ifc exporter Archives » What Revit Wants

Where to Get the Latest Versions of the IFC for Revit Addin

March 4, 2021March 4, 2021 Luke Johnson

The IFC for Revit addins that improve IFC import and export functionality are maintained at this GitHub site for versions newer than Revit 2018. In the past 2 weeks, updates have been release for all current Revit versions, and I have collected the direct links for you below. Note that the GitHub versions can be more up-to-date and current than the ones listed on the App Store.

IFC for Revit 2021, latest release 21.2.1.0 here, direct download link here
IFC for Revit 2020, latest release 20.3.2.0 here, direct download link here
IFC for Revit 2019, latest release 19.5.0.0 here, direct download link here

If you want to check which version you currently have, you could use Start – Add or Remove Programs to do that without opening Revit:

checking Revit version in Add or Remove Programs

If you are inside a Revit model, you can use File – Export – IFC and check the version in the dialog box header:

If you are looking for Revit 2018 and older versions of the IFC for Revit addins, check out the SourceForge site instead.

The update for Revit 2019 was particularly significant. Release notes copied below:

General:

This version marks a significant milestone for IFC Exporter as it is now IFC4 Reference View certified (for Architectural Export and Structural Export Exchange Requirements)

New Features/Improvements:

Export of Area can now be assigned to IfcSpatialZone in addition to the default IfcSpace using IfcExportAs
Support exporting IfcGroup using ZoneGroupName parameter
Improved heuristic for assigning color to polygonal face sets
Improved handling to support for direct export of polygonal face geometry in IFC4
Support for IfcShapeAspect in other objects that have part geometries
Improved handling of Complex Property in the PropertySet definition
General improvements to support IFC4 based geo-referencing information with addition UI in export, and integration to the information found inside Revit file (usually comes from AutoCAD or Civil3D)
Reorganize the location for Exchange Requirement setting in the header of IFC File to be less hidden (now located right after the IFC version in export option UI)
Updates shared parameter definitions and Property set definitions based on the latest IFC4 (4.4.0.2.2) specifications
Support allowing a predefined type for standard walls on export
General improvements dealing with objects with many holes
Added basic support to export Area as IfcSpatialZone entity

Bug Fixes:

Export bug fixes:

Fixed error during export for a specific object that became invalid in the export process with “Store the IFC GUID in an element after export” option
User defined property set can now be exported for IfcGeographiElement
Fixed export failure when ZoneClassificationName is set to Room for exporting IfcZone
Corrected GrossVolume quantity information with the correct unit
Fixed exporting issue for a Ceiling containing Arc geometry
Fixed issue with duplicate steel connection geometries or missing connection
Fixed issue with IFC export – steel connection steel connection elements missing or wrongly exported
Fixed issue on missing ceiling geometries in IFC4 RV export mode
Fixed issue on objects with Parts that is below the first (lowest) level
Fixed issue with export Roof in some cases
Fixed crash issue if the “Rasters” are set to be exported to “IFCGrid”
Fixed issue with IFC option “export links as separate models” causes wrong object placement
Improved export Parts functionality
Fixed issue that IFC Version doesn’t update when changing the “In-Session setup”
Fixed IsExternal calculation on element types to correctly determine value
New shared parameter assigned to Curtain walls is now exported when exporting from Revit to Navisworks
Update category mapping to deal with IfcSpaceTypes and IfcOpeningTypes
Fixed issue with incorrect slab thickness when Opening IFC in Revit
Fixed some issues on export with different coordinate base
Fixed some issues on exporting Wall elements
Improved handling reserved Windows name
Export HVAC_HEAT_GAIN with current units (Watts)
Removed duplicate base quantity NetSideArea exported for walls
Improved export with the Property Set option “Export schedules as property sets”
Fixed issue with IFC4 Reference view, which fails for some models from Factory Live
Update the CSIORG link in the IFC exporter
Changed IfcGeometricRepresentationContext from “Annotation” to “Plan”
ClassificationCode(2) is now processed during export even if ClassificationCode is missing
Corrected Area quantity property of doors
Improved Materials export, that works for some floors but not others of the same type
Fixed issue with wrong Base Quantity information in some scenarios in IFC export 2×3 Coordination View
Fixed issues with warnings are shown when exporting to IFC4RV in some models
Improved Railings import to Revit via IFC
Properly convert this Flow_Rate parameter on Export
Corrected 2D CurtainWall door swing on IFC Export
Nested curtain wall element now will get proper parameters while export to IFC
IFC-Export configuration will now remember the previous settings including: “Project Origin/Coordinate Base”
Improved exporting of Material parameter
Improved IFC4 RV Exchange Requirement, which may be missing when File Header is not initialized
Support allowing a predefined type for standard railings on export
Fixed IFC4 “opening as recess” code for ReinforcingMesh case
Fixed issue with IFC export where some geometries are exported slightly longer extrusion
Fixed issue with IfcGeographicElement not exporting user-defined PropertySets

