or newly created family and use the copy or array tool to create at least 100 of them on each floor plan. You can use the copy to the clipboard and (paste) align to selected levels tool to save a few picks and clicks. Like before, check the difference in time when switching between floor plans. If your family significantly increases the time to change from floor plan view to floor plan view, then you need to look at the family size, display, and modeling methods that are causing the time issues.
This same method and process can be done on sections and elevation views, if needed. If your firm does very large projects, I would suggest doing this test with every family but I would copy the family 1000 to 2000 times using the above methods, this will give you very good insight on how that family is impacting project performance.
