The REVIT API “Application Programming Interface” allows users and developers to expand an existing application’s capacities through the writing of a program or script that adds a new functionality into the software. Autodesk Revit API allows programmers to change the BIM elements directly or to access data to carry out specialised tasks.

Through the use of the Revit API, this software’s capacity to improve the work flows and to create building designs faster may be improved.

We identified this potential at IDP and we’ve created our own tools to optimize tasks. These tools have been put together according to the different uses we make of them:

• Productivity
• Collaboration
• Model Management

The productivity tools focus on automating modelling tasks. There are several tasks we develop in all of our projects that Revit does not allow carrying out in an automated and optimal way. These tasks include the creation of a plan’s footer or the duplication of all the information that a presentation sheet contains. Thus, these tasks that take us a lot of time and can give rise to mistakes must be automated thanks to the use of the Revit API.

The collaboration tools allow to extend the default functionalities that the program offers when working in a team. We can improve the communication between the different teams participating in the project, being able to communicate in a more precise way which are the conflicts between the disciplines that appear as the building’s design develops. In addition, we can obtain a traceability of these problems’ solving.

Finally, we have the Model Management tools. These allow us to manage different aspects of the model. We have developed tools that allow us to measure the time dedicated to the projects and to obtain modelling indicators per project typologies. In this group, we also have the tools that allow us to monitor the projects’ quality under a specific standard. This way, we automate the checking of names, links’ routes and so on, which are within the model.

In the next posts, we shall explain thoroughly the different Revit API tools. If you are interested in receiving our latest updates related with the BIM world, please subscribe to our blog.