With each release, Autodesk continues to refine the Revit modeling environment to offer greater flexibility and control. One of the more subtle, but powerful updates in Revit 2026 is the ability to create compound structures without requiring a core layer.
This change may seem minor, but it addresses a longstanding constraint in wall and floor design workflows, and it opens the door to better control over join behavior and finish visibility.
What’s New?
In previous versions of Revit, compound structures (such as walls, roofs, ceilings, and floors with multiple material layers) required a core layer. While the core boundary helps define structural logic and insertion points, it often introduced unnecessary complexity—especially for finish-only walls, non-structural partitions, or custom floor assemblies.
With Revit 2026, the core layer is now optional. You can:
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- Delete core layers entirely
- Move layers outside of the core boundaries without restriction
- Create compound structures with only finish or non-structural materials
Why This Matters
This update gives designers and content creators much more control over:
🔹 Wall Joins
By eliminating the forced presence of core layers, it’s now easier to fine-tune how walls interact at corners, intersections, and T-junctions. This is particularly useful when modeling finish-only walls or veneer systems, where structural logic is secondary to visual continuity.
🔹 Visibility Control
Revit’s core layer system has historically influenced how walls display in different views. Without a core layer, you now have more consistent visibility and greater precision when controlling how finishes appear in section or plan views.
🔹 Template and Family Simplicity
For firms managing custom wall types or template standards, the ability to define non-core compound structures simplifies your library and avoids the need for workarounds or placeholder cores.
Best Practices
Autodesk offers some helpful guidance for using this new flexibility effectively:
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- For interior finish walls: Move all layers to the Interior side, and ensure the Interior Finish Face aligns with the actual room-facing surface.
- For exterior finishes: Use the same approach on the Exterior side to ensure clean joins and intuitive orientation.
These small adjustments can significantly improve default join behavior and maintain consistency across projects.
Final Thoughts
The removal of the core layer requirement is a small but impactful update, one that simplifies compound structure modeling while improving visual and geometric outcomes. Whether you're a BIM manager refining your office templates or a designer focused on detailed documentation, this enhancement will streamline your workflow.
At BIM Depot, we’re already integrating this update into our wall and floor libraries to ensure smarter defaults and more flexible assemblies. If you’re managing custom content, now is a great time to revisit how your compound structures are defined.
