Revit MEP crash course (Plumbing)

ARCHIOLOGICS BASIC REVIT MEP - CRASH COURSE

PROFESSOR ADOLFO NADAL SERRANO REVIT MEP DESIGN

ARCHIOLOGICS BASIC REVIT MEP - CRASH COURSE

ADOLFO NADAL SERRANO MAS. ARCHITECT - ARCHI [O] LOGICS

Los problemas de diseño no pueden ser resueltos sin la ayuda de un computador, siendo la maquina un complemento y no un substituto del talento creativo, la computadora mientras no pueda inventar, puede explorar relaciones muy rápida y sistemáticamente de acuerdo a reglas preestablecidas. El computador funciona como una extensión natural de la habilidad analítica del hombre.

Chermayeff, Community and Privacy (1963:166)

1. COURSE AIM

The aim of the course is to provide the student with enough MEP design tools needed for the different building engineering disciplines involved in the executive project of a buiulding design: mechanical (air...), electrical, and plumbing (sanitary piping, heating/cooling, fire protection...).

It is assumed a certain knowledge of Revit Architecture.

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ARCHIOLOGICS BASIC REVIT MEP - CRASH COURSE

ADOLFO NADAL SERRANO MAS. ARCHITECT - ARCHI [O] LOGICS

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PREPARING THE MEP PROJECT

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I. WORKFLOW: COPY/MONITOR FOR LINKED MODELS

1. Using Copy/Monitor with linked models

This workflow describes a typical process to coordinate efforts between an architectural team and an engineering team working on the same building using linked models.

The typical situation is to use an architectural model as a base for the MEP design, therefore needing to import the architectural model to place mep components referenced “on top”.

a - Creates levels and grids, at a minimum. The architect can also add columns, walls, floors, and other elements.

· Saves the architectural project file.

· The engineer uses Revit MEP or Revit Structure to create an empty project, as follows:

· Uses a project template that defines the desired views and settings.

[See Project Templates.]

b - Saves the empty project file.

· The engineer copies relevant architectural elements to the empty project, as follows:

· Links the architectural model into the empty project.

[See Link One Model to Another.]

c - Pins the linked model in place, so that it cannot be moved inadvertently, as follows:

· Selects the linked model in the drawing area.

· Tip: Move the cursor over the linked model in the drawing area. When its boundary is highlighted, click to select it.

· Clicks Modify | RVT Links tabModify panel (Pin).

· Copies levels from the architectural model to the project.

[See Copy Levels for Monitoring.]

-d Copies grids and other elements from the architectural model to the project.

· To copy levels from a Revit model to your project follow these steps:

· Prepare a view:

Open an elevation view.

In the view properties, for Discipline, select Coordination.

This setting ensures that the view displays elements for all disciplines (architectural, structural, mechanical, and electrical).

· Delete existing levels from the current project.

When you delete existing levels, Revit also deletes corresponding plan views for the deleted levels.

You will create new plan views based on the copied levels.

Note: For Revit Architecture and Revit Structure, you can delete all but one level. Change the name of this level to Original Level, and change its extents (far to the left or right of the drawing area) so that you can distinguish it from a copied level and delete it later.

Link the model into the current project.

[See Link One Model to Another.]

· Pin the linked model in place, so that it cannot be moved inadvertently.

Tip: Move the cursor over the linked model in the drawing area. When its boundary is highlighted, click to select it.

Click Modify | RVT Links tabModify panel (Pin).

(Optional) Display the linked model in halftone, so that you can distinguish its elements from elements in the current project.

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[See Display a Linked Model in Halftone.]

· Start the Copy/Monitor tool:

Click Collaborate tabCoordinate panelCopy/Monitor drop-down (Select Link).

Select the linked model in the drawing area.

Specify options for the levels to copy.

For example, you can specify an offset for levels, or add a prefix or suffix to level names. See Specify Options for Copy/Monitor.

· Copy the levels for monitoring:

Click Copy/Monitor tabTools panel (Copy).

In the linked model, select the levels to copy.

To select multiple levels, on the Options Bar, select Multiple. Then select the levels in the drawing area, and click Finish on the Options Bar.

Using a Filter.

You can use a selection box and a filter to select all levels in the linked model. See Select Elements

· Click Copy/Monitor tabCopy/Monitor panel (Finish).

The copied levels now display in the current project.

When you select a copied level, the monitor icon displays next to it to indicate that it has a relationship with the original level in the linked model.

