What is Revit?

In a drafting program you draw lines that represent a wall in each drawing: once in plan, again in section, again in elevation. In Revit you place a wall object once. It knows its height, thickness, layers and materials, and Revit shows it in every plan, section, elevation, 3D view and schedule automatically.

Because every view comes from one model, changes coordinate themselves: move a window and it moves in the plan, the elevation, the section and the window schedule. That is the core promise of BIM — building information modelling.

Revit is used by architects, structural engineers and building services (MEP) engineers, often on the same project, plus contractors for coordination and quantity take-off. It is especially common on medium and large building projects and wherever clients require BIM deliverables.

Many offices use both: Revit for the building model and documentation, AutoCAD for site plans, standard details and consultant drawings.

• .rvt — a project (the building model and all its views and sheets).

• .rte — a project template.

• .rfa — a loadable family: a door, window, piece of furniture.

• .rft — a family template, used to create new families.

Revit files open in the same or newer versions only — a file saved in a newer version won't open in an older one. Agree the version at the start of a project.

Use Autodesk's free trial, free educational access if you are an eligible student or educator, or a subscription from Autodesk or an authorised reseller. Revit needs a reasonably powerful Windows PC; check Autodesk's current system requirements. Never use cracked copies — they are illegal and a common source of malware.