About the Structural Steel Framing and Column Fabrication Shape

Learn about the fabrication shape and its properties, parameters and representation.

You can add fabrication data to structural beams of any structural use, to structural columns and to braces.

• The fabrication shape displays the exact shape of the element and the process of creating it is irreversible.
• The steel fabrication shape is executed using the asynchronous update process.
• When you create a structural steel fabrication element, use a modifier or place a parametric cut or a detailed standard or custom connection on Revit beams, columns or braces, the geometrical shape of the beam, column or brace is replaced by the fabrication shape.
• The steel fabrication shape inherits the type parameters of the beam, column or brace.
• The steel fabrication shape introduces some extra instance parameters to beams, columns and braces, under Structural.
• Structural columns with a steel fabrication shape cannot be attached to a reference plane.
• When the steel fabrication shape is created some column, beam or brace instance parameters are ignored or disabled:

  Structural Column	The Construction parameters: base and top cut styles and base and top extensions are disabled.
  Structural Beams and Bracings	yz Justification The steel fabrication shape only supports the Uniform yz justification. If the yz justification is not set to Uniform, the fabrication shape for the element will not be created. A warning message displays to inform that elements with independent justification are not supported. The yz Justification parameter is greyed out.
  	Start and End Extensions Are replaced by the Shortening modifier. The Start and End extension geometric position parameters will no longer be available in the Properties palette. A warning message displays to inform about the changes. The beam handles are disabled for the frames with steel fabrication shape.
  	Start and End Join Cutbacks The Start and End Join Cutback geometrical position parameters will be ignored and will no longer be available in the Properties palette. A warning message displays to inform about the changes.

• When the fabrication shape is created, some standard cuts made on the structural steel framings are lost or replaced by the correspondent fabrication modifier:

  The Opening by face is replaced by the Contour cut	The Opening by face will not be erased. The Opening by face will not cut the steel fabrication framing. The Contour cut will cut the steel fabrication framing. There is no binding between the Opening by face and the correspondent Contour cut - modifying one will not update the other. A warning message displays to inform that the Opening by face will no longer modify the fabrication shape and that it will be replaced by the Contour cut.
  The Cope is replaced be the parametric Cope cut	The Cope will be erased. A warning message displays to inform that the Cope will no longer modify the fabrication shape and that it will replaced by a parametric cut.
  The Cut by void is ignored	The cutting void will not be erased. A warning message displays to inform that the geometrical position parameters for cut with voids, by reference plane and start and end join cutbacks will be ignored.
  The Cut by reference plane is ignored	The cutting reference plane will not be erased. A warning message displays to inform that the geometrical position parameters for cut with voids, by reference plane and start and end join cutbacks will be ignored.

  Note: Cuts will be erased when the Revit file is upgraded.

Fabrication Shape Representation

Detail Level	Representation
Coarse	The fabrication shape representation is identical to the representation of the corespondent structural steel element. Note: The beam start and end extension parameters are ignored after the fabrication shape is created.
Medium	The fabrication shape is visible but without the drilling elements.
Fine	The fabrication shape is visible with all its cuts and drills.