If the levels are moved, changed, or deleted in the linked model, you are notified of the changes when you open the current project or reload the linked model. These warnings also display in a coordination review. (See About Coordination Review.)

· In the Revit Architecture project and the Revit Structure project, delete the remaining original level from the current project. When you delete the level, Revit also deletes the related plan view.

Note: When you delete the final level in a Revit Architecture project, the site view is also deleted. For instructions on creating a new site view, see Site Plan Was Deleted.

Create plan views for the new levels:

Click View tabCreate panelPlan Views drop-down, and select the desired type of plan view.

In the New Plan dialog, select one or more levels from the list, and click OK.

(Optional) Repeat this process to create other types of plan views.

For Revit Structure, create analytical plans that correspond to the structural plans. See About Structural Project Templates and Viewing the Analytical Model.

click Rename.

The plan view names display in the Project Browser. To rename a view, right-click the view name, and

e - (Optional) Hides levels (and grids and other copied elements) in the linked architectural model, or hides the linked architectural model.

[See Visibility of Linked Models or Hide a Linked Model in a View.]

f - Adds structural elements or mechanical elements to the model, as desired.

g - If any copied elements are moved or changed in the architectural model, the engineers are notified of the changes when they open their project or reload the architectural model. These warnings also display in a coordination review.

h - In the architectural model, the architect monitors relevant structural elements or mechanical elements, as follows:

· Links the other model into the architectural project.

[See Link One Model to Another.]

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· Pins the linked model in place.

· Monitors (without copying) levels, grids, and other elements in the other model.

[See Monitor Elements in the Current Project.]

· (Optional) Hide the linked model.

· Adds architectural elements to the architectural model, as desired.

If any monitored elements are moved or changed in the other model, architects are notified of the changes whenever they open the architectural project or reload the model. These warnings also display in a coordination review.

- At regular intervals, architects or engineers can do the following:

· Perform a coordination review to see changes to monitored elements, communicate with team members, and take appropriate action.

· Perform an interference check to identify invalid intersections of elements between the current project and a linked model.

I. TEMPLATES

Each discipline should have different display properties. Let us see the differences between them by analyzing how to display their corresponding elements.

1. PlumbingTemplates.

It is crucial to differentiate between global and view-specific settings. In that sense, you need to adjust several settings so your pipes are properly displayed. The following list is certainly not comprehensive, but it should point you in the right direction and show what to pay attention to when setting up your plumbing sheets:

- All plotted views should be set to Hidden Line.

- Detail Level should be set to Coarse.

- View range should be adjusted to display necessary pipe systems.

- Visibility Graphics categories should be set to display the appropriate object categories.

Note: It is more efficient to turn off other disciplines’ objects by using worksets instead of managing every single object. However, good work-sharing practices must be in place, and all objects must be associated with the appropriate workset.

- Pipes going under plumbing fixtures will be completely hidden. To resolve this, plumbing fixtures should be set to transparent for your model and any linked Revit models containing plumbing fixtures. Note: Plumbing fixtures with a high detail level may start displaying unnecessary lines.

[Fig 1. Turn off wall patterns -uncheck]

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- Wall cut patterns should be turned off. For example, architects often assign cut patterns for their walls to display the fire rating. While this is not important for the mechanical or electrical plans, it is crucial for the plumbing plans, where most objects are in the wall (see Figure 1).

- Pipe Rise/Drop Annotation Size under Mechanical Settings should be changed. Note: 7/128g (1. 5mm) is a good starting point.

- For buildings that are not orthogonally oriented, scope boxes should be set up and associated with the views. Another, simpler method is to rotate the crop region so you can lay out your pipes orthogonally to your screen.

- Configure the Single Line gap under Mechanical Settings to match your company standard. Note: 3/128g (0.6 mm) is a good starting point.

2. Defining Systems Visibility and use of filters

- Revit MEP 2014 automatically creates the piping systems for you when you lay out pipes, even when pipes are not connected to plumbing fixtures.

- Nevertheless, when drawing pipes, you need to specify the system type they belong to. The system type defines the line weight, linetype, color, and system abbreviation. The system abbreviation can be used to define what system will appear on what sheet via filters. This helps you hide the mechanical pipes in the plumbing views.

- Establishing a good naming convention for the filters is important, because that defines the order in which you see them in your Properties palette when drawing pipes. The default examples of filters and their settings are not going to get you too far with your projects. I recommend that you take your time and come up with a complete list of systems that your company uses and create them as system types and filters in Revit MEP. Organizing all of them in Excel can be beneficial.

