Archicad to Revit

[Stephen Dolbee]

We might soon be working with an architect who uses Revit. Is it possible to import a model drawn with Archicad into Revit-or from Revit into Archicad? If so, how-and what gets lost in the translation? In the past we have only had to create .dwg's (simple 2d drawings) when working with engineers. Thanks.

[NandoMogollon]

Hi,

I have done such things... you can make it work trough IFC file formats with the right Model View Definition (MVD), for architectural exchange I try to use BREP, which keeps the actual geometry at the expense of some information.

Just be aware: It is not a process of saving as ***.ifc here, and import ***.icf there, and everything is perfect.

IFC was meant for model referencing and information exchange, not for drawings.

So keeping that in mind, the answer is yes you can do that with a good level of success. Just be aware of a few things:

• -most basic elements work pretty well: walls, slabs, columns and beams, doors and windows. these will translate into the equivalent in each other software.
  -other things like curtain walls, stairs, objects in general may loose their parametric properties and become static.
  -most software specific adjustments and connections may be lost (SEOs from ArchiCAD and Joins / Cuts from Revit), adjust to Roofs and shells, etc...
  -you will need a workflow for file exchanges, and run file validations with an IFC reader: I suggest Solibri or BIMSight. basically you check the files in their way out and in their way in, to make sure they are what they are supposed to be.

I general terms ArchiCAD handles the IFC format in a smarter way, It even gives you the freedom to check differences between two IFC files, Add elements to an existing IFC files in a accumulative maner, and add ifc properties to your ArchiCAD files.

If you can, find some help from a BIM consultant to get into the first exchanges, and once you establish a regular workflow, you will be good to go.

[Anonymous]

I do quite a bit of back and forth between ArchiCAD and Revit.

IFC is generally best but does have limitations and generally requires some setup and tweaks. Sometimes other formats will do the trick depending on the requirements.

I do this sort of thing as a consultant. Please feel free to PM me if you want some help.

[Stephen Dolbee]

Thank you both for your replies. Matthew, I might take you up on that depending on what transpires.

[Anonymous]

All this talk about IFCs being used for reference has really crystallized the whole debate for me.

The recommended workflow and use of IFCs as a reference means that everything from my consultant team must be redocumented in ArchiCAD. And when changes are made I need to update my model to match. So basically the ArchiCAD user must have the MEP add-on for ductwork etc and model all that too...


So how does the ArchiCAD user compete with the Revit user who brings in the Revit structure or MEP model natively and has no re-modelling to do, and no checking for changes to carry out? Then there are all the high fidelity rvt families out there for products - and I have to recreate them too?

In very little time even my efficient use of ArchiCAD will look sick compared to that seamless integration...please convince me otherwise?

[Anonymous]

rwallis wrote:
In very little time even my efficient use of ArchiCAD will look sick compared to that seamless integration...please convince me otherwise?

Such seamless integration is only an advantage when everyone is using Revit. This is not as common as you might think. Revit MEP is not very popular so far from what I've seen. AutoCAD MEP still seems prevalent on the design side and fabricators won't touch Revit. This may change but then IFC support keeps getting better as well. Even Autodesk is getting more on board from what I see.

The bigger advantage is on the structural side where quite a few engineers are adopting Revit, but there are many who use Tekla and perhaps SDS as well.

So you are right to a point. This is an advantage to Revit and one that will get stronger as Revit improves. Whether this proves overwhelming is yet to be seen but I doubt it. ArchiCAD still has significant performance and productivity advantages and it too keeps getting better.

I guess in the end it comes down to how much time you spend linking and coordinating Revit MEP and Revit Structure models but it would require it to become a pretty frequent activity to overcome ArchiCAD's other advantages.

[Laszlo Nagy]

rwallis wrote:
All this talk about IFCs being used for reference has really crystallized the whole debate for me.

The recommended workflow and use of IFCs as a reference means that everything from my consultant team must be redocumented in ArchiCAD. And when changes are made I need to update my model to match. So basically the ArchiCAD user must have the MEP add-on for ductwork etc and model all that too...


So how does the ArchiCAD user compete with the Revit user who brings in the Revit structure or MEP model natively and has no re-modelling to do, and no checking for changes to carry out? Then there are all the high fidelity rvt families out there for products - and I have to recreate them too?

In very little time even my efficient use of ArchiCAD will look sick compared to that seamless integration...please convince me otherwise?

Why would you have to remodel everything in ArchiCAD?
In ArchiCAD you do your architectural part. You can have the structural, MEP etc. part within your project as reference as needed. Then the structural engineer will do his/her structural modeling/drawing part.
Why would you have to remodel them?
It is true that if for example, the structural engineer changes column sizes, then you would update your model accordingly. But that is far from remodeling everything they do.
As far as MEP, I don't think you need to remodel those in ArchiCAD, it is enough to have them in your project, inserted as a Module so you see where they are and can see possible collisions.
Do you see it differently?