Can one model Shipping containers in Revit LT and use them for architectural design? This was a question recently posed to me by a client.

Would one model the shipping container as a family? No, because then the container cannot host windows and doors or other wall-based components.

Model the container as a Revit project and link it in then. Now shipping container walls have a corrugated profile, so the wall must be modeled in place. Initially, I thought this could not be done in Revit LT, but after some research, I discovered that a wall is the only component that can be modeled in place.

Remember it is not just a thin wall that is used. Drawing a corrugated thin wall results in wall sections that cannot host windows and doors either.

Unfortunately, while the above method holds in principle, in the case where the segments are so small, the windows and doors will not cut out of the wall either.

My suggestion is, therefore, to use a normal wall and attach a surface pattern and bump map to look like the corrugated sides of the container and then use detailed drawings for the rest.

If you need help adopting Revit in your company, please contact Micrographics so we may be of assistance.