📐 How to Set Up a Revit Project: Levels, Grids, Shared Coordinates, and Project Templates

Why Project Setup Matters More Than You Think

The first hours you spend on a Revit project are the most leveraged. Decisions made during project setup — the coordinate origin, the level structure, the unit precision, the shared parameters — propagate through every view, every sheet, every linked file, and every IFC export for the life of the project. A five-minute shortcut on day one can become a week of rework on day 180 when you realize the model is positioned 20 kilometers from the real site in coordinate space, or that your structural engineer's levels do not match your architectural levels by 100mm.

This article gives you a systematic, command-by-command setup sequence. Follow it on every project and you will avoid the most common BIM coordination failures before they start.

Step 1: Choose the Right Project Template

Every new Revit project starts from a template file (.RTE). Revit ships with default templates (Architectural, Structural, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) that provide a minimal starting point. Most professional firms maintain their own custom templates that include:

• Firm-standard title block families loaded and configured
• Firm-standard View Templates for all view types
• Standard object styles (line weights, colors, patterns) matching firm drawing standards
• Pre-loaded commonly used families (basic doors, windows, structural shapes)
• Correct unit settings for the firm's market (imperial or metric)
• Pre-built Sheet Set with standard sheet names and numbers
• Phasing structure for typical project types

To start a new project: File > New > Project. In the New Project dialog, click Browse to navigate to the firm template. Never start from the Revit default templates on a production project — the defaults omit most standards a professional project requires.

Step 2: Set Project Information

Navigate to Manage > Project Information. Fill in every field accurately:

• Project Name: The full official project name as it should appear on all drawings.
• Project Number: The firm's internal project number, used for file management and title block population.
• Client Name: The owner/client organization name.
• Project Address: The site address. Critical for IFC export metadata and increasingly for GIS integration workflows.
• Project Status: Schematic Design, Design Development, etc. Updates the status block on all sheets simultaneously.
• Building Type: From the drop-down — used by energy analysis tools to apply appropriate occupancy schedules.

These fields drive parameters in the title block family. Fill them in before creating any sheets and they will populate automatically wherever referenced in the title block. Fill them in after creating 80 sheets and you will at least benefit from the automatic update — but establish the habit of doing it first.

Step 3: Configure Project Units

Navigate to Manage > Project Units. The Project Units dialog controls how Revit displays and rounds all numeric values. Key settings include:

Parameter	Imperial Typical	Metric Typical	Notes
Length	1/8" precision	1mm precision	For construction docs; use 1/16" or 0.1mm for shop drawings
Area	SF to 2 decimal places	m² to 2 decimal places	Affects area schedules and room tags
Volume	CF to 2 decimal places	m³ to 2 decimal places	Affects concrete volume takeoffs
Angle	Degrees, 2 decimal places	Degrees, 2 decimal places	Affects grids and structural member orientation
Slope	Rise/Run (1:12 format)	Percentage or ratio	Affects roof slope tags and drainage notation

Establish Project Units before placing any elements. Revit stores coordinates internally in a fixed precision, but display units affect schedules, tags, dimensions, and any parameter value shown in the model. Changing units mid-project can cause dimension rounding discrepancies that are tedious to resolve.

Step 4: Create the Level Structure

Levels in Revit are horizontal datum planes that define floor elevations, constrain walls and columns, and organize the floor plan views. Creating them correctly is foundational.

Open an Elevation view (the four default elevation markers in a new project give you North, South, East, and West elevations). With an elevation view open:

1. Go to Architecture > Level (or Structure > Level in a structural project).
2. Click to draw the level line across the full width of the building footprint. A floor plan view is created automatically.
3. Name the level immediately when the name highlight appears. Use consistent naming: Level 1, Level 2 (or 01 - Ground Floor, 02 - First Floor for UK/Australian convention). Avoid generic names like "Level 3" that become ambiguous on complex mixed-use projects.
4. Set the elevation by clicking the elevation value and typing the exact floor-to-floor height.

Critical level considerations:

• Structural levels vs. architectural levels: The architect's Level 2 is often the top of the finished floor (TOF). The structural engineer's Level 2 is the top of the structural slab (TOS), which is the same as the architect's level minus the topping slab or finish floor thickness. Confirm this offset at project kickoff and document it in the BEP.
• Level 0 elevation: Decide what elevation 0.000 represents — typically Finished Floor Level 1 (interior), but sometimes a site datum such as sea level or a benchmark elevation. Document this clearly.
• Reference levels: Subfloor levels (basement), mechanical mezzanines, roof levels, and parapet levels should all be created as Revit levels even if they do not get traditional floor plan views, because elements need to be constrained to them.

