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Once you have enabled the Systems Module, there are four key steps to start working with your data in dRofus and Revit. Remember, these are steps we ask you complete with the help of a dRofus Support Specialist. 

Steps that need to be taken to set up a connection to Revit on Systems:  

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For those or you that are not using the Revit add-on, the same import of systems and components from IFC or Excel

Planning your data with System in dRofus

Video Four: Planning with your data with Systems in dRofus-Part One 

Connecting your Systems to Revit, IFC or another planning tool is an excellent start, but if you want additional visibility and insights, we recommend start planning your data in dRofus.

Planning your data with Systems inside of your dRofus project allows you to have a better connection between different disciplines. For instance, between mechanical objects and electrical objects. Although this process has more steps, we are confident you will be pleased with the additional outputs. 

Remember, this is a process we ask you to setup with the help of a dRofus Support Specialist. However, we would like to give you an example of the process in action to illustrate these connections. 

 

Let’s go into the Systems Module.  

 

Planning with your data with Systems in dRofus-Part Two 

 

 

Using a ventilation unit as an example we will create a new component without importing. 

 

Select the Item group that you want to add the System to.  

In this case we will be selecting ’03 - HVAC & Plumbing’ 

Select the lowest level of the Item group 

For this example, we will select ‘03 – Mechanical’ 

With the Item Group highlighted, Select New System Component 

In the Window that appears you will be able to select an Item from the Item group using the dropdown menu 

In the case we are selecting the item 0303.001 - M_Air Handling 

Fill out the information in the window  

Serial number, name and select the team responsible 

This information can be edited later 

Now, you have added an Air Handling unit. 

 

Planning with your data with Systems in dRofus-Part Three 

 

We now want to create our Electrical System to connect to the Mechanical System that we just created. 

To connect the two Systems, go to the Electrical Item Group 

In this case we will be selecting ’04 - Electrical’ 

Select the Service Panel Group.  

For this example, we will select ‘07 – Service Panels’ 

With the Item Group highlighted, Select New System Component 

In the Window that appears, select an Item from the Item group using the dropdown menu 

We are selecting the item 0407.001 - Ward room panel 

Fill out the information in the window  

Serial number, name and select the team responsible 

This information can be edited later 

 

Now that we have our Panel created, we can create a circuit that will connect the Electrical and Mechanical Systems. 

 

We can do this by connecting the Panel to the Air Handling unit in the other System 

 

Planning with your data with Systems in dRofus-Part Four 

 

This can be done by adding a component to the System as a member 

Select Add Member and then search for the component you want to connect to 

Select the Component and then select Create new System 

We are going to call this ‘Ventilation Offices’ 

By completing these steps, you have connected multiple Systems for the Items that exist in your project. 

 

In addition to this, you can complete this process using the Omni Class system. For those familiar with this categorization system, it makes a quick reference to see where items and occurrences are linked to. dRofus can deliver Omni Class numbers to the model, which is helpful if you want unique numbers on components.  

 

The advantage to this approach is that that you can quickly build out your Systems with items and occurrences and they will already exist in your dRofus project. This means in an early phase, you can add items and they will be visible across the disciplines on the project. 

 

 

Video Five: Potential Outputs with Systems in dRofus-Part One 

Now that we have shown some of the options for connecting Systems, we wanted to review a potential output that illustrates the connections that the Systems Module is capable of. 

By linking what is planned in Revit to the Systems in dRofus, we can utilize a 3D Model to view planned our System. 

Let’s start by syncing our project with Revit. In this example we are going to select the Air Handling Unit that we used in our prior examples. Once the unit is selected, we can link into our project in dRofus. Select the Air Handling Unit in the window that appears. 

Go to the dRofus Plug-in, and select Import Selected. In the pop-up window confirm your selection and select Import. After the import has completed, you can view the results in our dRofus project. 

 

Potential Outputs with Systems in dRofus-Part Two 

 

Let’s go back into the Systems Module. Before getting started you will need to connect to your IFC file to the dRofus project. 

Once you have connected your IFC file, you can select the 3D model on the right-hand ribbon. This will open the model viewer pane. You can then select the item group, and you will see the linked items in the viewer.  

You can now see the System is now highlighted in our 3D model view. 

As with all panes in a dRofus project, you can unlock the 3D Model view and adjust.  

As you can see, we now have a 360 view of the 3D model that allows us to highlight and select those items, components and occurrences that are connected to our System.  

Beyond this visualization, this connection to the IFC file allows you to update data in your dRofus project and allows you to synchronize any updates into your IFC file. This means that your dRofus project is the single place that you can update and visualize your Revit, dRofus and IFC data. 

 We hope that this tool shows what is possible once you have connected all your project data in dRofus. 

 

Review and Resources Page Text: 

In this course we have reviewed the key terms that relate to the Systems Module, provide guidance about the quickest way to get started using Systems, and explored more in-depth options for your organization. 

 

There is much more to learn about Systems. To gain more information about the technical elements of the Systems module, we recommend reviewing the dRofus Documentation. #LINK# 

 

Next Steps Page Text: 

If you are interested in taking the next steps in using Systems to help define and enhance your project, please contact Customers Success #LINK# and let me know you are interested in Systems. 

 

We can then provide access to the Systems module in your instance of dRofus. We then ask that you plan on a training session dedicated to helping the project team start with dRofus Systems module. This session will be designed to develop and implement a solution using Systems that is tailor fit to meet the needs of your team