Notice that the Filter By setting is set to Equals the System Abbreviation, as shown in Figure 2.

Note: The parameter System Abbreviation was not available prior to Revit MEP 2012, and the settings would be different for those projects and templates

[Fig 2. Sample filters and settings]

Once the filters have been created, go into each view where you want the different disciplines to show up and type VG to bring up the Visibility/Graphic Overrides dialog box. Click the Filters tab, and add the newly created filters. Using the Visibility check boxes, you can define the systems that would be visible in that view. In the past, filters were used to also define color, line patterns, and in some cases line weights. Since Revit MEP 2012, the recommended place to control those is in the system type. This way, those settings will be global rather than per view. However, the filters will still be managed and control what system is visible in what view (see Figure 3).

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Now that your plans are coordinated and displaying the way you require, you are well on your way to completing your

ARCHIOLOGICS BASIC REVIT MEP - CRASH COURSE

ADOLFO NADAL SERRANO MAS. ARCHITECT - ARCHI [O] LOGICS

documentation. Consider using the same filters to display 3D views that can enhance the design, making it easier to understand and further reducing errors. Every rule has its exception, and here is a great example for it. Controlling the colors and line patterns of your systems in the 3D views would color the contour of the pipes, making the pipes hard to see. Instead of going that route, I suggest you override those in the filters with a solid pattern; this way, your 3D views will be a lot easier to see and understand (see Figure 4).

[Fig 3. Use filters to adjust visibility]

One common drafting standard is to show all piping serving a given floor in the same view. For instance, on the sheet showing the restroom located on the second floor of a three-story building, you would expect to see all the sanitary piping below the second floor and the vent piping in the second-floor attic serving that restroom. You would not want to see the sanitary pipe serving the third-floor restroom, even though it also occupies the second-floor attic, and you would not want to see the vent piping serving the first floor. One way to accomplish this selective visibility in projects with overlapping view ranges is with workset visibility. You can assign all the piping serving the first, second, and third floors to specific first-, second-, and third-floor worksets. This will allow you to turn off the first- and thirdfloor worksets, cleaning up your second-floor view.

[Fig 4. Apply filter overrides for 3D views]

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PLUMBING

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I. CREATING A NEW FILE

1. Create a new architecture file

You need to have a previous architecture file in order to create your MEP equipment. Create a new Revit file using the architecture template.

Creeate some spaces like the ones shown in the picture below. These should serve as placeholders for the final appliances or equipment in your building systems.

路 You can use generic wall types 路 Create the necessary levels. You will need to copy/monitor them in your MEP file. For the purposes of this exercise, you will need only 2 levels (ground/level 1 and level 2) separated by 4000mm.

路 Save your file

[Fig 1. Base Architecture File]

2. Create a new MEP file

Open Revit and create a new MEP file using either your own template (following the instructions from the first chapter) or simply using the default Plumbing Template.

These templates serve to organize your views and set up the properties of your project. We will see as we go. Should you not be able to find your template, please download them from the official Autodesk site.

[Fig 2. Creating a new Plumbing file]

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II. SETTING UP YOUR MEP FILE

1. Link the revit architectural file

When linking the file, make sure your coordinate systems match. Normally, you would want to select the Auto - Origin to Origin option, or the “shared Coordinates” (if you have managed your project in that way). Especiallly when dealing with large projects (20000+ sqm), this is crucial. Also, if you divided your project in different files, you need to maintain a certain degree of consistency so that your equipments are located appropriately.

[Fig 3. Linking an architectural file]

If you have used a plumbing template, your visualization should show your architectural model in grey scale. Some further features should display as well, but you will realize when dealing with actual MEP objects.

2. Set up a workset strategy

Normally, you would want to set up worsets so that several specialist can work on the project simultaneously. At least, when dealing with MEP files, you should set up an architectural workset (to be able to enable and disable the architectural file or to modify its visualization properties) and another one related to the discipline(s) that you are working on. In this case, create one for the “Plumbing” equipment, and try to create everything related to that in that specific workset category.

3. Copy/monitor levels

Another important check point should be the copy/monitor levels. You do want to have the levels from both architectural and MEP files match, so that if anything changes in the original model, you will be notified. After all, MEP depends on the architecture, which should drive the whole design. As a consequence, it is necessary to copy and monitor the levels from the base file.