Step 5: Create the Grid System

Grids in Revit are vertical datum planes used to locate structural elements and to organize the floor plan. Grids appear in plan and elevation views and serve as reference geometry for placing and constraining columns, walls, and structural framing.

To place grids, open a Floor Plan view and go to Architecture > Grid (or Structure > Grid). Click to draw grid lines across the full building footprint. Naming convention matters:

• Vertical grids (running left to right across the plan): Use letters, typically A, B, C, D or 1/A, 2/A from south to north.
• Horizontal grids (running top to bottom across the plan): Use numbers, typically 1, 2, 3, 4 from west to east.
• Diagonal or curved grids for non-orthogonal buildings: Use consistent offsets from the primary grid system and document in the drawing key plan.

Grids can be drawn as straight lines, arcs, or multi-segment paths. After placing all grids, use the Align command (Modify > Align) to ensure grids in one view are properly locked to their counterparts across all views — lock the alignment by clicking the padlock icon after aligning.

Step 6: Understand Project Base Point and Survey Point

This is one of the most misunderstood areas of Revit and the source of many coordinate disasters on multi-discipline projects. Revit has two coordinate reference points that serve completely different purposes:

Project Base Point (PBP)

The Project Base Point is the origin of the project's internal coordinate system. It is the reference from which all element coordinates in the model are measured. By default it sits at the intersection of the two default reference planes in a new file. The PBP controls what coordinates you see when you look at an element's position in Revit's properties. You can move the PBP — it has a "clipped" state (moves the coordinate system, leaving the model in place) and an "unclipped" state (moves with the model geometry). For most projects, keep the PBP near the building and do not clip it once the model is underway.

Survey Point (SP)

The Survey Point represents a known real-world location — typically a benchmark or control point from the civil survey. It links the project's internal coordinate system to the real-world coordinate system (state plane coordinates, UTM, or a project-specific datum). Moving the Survey Point (always in its clipped state) lets you tell Revit where the building sits on the earth without moving the model.

Why This Matters for Multi-Discipline Projects

When the architectural, structural, and MEP engineers all set up their respective Revit files with the Project Base Point at the same real-world location — typically the intersection of Grid A and Grid 1 — their models will overlay correctly when linked. If each discipline places the PBP arbitrarily, the models will not align when federated in Navisworks or Revit.

The correct workflow is:

1. The architect sets up the reference file first, with the PBP and grids defined.
2. The structural and MEP engineers link the architectural file using Insert > Link Revit, choosing positioning option "Auto - By Shared Coordinates" (if shared coordinates have been published) or "Auto - Origin to Origin" (if all teams use the same PBP location).
3. The teams confirm alignment by checking that grids overlay correctly in a 3D view.

Step 7: Set Up Shared Coordinates

Shared Coordinates allow multiple Revit files to share the same real-world coordinate system, enabling precise alignment when models are linked and accurate IFC/GIS export with real geolocation.

The workflow is:

1. In the host file (typically the architectural model), position the Survey Point to match the real-world survey benchmark.
2. Link the next discipline file using Insert > Link Revit.
3. After positioning the linked file correctly, go to Manage > Coordinates > Publish Coordinates and select the linked file. This writes the current position into the linked file so it remembers where it sits relative to the host.
4. Repeat for each linked discipline file.
5. When another discipline opens their own file and links the architectural model using "By Shared Coordinates," the models will align automatically.

Shared Coordinates are critical for IFC export. The IFC coordinate system is based on the Survey Point position. Projects that will be used in GIS platforms (ArcGIS, QGIS, Infraworks) or handed to owners with geospatially referenced digital twin requirements must have the Survey Point correctly set to a recognized real-world datum before any IFC export is made.

Step 8: View Naming Conventions

Before modeling, establish a view naming convention in the Project Browser. A widely used convention follows this pattern:

• Floor Plans: 01 ARCH - Level 1 Floor Plan
• Working views (not plotted): WIP - Level 1 - Electrical Rough-in
• 3D coordination views: 3D - MEP Coordination - Zone A
• Detail views: DET - 01 - Exterior Wall Section

The Project Browser can be organized to group views by any parameter. Firms often add a custom "View Category" shared parameter to enforce grouping by discipline and use.

Step 9: Save as Central Model for Worksharing

If the project will have more than one Revit user working simultaneously, the file must be converted to a Central Model before distribution. Go to Collaborate > Worksets > Enable Worksharing. Revit will prompt you to create initial worksets (typically Shared Levels and Grids, and one workset per discipline). After enabling worksharing, save the file to the network location (or BIM 360/ACC) using File > Save As > Project — this is now the Central Model. Team members should immediately create their own Local copies (File > Open > Detach from Central is wrong — they should use Open and leave worksharing enabled, creating a local copy). See the dedicated worksharing article for the full multi-user workflow.