In this session, I am going to show you how to create floors in a BIM model. The way of creating floors is different from the way of creating columns or beams. For columns or beams, we only need to click once or draw a path to place the elements, but if we want to create floors, we need to sketch its boundaries. There are two floor categories, one is architectural floor, and the other is structural floor. We choose the floor category depending on whether the floor elements are structural member analytical models for structural analysis. So if we plan to include floors in the BIM model for structural analysis, we need to choose the correct floor category. In this project, according to the underlay, we should create the structural floors. Under the “Structure” tab, select the “Floor” tool, and choose “Floor: Structural” in the drop-down menu. Then, in the “Properties Palette,” choose the floor type “RC 200mm.” We should make sure the constraining level is set to the level of current floor plan view. So in the “Property Palette,” under the branch of “Constraints,” we check and make sure the parameter “Level” is “1F.” Then, we can start to sketch the floor boundaries. Under the “Modify/Create Floor Boundary” tab, the “Boundary Line” tool is the default Revit has already chosen for us. We keep that selected. Over here we can draw any shapes we like, such as line, rectangle, circle, and so on. Here we choose the “Pick Lines” tool. It is a handy tool because it allows us to click on the boundaries of the columns or beams around the floor to specify the floor boundaries. In this project, because the shapes of most floor element boundaries are almost rectangular, we can first use the “Rectangle” tool to roughly sketch a rectangular boundary, and then use the “Trim/Extend Single Element” tool to refine the floor boundaries. After sketching the floor boundaries, click on the green check icon under the “Modify” tab to complete the sketch. For the need of practical BIM applications, it is better to create every floor element separately. Once a closed loop is sketched, remember to click on the green check icon so that we can make sure every floor element is independently created. If we want to modify the floor boundaries after creating the floor element, select the floor, and under the “Modify/Floors” tab, on the “Modify” panel, click on the “Edit Boundary” button. This will take us back to the sketch, and we could make any changes that we want. After the changes are done, remember to click on the green check icon again to complete the sketch. We can use shape editing tool to manipulate the surface of a non-sloped horizontal floor element to create drainage floors or ramps. Now, let me demonstrate how to manipulate the surface of a floor. Select the floor, under the “Modify” tab, on the “Shape Editing” panel, click on the “Modify Sub Elements” tool, and we would see green squares at the corners of the floor element. Select a point and click on the text control to enter a precise height value for the selected point. The value represents the offset from the original top face of the floor. For example, if we want to raise this point 5 cm, click on the text control and enter 5, then this point will be 5 cm raised. On the contrary, if we want to lower the point, enter a negative value to do so. If the location that we want to adjust the offset is not on the corners of the floor, under the ”Modify/Floors” tab, on the “Shape Editing” panel, we can use the “Add Point” tool to add a point on the floor and then modify its offset. For example, drainage holes need to be set on the floors of kitchens and bathrooms, so we need to lower the elevation of these holes. We simply add a point on the drainage location and specify the offset value to create slopes towards the drainage hole.