Follow these simple steps (once per level):

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- Go to an elevation view where you can visualize the levels.

- In the Modify | RVT Links tab, select “Copy/Monitor”>Select Link

- Select the linked file

- Select the desired level

- The “Copy/Monitor” tab will become active. Select Copy. Then click on “Finish”.

- The monitor symbol will show on your newly created level. If you had a previous level with the same name than the one you just selected in the architectural file, it will be overwritten. When you now select the level you will see a new Icon on the “Modify|Levels” tab, which stands for Stop Monitoring. Please do not select this option.

[Fig 4. Copy|Monitor Tab]

[Fig 5. Levels with monitor activation]

This option allows for better control and enables the following features:

- Coordination review: list status, category, and rule of selected elements in the host file. You need to sep up the project coordination settings upfront. The dialog shows the different categories available (actual settings would require a different chapter, so we will leave it for now)

[Fig 6. Coordination settings]

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- Interference check: this can be used to check clashes or collisions between systems or elements in the different files.

It is specially handy when dealing with tubes, pipes, and other mechanical systems that are tipically packed into the ceilings or floors of buildings.

III. CREATING MEP CONTENT

1. System categories

A typical scenario in buildings would quite likely involve several systems using the same type of MEP equipment. For instance, pipes can belong to sanitary systems, domestic cold water, domestic hot water, heating, or many more. This means, you can further sub-clasify your systems as much as you want, as long as you keep a certain consistency throughout your projects.

A nice feature of the predifined families is that they already include a system classification in their connections, so that if you connect a pipe to the output of a boiler, for example, the pipe will “know” that it belong to a hot water system. Keeping internal consistency and sticking to predifined categories will help you a lot.

Within the existing systems associated to Plumbing categories, you will find the following:

- Domestic:

· Cold water

· Hot water

- Fire:

· Fire protection dry

· Fire protection other

· Fire protection pre-action

· Fire protection wet

- Hydronic:

· Supply

· Return

- Other

- Sanitary

- Vent

You can select any of the previous systems for your piping/plumbing in your drawing

2. Import the necessary families

We will create domestic cold water, domestic hot water, and sanitary piping in the example. These belong to three categories from the above list and will require some extra requirements as fasr as equipment is concerned: a water boiler for the hot water supply. Also, we will ignore the actual cold water supply, and assume that it comes from some point in our project.

Begin by importing the following families (Architecture tab>Component>Place Component) from your list of preloaded families:

- M_Boiler - Standard

- M_Sink_Island_Simple - any size

- M_Urinal_Wall_Hung - any size

Place them as any other family on your project, but try to follow our layout. Also, please consider that different cultures have different legal frameworks, and that it might not suit your needs. This layout is merely orientive and is intended to offer an idea, but feel free to modify it.

Also, note the following:

- Each family is provided by different family users, which means that they are not consistent in the way they are defined and drawn. I am afraid thre is no standard yet as to how to create and document families, so you will need to figure out how to orient them properly on their host wall/face or object. I must assume you know how to do that, and that you have sufficient knowledge to create your own family and shared parameters in your projects.

- Each MEP family is loaded with a set of connectors, where the plumbing will have to snap to. This will allow the pipes to automatically inherit the system’s properties from the family. This is why it is important to stick to the predifined categories I have listed above.

- It is possible to create connectors that bypass system types. This is, you can create a simple connector that gets flow (from a certain system) as input and returns the same flow (to another system) as output.

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[Fig 7. Sanitary fixture showing input (right) and output (left) connectors]

- Connectors have the following properties:

· Flow configuration: normally fixture units

· Flow direction: either in or out

· Loss method: to perform flow calculations

· System Classification: from the available list

· Connector description: normally same as direction

It is possible to create connectors that bypass system types. This is, you can create a simple connector that gets flow (from a certain system) as input and returns the same flow (to another system) as output. For instance, you might want to create a specific piece of geometry that connects sanitary to fresh air vent piping. For further information on how to create “Universal Connectors” or pipe types, please refer to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkFn6xA1W-M

3. Place the fittings

Place the fittings following our layout, it will help us obtain the same results. Make sure that they are placed at a reasonable height, where they are realistic. Place a boiler in any of the rooms located on the right.

When placing sink instances, take into account that they are face-based, and that they normally require a horizontal surface to be placed onto. We have not created any horizontal surface yet, so we will need to do so. It is also possible to place the component on the working level, if you prefer -if you decide this option, I recommend you to create a level for fixtures, as shown below.