Import bug fixes:

Improved Rebar import
Improved import of Windows that are not cutting a wall in a linked or opened IFC
Recognize the angle between Project North and Survey Point properly in Revit IFC import/link
Improved import of Columns that may be placed in the wrong location on IFC Link in some cases
Improved import of beam cover
Fixed issue with Certain Tekla IFC geometry not visible when using Link IFC
Improved link IFC that may have incorrect geometry imported for some cases
Improved Link IFC file in Revit that in some cases failed with the model empty and an error appears in log file
Fixed issue with translation IFC having mm units using Revit IFC loader makes default model view small unexpectedly on LMV
Fixed issue related to invalid/corrupt IFC files that “load” without any errors
Improved link IFC file properly inside Revit 2020
Grids placed by IFCOFFSETCURVE2D will be placed at open IFC in the correct unit
Fixed issue with multiple versions of the same IFC file get loaded into Revit Cloud Worksharing Host resulting in duplicate geometry
Improve the structure in Link IFC that may end up upside down
Fixed missing material information upon import IFC
Recreate IFC/Import_Quantities/Import_Quantities.txt
Support IfcGridPlacement for Link IFC
Avoid duplicate instance and type names when linking in an IFC file
Improved creation of Geometry which may be missing for some IFC models
Fixed issue for some IFC files that failed to show in BIM 360 viewer
IFC link – model is now correctly positioned when there is rotation component in IFCSite local placement
Improved issue due to “bad” data involving Wall with zero thickness inside the IFC file that caused differences between IFC from Allplan opened/imported vs linked in Revit
Improved handling of detailed geometry containing IfcAdvancedBrep in REVIT 2020 and 2021
Improved slab elements import which may be missing in some IFC file
Corrected IfcPort ConnectedTo IfcGUID information that contained its own GUID instead of the GUID of its connected Port

Known Issues/additional notes:

This release still contains issue that Steel Connections may not be exported correctly
Export configuration “IFC2x2 ePlan Check” has been removed as it is already obsolete. If there is any saved configuration, the option will be automatically assign to IFC2x3 as default

IFC for Revit Updated with Better IFC4 support (version 16.6 and 17.3 download links here)

March 28, 2017May 9, 2017 Luke Johnson

The excellent and open-source IFC extension for Revit (previously known as IFC Exporter) has been updated. Please see below for download links and update details.

Download links:
16.6 for Revit 2016

17.3 for Revit 2017

Readme details for the latest release:

General:
– Minor improvements to the Importer class to make it easier for developers to create a custom Importer.
– We now support the IFC4 Addendum 2 schema. Specific improvements based on that will be listed below. For this update, you will have to manually add the IFC4_Add2.exp file (included with this package), to the EDM subfolder of your Revit Program folder. We will automate this in a future update.

New Export Functionality:
– Allow overriding material names on export by using IfcName shared parameter.
– Expand the use of types for many elements that didn’t export types before, including beams (IfcBeamType), curtain walls (IfcCurtainWallType, and types for mullions and panels), and footings (IfcFootingType).
– Improved ability to export some geometry as IfcSweptSolid.
– Try to use axis information, if it exists, when exporting beams and members in addition to columns.
– (IFC4) Better support beam, column, and member base quantities, including weight.
– (IFC4) Collect material information for profiles for beams and columns.
– (IFC4) Expand use of FootPrint representations to columns and slabs.
– (IFC4) Expand use of IfcMaterialLayerSetUsage if the entity has a compound structure in Revit, as allowed by IFC.
– (IFC4) No longer create StandardCase IFC entities, as these have been deprecated (including IfcWallStandardCase).
– (IFC4) Support IfcMaterialConstituent and IfcMaterialProfileSet for a number of elements.
– (IFC4) Use Built-in parameter “Structural_Bend_Dir_Angle” to get “Roll” property for PSet_BeamCommon and PSet_ColumnCommon.
– (IFCAdd2) Support IfcPolygonalFaceSet.

Export Bug Fixes:
– Allow exporting to IFC while using Collaboration for Revit where the default directory isn’t local.
– Better support for MEP type entities, that didn’t always export correctly.
– Correct the parameters of the directrix of some IfcSweptSolids.
– Fix correct mapping of IfcBurnerType/IfcGasTerminalType and IfcElectricHeaterType/IfcSpaceHeaterType.
– Fix creation of types for sub-entities of IfcDistributionControlElement.
– Fix offset problem when using the “Export Linked Files as Separate IFCs” option in locales where the decimal mark is not a point.
– (IFC4) Correct names of IFC4 entity quantity sets.
– (IFC4) Fix the name of IfcCommunicationsApplianceType.

