Adding rvt. models in Solibri

Cedric.Macleod

I have been using the functionality of adding rvt file directly into Solibri and have run through some limitations and issues. Below is a report on the result when using files from Revit 2024 and Revit 2026.

Loading rvt. files into solibri, on avarage it’s taking about an 2 hours for a “medium” size project files to be uploaded. The files included the Architect model, Structural model and 2 MEP models (General building services & sprinkler model). The 2 hour time frame for uploading is still far better than taking 8 hours or more to export all these models manually to IFC.
The smc. file size grew from 500Mb to 1.5Gb when using the Revit files.
Model categories and hierchy works as expected.
Movement within the model viewer (orbit, pan and sectioning) was noticibly slower than when using IFCs. Screen freezes up quiet often
The classification of components works fine but all previously saved classification files are incompatible as they used IFC defined parameters such as; Layer and Name (found under the Bim Data -> identification tab).
ITOs are limited as not all native revit parameters are present from the rvt. file. Most of the missing parameters come from the MEP models. The categories of services modelled were MEP Fabrication components and generic MEP components. Both instances had the parameters for insulation thickness, Insulation material and Part material. These parameters were availiable when using regular generic MEP components but not for MEP Fabrication.
Placement of IFCs and rvt. files were in the same location. By default, it used the shared coordinates of the files.
Almost all MEP components in both MEP Fabrication and regular components are black, making it almost impossible to tell what the geometry actually is. Only when classifying it and applying an actual color that it then becomes visually identifiable.

To summarize, the main issues are: mapping revit parameters into solibri from MEP fabrication components & default visibility of services (black) making it difficult to pick out components and creating classifications.

tonigyllenberg

Thanks @Cedric-Macleod for the feedback so far. We’ll take this all into account while developing towards the beta. One thing I wanted to ask about was the performance once the initial rvt file is imported, how does the smc file behave when opened/closed?

Cedric.Macleod

Hi Tony. It takes a little longer to open and close than when using IFCs. Another issue I have faced is: using the “save as” funcion. The application greys out and it then gets stuck. Hence, when using our smc template file, I must save it using the file explorer into the new project location. Then, I can add the models and save the smc file.