[Fig 8. Fixtures placed on level “Level 1 Fixtures”]

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[Fig 9. Fixtures placed on architectural model - 3D view]

4. Hot water

If you placed the boiler pointing upwards, you will have to route your piping accordingly. Use the piping to feed the sinks.

- Select the boiler and you will see the connector icons. The upper one stands for hot water, so right clik on it and select “Draw Pipe” from the contextual menu. The output of this boiler is set to hydronic supply, but you can edit the family and modify the output system type to hot water. Otherwise, you are also welcome to create a radiator-based heating system. If you modified the system type of the connector, a different icon will show in your family, once you placed it. Again, you could also design your own “Universal Connector” from Hydronic supply to Domestic Hot Water and use it right on top of the boiler’s connection. Either way, you are good to go.

[Fig 10. Boiler showing connections -hydronic supply (before) and hot water (after)]

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-Draw the pipe. Create a similar layout to ours in different steps: · As we said, go to the connector dot symbol, roght click, and select “Draw Pipe”. The pipe will automatically inherit the connector’s system. · Draw a segment upwards until you reach the level of the ceiling. · Then continue drawing segments until you make sure that you get to all the sinks. · The corner connections will be created automatically depending on the pipe type and settings you have established in your template · You just created the main pipe. It should look like the pipe below. Please note the VG settings and the template affection on the display.

[Fig 11. Starting your piping.]

- Make sure to have “automatically link” set on in your pipes options. This will let Revit know that you intend to join your current pipes to another connector and will snap to create the appropriate auto-routing solution.

· Go to the sink and repeat the process above.

· Select the hot water connector of the sink

· Click on draw pipe

· Make sure the option “Inherit Elevation” is on in your Ribbon (it is important in this case)

· Make sure “Automatically connect” is on in the Ribbon as well

· Click on a point on the existing pipe. Revit will try to snap

- If everything is correct, you should see a small pipe that connects your main pipe with the output flush of your fixture.

Revit will also create the appropriate connections and reduction parts. It is highly recommended to play around with the pipe diameters, as to get used to how revit works and the automatic changes it applies to pipe fittings.

[Fig 12. Piping connectors and main layout]

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5. Cold water

Cold water works quite similarly. If you have succesfully created the hot water system, cold water will be a simple game.

The steps you need to take into account are very much the same ones as when creating a hot water system.

In order to practice different techniques, let us start from the fixtures that need domestic cold water: both sinks and urinals.

- Select a urinal, and right click on the connector to select draw pipe. Make sure it is the cold water connection. Also, since this will not be drinkable water, you could use a separative system that identifies or differentiates drinkable from nondrinkable water.

Create a whole routing until you get to the lower left corner of your architectural model. We will assume the water supply comes in from that point. Take this into account when dimensioning your pipe system. For the case of a housing unit, 20 mm diameter should be fine (it is slightly above the minimum recommended size of 3/4 of an inch).

- Repeat the operation making sure that you connect each urinal to the Domestic Cold Water piping network. Use the “Automaytically connect” and “Inherit Elevation” options to do so.

[Fig 13. Tee pipe fixture - different configurations (adding intakes).]

- You might need to adjust your pipe fixtures as you go. Although Revit will offer you a solution, it might not meet your needs or you might need to modify it. It is sometimes a good idea to erase Revit’s offer and re-join the pipes to obatin a better solution. Also, clicking on the “+” and “-” icons will automatically adjust the number of passes of your fixture. You might want to use several T joints for the cold water connections, depending on your specific layout. It is also not necessary to set up a sloped solution yet, as the water will be impulsed through the system. We do not have time to simulate the impusion.

- Please check for possible interferences between systems. You can use the collision detection for this specific purpose.

Refer to chapter 6 for the instructions on how to run and evaluate an interference check. Your current piping routing layout should look like this:

[Fig 14. Layout at this point]

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- Correct any mistakes and continue to finish the whole layout, including the sinks. Simply repeat the process.

6. Running an interference check

Now that we have two systems, we might have made mistakes in our layouts without realizing them. Interference checks help us prevent and correct common mistakes and collision between elements belonging to the same or different system categories.

In this case, we want to know if there are any interferences between the cold water and the hot water piping networks.

