Coordination with a Structural Engineer
Using a live sports centre project, this course walks through the back-and-forth process of coordinating with a structural engineer in Revit. You'll see real clashes—columns blocking doors, bracing protruding into sports halls, steel beams interrupting circulation—and learn exactly how to flag them, document them, and get them resolved. Master the manual coordination theory and communication skills that underpin every successful multi-consultant project.
- 2+ hours of premium content
- 10 step-by-step video lessons
- Future updates included
About this course
This course covers the coordination workflow that happens before Navisworks automation - the manual theory, communication techniques, and Revit setup that underpin every successful multi-consultant project. Using a sports centre as the worked example, you'll learn to set up world coordinates from topo surveys, link structural models via shared coordinates, visually check for clashes by overriding structural elements in red, and document issues in reports that engineers can actually action. The final lessons cover using the coordinated frame as setting-out reference and understanding how structural decisions affect your ceiling heights, floor thicknesses, and window positions.
This specialized coordination course develops your expertise in managing multidisciplinary BIM workflows through practical Revit-based coordination techniques. You'll learn to identify, document, and resolve clashes between architectural and structural elements before they become costly construction problems, while maintaining productive professional relationships with engineering consultants.
The curriculum emphasizes systematic approaches to model checking, clash detection, and quality control that protect project timelines and budgets. You'll develop skills in providing clear feedback to engineers, managing design revisions effectively, and coordinating complex building information across disciplines while maintaining design intent.
Advanced coordination techniques include world coordinate setup, model linking workflows, and comprehensive reporting systems that ensure project quality and stakeholder satisfaction. The course covers both technical coordination skills and professional communication strategies that facilitate successful multidisciplinary collaboration.
These coordination skills are essential for contemporary architectural practice where BIM proficiency and collaboration capabilities directly impact project success. The techniques learned apply to all building types where effective coordination between architects and engineers can prevent costly errors and ensure smooth project delivery from design through construction.
What will you learn?
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This course will turn you into:
A Revit coordination practitioner
Link engineer models using shared coordinates, override structural elements in red for visual checking, and use section boxes to hunt down clashes.
A clear communicator
Create screenshot-based reports that leave no ambiguity. Reference grid lines, flag issues methodically, and build documentation that gets problems fixed.
A project setup specialist
Set up world coordinates from topographic surveys so every consultant's model lands in the right place. Get this right and linking is one click.
Syllabus
Coordination in its simplest form: either you move your door or the engineer moves their column. We introduce the sports centre project and demonstrate how to override structural elements in red within Revit for easy visual checking. You'll see why every engineer should be using Revit by now.
Columns blocking corridors, lockers clashing with structure, bracing protruding into sports halls—real examples of what happens when coordination fails. As lead designer, the architect is responsible for coordinating other designs, and claims can follow when things go wrong on site.
Creating coordination reports using InDesign with screenshots and clear annotations. Learn to reference grid lines (column D4, not "that one"), create simple boards showing clashes with comments, and build the kind of documentation that engineers can actually action.
Setting up northings and eastings from a topographic survey so your Revit project sits in the correct world position. Learn how to extract coordinates from CAD survey points and configure Revit to match—the foundation that makes consultant model linking work.
With coordinates established, linking the structural engineer's Revit model is straightforward—select "auto by shared coordinates" and it lands perfectly. We walk through initial exploration using section boxes to start identifying clashes before formal review.
A live demonstration of reviewing the sports centre structural model. Taking screenshots of bracing clashing with blockwork, columns near lockers, and other issues, then compiling them into an InDesign report with grid line references and clear requests for the engineer.
Setting up a proper folder structure (data in/consultants/structural/Revit models) and naming files by date (24-03-25_structural-model-issue-1). When the engineer sends back an updated model, you reload it via shared coordinates and verify the changes against your comments.
Once coordination is complete, the frame becomes your primary setting-out reference. Learn to dimension internal walls from grid line centres - the language contractors understand - rather than from arbitrary architectural features.
You can't know your perimeter beam depth, ceiling heights, duct zones, or floor thicknesses without an engineer. Using a residential scheme section to show exactly which dimensions come from structural input—and why assumptions can be fatal.
Key lessons from practice: push for Revit-using engineers, bring them on board at end of RIBA Stage 2 (now called "Coordinated Design" for good reason), never submit planning without at least a structural feasibility. Real advice from real project experience.
Meet your instructor
Adam Morgan
Architectural Director
ThreeForm Architects
Hi, I'm Adam. I am the founder and director of ThreeForm Architects, a team of architects and artists in Liverpool, UK. The office is experienced in a wide range of building types and procurement routes, successfully winning projects with contract values of up to £20 million. We work for a broad spectrum of public and private sector clients across the country. I have always had a passion for teaching aspiring and young architects. I offer support to emerging young architects through the RIBA mentoring programme and am also a visiting architectural critic and tutor for Liverpool John Moores University.
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