New Import Functionality:
– Add support for IfcDerivedProfileDef.
– Support IfcRelClassification.
– (IFC4) Support IfcMaterialProfile, IfcMaterialProfileSet, and IfcMaterialProfileSetUsage.
– (IFC4) Support IfcMaterialConstituent and IfcMaterialConstituentSet.
– (IFC4) Support IfcTessellatedFaceSet and IfcPolygonalFaceSet.
– (IFC4) Improve mapping from Roll parameter to structural bend direction angle.
– (API only) Allow for two new options, CreateDuplicateZoneGeometry and CreateDuplicateContainerGeometry, that disable the duplication of geometry for zone elements and containers, respectively.

Import Bug Fixes:
– Better reporting when importing an IFC file with invalid rectangular or circular profiles (e.g., a 0 radius profile).
– Don’t show the void geometry when subtracting a void from an empty solid as a result of an IfcBooleanResult calculation.
– Ensure that IFC2x schema files can still be imported.
– Fix import of some IfcSurfaceCurveSweptAreaSolids.

IFC for Revit 2015 updated to v15.3.0.1 – links to download and What's New

March 18, 2015May 7, 2017 Luke Johnson

via email:
IFC for Revit 2015 (v15.3.0.1):
http://apps.exchange.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=appstore.exchange.autodesk.com%3aifc2015_windows32and64%3aen

IFC Exporter for Revit 2014 (v3.13):
http://apps.exchange.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=appstore.exchange.autodesk.com%3aifcexporterforrevit2014%3aen

IFC Export Alternate UI for Revit 2014 (v2.13.0.1):
http://apps.exchange.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=appstore.exchange.autodesk.com%3arevitifcexportalternateui2014%3aen

What’s new for IFC for Revit 2015 v15.3.0.1:

New Export Functionality:

– Allow IfcLongName to override the “LongName” attribute for levels.
– Rooms can now be exported from 3D views even when exporting only elements visible in view. If the option is chosen to export rooms, then all rooms inside or bordering the bounding box of the section box will be exported. If the section box isn’t active, all rooms will be exported.
– Work in progress: users can now opt to export files according to the IFC4 Reference View MVD. This will result in IFC4 files that use IfcTriangulatedFaceSet instead of IfcFacetedBRep, resulting in significantly smaller IFC files. There are still some cases where IfcFacetedBReps show up in these files, and there are some cases where the tessellation isn’t optimized for the reference view; this will be improved in upcoming releases.

Export Bug Fixes:

– Fix export of files with a project north value different than true north that would cause a slight shift in elevation.
– Fix export of some IfcCurveBoundedPlanes with more outer loops than inner loops.
– Fix the location of some assemblies on export.
– Fix the base quantities export for walls and columns when they are split by level.
– Improve splitting of walls in some cases when they are split by level on export.
– Improved the export of some entities with extruded surface geometry with clippings and openings where some clippings and openings were not being exported.
– Properly scale the volume of columns when base quantities are exported for non-imperial projects.
– Update the French resources file that prevented IFC export from working on computers with a French OS.

New Import Functionality:

– Add ElevationWithFlooring and InteriorOrExteriorSpace/PredefinedType for IfcSpaces.
– Add IfcContainedInHost parameter for doors and windows to contain the name of the hosting wall.
– Add IfcElevation parameter for Levels.
– Add IfcElementAssembly parameter for elements inside assemblies.
– Add IfcSystem parameter for elements inside systems.
– Add material thickness to the IfcMaterial parameter for elements who have an associated IfcMaterialLayerSetUsage.
– Better handing of nameless grid lines.
– Heal some curves with short curve segments, small gaps between segments, and vertices that are too close and better log file error reporting of the above problems.
– IFC4: Import IfcTriangulatedFaceSets, generally created for the IFC4 Reference View MVD.
– Import Box (i.e., the bounding box) representation for elements that have it, but only if they have no Body representation or it contains no visible geometry.
– Import IfcAssemblies.
– Import Construction Type and Operation Type for IfcDoorStyles.
– Import IfcPorts.
– Import IfcSystems.
– Import IfcZones.

Import Bug Fixes:

– Accept “Profile” as an alternate name for “FootPrint” when reading in entity representations.
– Force some entities to have a default name if Revit requires them to, even if there is no name in the IFC file.
– Improve processing of faceted BReps with gaps and short edges.
– Improve processing of walls and slabs whose geometry is defined by IfcMaterialLayerSetUsage.
– Properly scale IfcCompositeCurveSegment trim parameter for non-imperial files.
– Use gray, not black, as the default material color for materials with no color assigned.

