Introduction:
Embracing Real-Time LCA as your platform of choice for Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) calculations provides you with unmatched capabilities to minimize the emissions from your building project. The latest feature enhancing your LCA workflows is the highly anticipated Automapping. With this new feature in Real-Time LCA, you can now automate your material data with up to 100%! using three distinct methods. In this blog post, we will primarily delve into the “By Project” approach.
The Automapping method relies on a straightforward combination of object [TypeName] and [Material]. Consequently, you will need to train the platform within each organization by creating a project template that includes all your standard content.
How to automate the generation of a Standard Catalog File within your Organization?
A Catalog file, in this context, refers to an RVT file containing specific system and component families. Such a file serves as a standard mapping project for facilitating the auto-mapping feature. Leveraging Dynamo for Revit, we can streamline the process of creating this Catalog file, complete with all your organization’s standard system and component families.
In the following post, I will demonstrate how to set up straightforward swim lanes of code - one for collecting Component Families and another for System Families. Both can be easily customized to encompass all required family categories used within your organization. The examples provided focus on two categories within a structural discipline model.
System Family Collection
System families contain family types that you use to create basic building elements such as walls, floors, ceilings, and stairs. System Families “lives” inside the Revit project/Template. Therefore, all catalog types must be predefined in the document used for this workflow.
1.1 - To begin, we must gather all System family types from the document. To accomplish this, I’ve utilized a brief Python code. This script systematically collects all available System Family Types in the document, categorized by family type.
editor inside Dynamo
1.2 - Next, we will organize all these System Family Types by their Type Names and arrange them visually on a grid system within our Catalog fil.
Swim lane for collection of System families
1.3 - Lastly, we will utilize the “Wall.ByCurveAndHeight” Node to generate these elements inside Revit, completing the workflow.
Stacked System families inside Revit
Component Families Collection
Component (or “Loadable”) families include everything that is not a system family. Many component families are model elements, but they can also be annotation or other non-model elements as well often reside outside of the Revit document. This workflow is centered around a designated folder location containing all standard components within your organization.
2.1 - The first step involves gathering all component family types from the specified folder location. To achieve this, we utilize the “FileSystem.GetDirectoryContents” node. This Node systematically compiles all available Family Types found in the directory.
Swim lane for collection of Component Families
2.2 - Next, we proceed to load all these families into the project, employing the “Document.LoadFamily” node from the Clockwork package. As with the system familie we will also organize all the component families by their element names and arrange them visually on a grid system within our Catalog file
Clockwork for Revit by Andreas Dieckmann
2.3 - In this specific scenario, we employ the “StructuralFraming.ColumnByCurve” Node to create Structural Columns elements within Revit, in conjunction with the system families generated previously. To create beams, you should opt for the “StructuralFraming.BeamByCurve” Node instead.
Stacked Component and System families inside Revit
Versioning
This workflow is made in Revit 2023.1 and Dynamo 2.16.2
External 
Final
Based on the naming structure and the utilization of material choices in other projects within your organization on Real-Time LCA, a complete project can be automatically mapped in no time. This workflow simplifies the creation of your organization’s Standard Catalog file, enabling improved and standardized automapping processes across your organization. As your standard components evolve over time, you can effortlessly maintain your catalog file by rerunning the workflow.
Enjoy!
