Ecco — How to Use

Last Updated: January 1, 2026

Ecco is a Revit add-in that creates ecco representations of assemblies, families, and groups as unified logistics units — enabling quantity take-off, sequencing, and procurement tracking without exposing internal model complexity.

Buttons at a glance

Button Panel What it does
Create Eccos Ecco Merges all sub-component solids of selected elements into single-solid DirectShapes and places them at a staging offset.
Rotate Ecco Ecco Opens a modeless window to rotate selected ecco DirectShapes 90° around X, Y, or Z — used to check truck-fit orientation.
Set to Truck Ecco Opens a modeless window that isolates ecco elements in the view and lets you assign a truck / container ID to selected eccos.
Create Schedule Ecco Collects all eccos and generates a Revit schedule (Ecco — Logistics Schedule) grouped by truck / container assignment.
Ecco QC Ecco Validates ecco ↔ original bidirectional links and highlights orphaned or unlinked elements.

All buttons are on the Avant Leap tab → Ecco panel.

Before you start

  1. Open a Revit project containing the assemblies, families, or groups you want to track as logistics units.
  2. Confirm the elements you want to convert to Ecco are selectable in the active view.
  3. Close any floating Revit dialogs before clicking any Ecco button.
  4. For worksharing models, sync to central before running Ecco — the ExtensibleStorage ecco links are written to the model.

Core workflow

Select elements (assemblies, families, groups)
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     v
Click [Create Eccos]
  → Dialog: enter staging distance + choose X / Y / Z axis
  → Ecco merges all sub-geometry → one solid DirectShape per element
  → Ecco placed at element position + staging offset
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     v
Click [Rotate Ecco]  (optional)
  → Select ecco DirectShapes
  → Choose rotation axis in the modeless window
  → Rotate 90° steps to check truck-fit orientation
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     v
Click [Set to Truck]
  → View isolates to ecco elements only
  → Select eccos in the view
  → Enter truck / container ID → click Assign
  → Repeat: select next group → enter ID → Assign
  → Click Restore View when done
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     v
Click [Create Schedule]
  → Ecco — Logistics Schedule created in Project Browser
  → Sorted by truck / container ID (Mark parameter)
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     v
Click [Ecco QC]  (optional)
  → Validates ecco ↔ original links
  → Highlights orphaned eccos in the view

Scenarios

Scenario 1 — Ecco a set of structural assemblies for a site delivery sequence

Context: You are a construction BIM coordinator. The project has 12 steel assemblies that will be delivered across 3 trucks. You need a simplified logistics model that shows only the outer envelope of each assembly.

  1. Open the Revit project and navigate to a 3D view showing the assemblies.
  2. Select all assembly elements (hold Ctrl and click, or use a filter).
  3. On the Avant Leap tab, click Create Eccos.
  4. In the dialog, enter the staging distance (e.g., 20) and select the X axis. Click OK.
  5. Ecco processes each assembly: collects all sub-component solids, merges them into a single solid, and places a DirectShape ecco at the assembly's position offset 20 ft in X.
  6. A results dialog reports eccos created, skipped (already an Ecco or no geometry), and geometry reduction ratio.

Expected outcome: 12 DirectShape eccos appear in a staging area beside the originals. Each ecco is a merged single solid representing the full envelope of its assembly.

Scenario 2 — Check rotation for truck loading

Context: You have created eccos and need to verify that assemblies fit flat on a truck bed. You want to rotate them 90° around Y to simulate a lying-down orientation.

  1. In the staging view, select the ecco DirectShapes you want to rotate.
  2. Click Rotate Ecco. The Rotation window opens (stays open).
  3. Click Y axis. Each selected ecco rotates 90° around its bounding-box centre.
  4. Check the rotated envelope visually in the 3D view.
  5. Click Y axis again to rotate another 90° — or choose a different axis.
  6. Close the window when satisfied. The rotation is committed to the model.

Expected outcome: Eccos are rotated to the desired orientation. You can compare the rotated ecco footprint against a truck outline in a plan view to confirm fit.

Scenario 3 — Assign eccos to trucks and generate a delivery schedule

Context: You have 12 rotated eccos and know that truck T-01 takes assemblies 1–4, truck T-02 takes 5–8, and truck T-03 takes 9–12.

  1. Click Set to Truck. The Set to Truck window opens and the view automatically isolates to show only ecco elements.
  2. In the Truck / Container ID field, type T-01.
  3. In the Revit view, select the 4 eccos for truck T-01.
  4. Click Assign. The Mark parameter on the 4 eccos is set to T-01. The status line confirms the count.
  5. Select the next 4 eccos (for T-02). Change the Truck ID to T-02. Click Assign.
  6. Repeat for T-03.
  7. Click Restore View to exit isolation, then close the window.
  8. Click Create Schedule. Ecco creates a schedule named Ecco — Logistics Schedule in the Project Browser, listing all eccos sorted by truck assignment.

Expected outcome: The schedule shows all 12 eccos grouped by T-01, T-02, T-03. Each row displays the ecco name, truck ID, and source family/type information.

Context: Someone deleted a few original elements since the last session. You want to identify orphaned eccos (eccos whose originals no longer exist).

  1. Click Ecco QC.
  2. Ecco scans all ecco DirectShapes and checks whether their stored OriginalElementId still points to a valid element.
  3. Orphaned eccos are highlighted with a colour override in the active view (gold).
  4. A task dialog lists the orphan count and IDs for review.

Expected outcome: Orphaned eccos are clearly identified in the view. You can delete them or reassign them as needed.

Tips

  • The staging axis matters. If your model is organised along Y (long building axis), set the staging offset to Y so eccos land in a clear staging lane rather than overlapping other model content.
  • Already-ecco elements are skipped. Create Eccos checks ExtensibleStorage before processing — re-running on the same selection will not duplicate eccos.
  • Set to Truck is continuous. You do not need to close and reopen the window between assignments. Select → assign → select → assign in one session.
  • The Mark parameter drives the schedule. If you change a truck assignment later (by editing the Mark parameter directly or through Set to Truck), click Create Schedule again to refresh the schedule.
  • Ecco QC before delivery. Run Ecco QC after any model revisions to ensure the logistics model is still consistent with the design model.
  • Supported element types: AssemblyInstance, FamilyInstance, structural elements, and any element with accessible solid geometry. Elements with no solid geometry (datum elements, annotation, CAD links) produce no ecco and are reported as skipped.