What’s new for IFC Exporter for Revit 2014 v3.13:

New Export Functionality:

Export Bug Fixes:

What’s new for IFC Export Alternate UI for Revit 2014 v2.13.0.1:

New Export Functionality:

– Rooms can now be exported from 3D views even when exporting only elements visible in view. If the option is chosen to export rooms, then all rooms inside or bordering the bounding box of the section box will be exported. If the section box isn’t active, all rooms will be exported.
– Work in progress: users can now opt to export files according to the IFC4 Reference View MVD. This will result in IFC4 files that use IfcTriangulatedFaceSet instead of IfcFacetedBRep, resulting in significantly smaller IFC files. There are still some cases where IfcFacetedBReps show up in these files, and there are some cases where the tessellation isn’t optimized for the reference view; this will be improved in upcoming releases.

Export Bug Fixes:

– Update the French resources file that prevented IFC export from working on computers with a French OS.

The Best just got Better, IFC for Revit 2015 v15.2.0 released

October 1, 2014May 7, 2017 Luke Johnson

It hasn’t shown up on Exchange yet, but it is already available for download on the Sourceforge page. There is an update to IFC 2015 (the one that is really robust, fast and accurate for Import and Export), and also some updates to 2014 IFC addins.

Direct link to the MSI installer for Revit 2015

Some of my testing:
30% file size reduction in RVT when using Link IFC on 85mb steel model from Tekla v16.1
v15.1.0 = 297mb
v15.2.0 = 210mb

66% file size increase in IFC when using export IFC to all proxies:
v15.1.0 = 288mb
v15.2.0 = 478mb

ifc2x3certificationlogo_arch-e-25-9660159

Some key Export improvements from the readme (I’ve underlined points of interest):
– The functionality for creating and using user-defined property sets has been greatly enhanced. This includes:
– Added a “DefaultUserDefinedParameterSets.txt” file to allow a user to create user-defined property sets for any setup, including the in-session setup.
– Added the “IFC2x3 Extended FM Handover View.txt” user-defined property sets file to the installation. This also fixes a typo in the original version.
– Allow the user to specify any file as a user-defined property set file, instead of being forced to use the default name and location.
– Increased the types of fields that can be used from the original 4. The full list is detailed in the DefaultUserDefinedParameterSets.txt file.
– The Setup dialog for the export alternate UI has been split into 3 tabbed pages to make it easier to find and understand the export options.

– Significantly improve performance when trying to export a highly-tessellated geometry.

New Import Functionality:

– Add an “IfcMaterial” field that contains the material name(s) associated with the element.
– Add an “IfcSpatialContainer” field that contains the name of the project, building, building story or space that contains the element.
– Create multiple layers for simple cases of elements where IfcMateralLayerSetUsage is defined.
– Import IfcGrids. There are some fundamental differences between IFC and Revit Grids, most notably that IFC grids are per-view, and Revit Grids are per-model. As such, there may be cases where some grid lines show up in more views than initially designated in the IFC file.
– Improve healing and logging of imported solid data that is slightly dirty. This should result in fewer missing objects.

Import Bug Fixes:
– Fix “missing” faces when elements were cut by openings and the IfcOpeningElement sub-category had its visibility turned off.
– Handle unbound circles used for profile definitions in certain cases.

Heads-up https://twitter.com/digiacomoemma/status/517072219739291648

Revit IFC Exports – the IfcExportAs parameter vs the Exporter mapping and preferences

July 16, 2014May 7, 2017 Luke Johnson

An interesting discussion has been brewing over on LinkedIn about IFC Export from Revit. In my personal experience, the most predictable results come from deleting the IfcExportAs parameter and using the IFC mapping files to force the export result. However, this may not be the best path for data longevity and roundtripping.

Here is one little excerpt from Wawan Solihin:
The use of IfcExportAs is more suited for mapping detailed subtype or predefined type of MEP components that are mostly defined by families and often they do not correspond 1-1 nicely with IFC definitions. So instead of getting a generic IfcBuildingElementProxy for a family type that does not have clear mapping to the IFC entity, one can use IfcExporAs to define the IFC type it is intended to be plus its subtype for example IfcSensorType.CO2SENSOR that will create IFC entity IfcDistributionControlElement with type IfcSensorType and predefinedtype=’CO2SESNSOR’ in IFC2x3 (or entity IfcSensor in IFC4). This is just one example. There are other entities in IFC that must have mandatory attribute set, e.g. IfcReinforcingMesh which has several mandatory attributes such as LongitudinalBarNominalDiameter. Unless those attributes are set and Revit IfcExporter knows where to get the relevant information, you will get invalid entity information in IFC.

Read the whole thread:
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Revit-IFC-Exports-3690870%2ES%2E5891816567016034308

Heads up via @theoryshaw