Revit Legend Views

Legend views are 'dumb'. We just need to accept this. We expect everything to synchronise in Revit, but this just isn’t the case….yet. Our expectations are perhaps a little too high when we move to Revit. We are lead to believe it is the answer to all our documentation problems.

These legend views are unique in that they allow us to duplicate them on multiple sheets. Unfortunately though, legend views cannot amongst other things, synchronise with references tags (inhibiting our ability to create for example, intelligent door and window elevation drawings).

Therefore, limit the use of these legend views for things such as general notes, stamps or office standards that very rarely change. Legend views also allow us to bring in components to the view and then annotate these components, however views of these components can also be limited. Detail line tools available to us in drafting views can be used in legend views.

There are a number of workarounds for what we wish legend views did. Using design options or phasing is the most common techniques (assemblies are also an option). Whilst not perfect, if you spend a little time refining these alternatives, they can work quite well. Also don’t forget about keynote legends and schedules.

Don't rule out tweaking your workflows a little. Revit is a tool, so make the tool work for you. If you choose to stubbornly stand your ground and say “NO, Revit should do this, it’s what I pay subscription fees for, this is BIM software, blah blah blah…” then you will remain frustrated and what should be a positive experience will remain a negative one.

I think it’s funny that many of us have gone from manually coordinating everything for years in AutoCAD to “Revit should coordinate EVERYTHING!” Well, yes, that is what they are aiming for, but for now, how about a little of both? If you know of perfect software, point me to it!


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