Link a DWG File and Acquire Its Coordinates

When the survey point or the project base point is not yet defined using grid coordinates, you can link a site DWG file and acquire its geolocation information to establish shared coordinates for accurate positioning of the model on the site.

This procedure assumes that the model's survey point or project base point is not yet defined, or its geolocation is different from the location specified in the DWG file.

1. Click Insert tabLink panel (Link CAD).
2. In the Link CAD Formats dialog, for Files of type, select DWG Files (*.dwg).
3. Navigate to the folder that contains the file to link, and select the file.
4. For Positioning, select Auto - Center to Center.
5. Specify other options, as appropriate.

   See Import and Link Options.

6. Click Open.

   The DWG file is linked to the model. Its geometric center is placed at the center of the Revit model.

   Note: If you cannot see the link, type ZF to Zoom to Fit.
7. Use the Acquire Coordinates tool to pull the grid (GIS) coordinates from the link into Revit.

   Revit aligns the survey point and the project base point with the geometric center of the link.

   The coordinates of the survey point and the project base point reflect the GIS coordinates from the link.

8. Optional: If desired, move the project base point and the survey point.
   • Unclip the project base point and move it to the desired location in the model. See Move the Project Base Point.
   • Move the survey point in relation to the project base point and the site. You can move it clipped or unclipped, depending on your intent. See Move the Survey Point.
9. To confirm the geographic location of the Revit model, click Manage tabProject Location panel (Location).

   On the Location tab, for Define Location by, the option Get Location from Survey Point is selected. The GIS Coordinate System, Latitude, and Longitude fields display geolocation information acquired from the DWG file.

If you need to push the geographic location to other models that are linked to this Revit model, use the Publish Coordinates tool.

When exporting this model to DWG or DXF, you can set an option to include the shared coordinates as part of the export.