Revit Families

Introduction

Families are the building blocks of a Revit model. They offer reusable parts that can vary from very specific shapes to highly adaptable and configurable parts that can be easily reused and modified.

Revit uses a strict hierarchical organization of families. Each family belongs to a category, which determines the functionality and how it can be used in a model.

Families typically have multiple properties, called parameters, that can be configured. These control the shape, size, appearance or can represent data associated with the object. A specific configuration (set of values for all the parameters) for a family is called a Type. A family can have multiple Types which can either be stored in the family itself, or be added when the family is used in a Revit Project.

Parameters can be simple values that are used, or they can be set to a formula, calculating the value from any number of parameters. There are also special parameters, called reporting parameters that are designed to represent values that are used 'read-only'; they can be used in schedules for example.

Types of families

There are three main types of families in Revit:

• System Families
• 'Loadable' or Standard Families
• 'In Place' Families

System Families

System families are families that are 'hard coded' into Revit. They are always available in any project; you cannot remove them but also: you cannot load you own version of a system family. They are as they are, fully controlled by the Revit software. The shape of the objects generated by a System Family are typically controlled by one or more sketches and the parameters of the family.

Examples of System Families: Basic Wall, Curtain Wall, Floor, Stair

Loadable Families

Loadable families are families that can be loaded into your Project. You can create this type of family yourself and load it into your project. They can be 2D shapes for parts of your drawing (details), annotations or as template for shapes of other families (Profiles).

Examples of Loadable Families: Window, Door, Beam, Profile, Tag, Detail Component

In-Place Families

In-Place families are families that are created in your Revit project directly; they can't be saved as a Revit Family file (rfa). Also they can't have Types. They can be useful for objects that you'll need only once and don't need to be able to reuse easily.

A Typical exampleof a Loadable Family is a Mass, although they can also exist as a normal Loadable Family