Go to the Collaborate Tab>Interference Check>Run Interference Check. From the options below, check the different elements to be checked. Make sure both your pipes and pipe fittings are selected and click run. A report will be created showing all possible interferences. As you click on them, the elements causing trouble will be highlighted in a livid orange color., so that they are easily visible.

For the sake of demonstration, we have commited two mistakes, both related to the position of the left-most cold water pipe, which we placed exactly below the hot water one, causing collisions between both systems in the sink branches.

[Fig 15. Running an interference check and visualizing the report and the visualization]

Proceed to correct the layout by dragging the pipe deeper into the wall. Run another interference check until you get the “No Interference detected” message. Then you know you are in the safe side.

7. Sanitary piping

As in previous cases, sanitary piping follows the same logic. The main difference is that you want it to have a certain slope, so it will occupy more space and will be quite an inconfortable guest going through your architectural elements (slabs...)

For sanitary piping it is recommended to start from the fixtures, as it is hardly possible to know in advance the height if the main evacuation pipe. 2%-3% of slope would be optimal, but space constraints are always present in construction projects. You could probably play with some value between 1% and 2% depending on your local regulations.

There is another important difference with respect to Domestic Cold and Hot water piping: the ends must be either connected or caped. You can use the tool “Cap Open Ends” from the contextual menu on your ribbon when selecting the pipe.

The final layout of your pipes should optimize routing. I am sure that you already know how to do this, but try to avoid parallel routing as much as possible, as this multiplies the amount of material used in your building. Again, connect each urinal to a single pipe that will then join the main one in a single point, avoiding multiple joints, therefore:

· Reducing material use

· Minimizing the probability of mistakes during execution

· Incrementing the life cycle of the building

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[Fig 16. Final layout]

8. Heating systems

You could try now to include a heating system in your project. You would need to include another heater (boiler), and make sure that you have water intake for both boilers. Simply import another boiler and create the appropriate piping with the appropriate equipment.

Use the Radiator-Hosted family to represent your heater unit, if you want, or simply find some you normally use. Also, you should be careful to plan your layout in advance, and reuse the output flow as input for your hidronic supply. Namig the systems correctly will be of the outmost importance in order to avoid possible problems during calculation or when placing your equipment in the appropriate workshet or category.

Use hydronic supply and hycronic return to define the system. Modify the template to shoy your hydronic supply in orange color. To do that go to your system browser and follow these steps:

- Select a system type (hydronic supply, under Families>Piping Systems>Piping System>Hydronic Supply).

- Right click on it and select Type Properties

- In the dialog, select “Graphic Overrides” in the “Graphic” category. Click on edit.

- Modify the color

- Select OK

These modifications are applied on a project basis, so you need not create special filters or custom templates. Should you need another visualization, create your template. Nevertheless, the changes you just did will be used for all default views.

As with other families, this dialog will let you create a new system type, depending on your own needs.

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[Fig 17. Modify system type]

[Fig 18. Final layout: Domestic Water, Waste, Hydronic Supply and Return]

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ARCHIOLOGICS BASIC REVIT MEP - CRASH COURSE

ADOLFO NADAL SERRANO MAS. ARCHITECT - ARCHI [O] LOGICS

IV. SYSTEM ANALYSIS AND INSPECTION

1. System Inspector

The system inspector lets you analyze the flow direction and quantities within a system. Depending on the system and duct properties and settings, the system will display a certain behaviour.

To activate the inspector, simply click on one olement of the system, and go to the contectual ribbon tools “Modify|Pipes”, where you will find the System Inspector Tool under the Analysis category.

Click on the tool, and you will see the Inspect symbol and a slight visibility change in your screen -the non-selected systems become less visible in order to highlight your selection. Inspecting shows the flow direction automatically, and a series of information of each of the elements, as you hover the mouse over the different pipes and fittings that constitute your piping network. The information consists of:

- Section: the branch or section of the pipe within the system.

- Flow: the actual flow in the highlighted section in the units you have stablished for your project (Liters per second normally)

- Fixture units: the number of fixtures contained in the section (pipe segments and fixtures included)

2. Piping systems

Clicking on an element that belongs to a piping system activates the “Piping systems” contextual tool in the ribbon. If this tab is active, you will see the bounding boxes of the elements that define the system, including piping, piping fixtures and other fixtures.

You will be able to edit the system or select equipment to add to the system, such as boilers or others. This tool is very handy when dealing with systems.

[Fig 19. System inspector showing system’s properties]

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