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hi, is it possible to reduce the ifc model size without losing the interoperability functionality and the ifc contents? thx, rob

as for the ifc export: apparently there are in vectorworks only article case 4 unified compositions possible. correct me anybody if i'm wrong. you can extract the takeoffs via the component numbers from vectorworks itself, but for 3rd party software such functionality is apparently invisible. this would be a vw serious drawback, should revit and archicad really have ifc export options with components differentiation, even when modelled by whole complex entities, not by components. rob

troy, i'm just scrutinising the issue, inspired by an interesting article by portuguese bim engineers: http://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/66830/2/951924.pdf i've posted an inquiry on the archicad forum, and i will talk to an archicad reseller this week. i'd generally like to know what is the best modelling practice with other vendors for the takeoffs and work scheduling. rob

i second this old question. i've found this one: http://vectorworking.novedge.com/forum/topics/point-cloud-in-imp-format can anyone update on this topic? thx, rob

hi, my bim manager has come up with another task: he'd like me to export the walls and slabs into the ifc file that can be read by navisworks by components, and not as a whole wall piece. i.e. the wall core, wall insulation, interior plaster, all separately for material take-offs from the ifc file. apparently (as he maintains) there is a revit and archicad ifc export option to divide the thing into components, read by model evaluating softwares. i don't know revit, and in archicad 16 i still can't find this functionality among, to be frank, many various ifc export parameters, so i can't verify his claim. is anything similar possible in vw? thx, rob

well, not really. the 3d appearance in the model of the window-in-wall with overlapping insulation is non-existent. when will it be fixed eventually? rob

seems to have been fixed in the v2014. for me it's a closed case. rob

jeff, thanks for the input. i've worked for a few hours checking all the elements, and i think i have found the reason: a wall has been improperly fitted to the roof geometry above and the operation has apparently spoiled the whole building. i thought it might have been some bug in the v2012 ifc generation, but it's not the case. anyway, i'm currently waiting for the new release to arrive, i hope to encounter a much better ifc performance when it comes to the boolean operations. i expect the ifc zip to help reduce the model file size, too. my uncompressed model is now over 110 mb in size, and the site model is even not included. rob

i still can't resolve the issue. the faulty walls are not appearing properly in other bim authoring tools (here an archicad import). at the end of the day the walls are completely useless: no openings are present while importing, no material is being displayed. the proper walls have a semi-transparent look in the solibri, the faulty ones are opaque. can anybody help with any clue what's going on? thanks. rob

i've managed to get it working. here's the latest dongle driver for a mac: http://sentinelcustomer.safenet-inc.com/sentineldownloads/?s=&c=End+User&p=HASP4&o=Mac&t=all&l=English the installation reestablished the dongle functionality. sorry for the mess. rob

hi, while waiting for my vw2014 installation i've transferred my data from one computer to another one via time machine due to the display damage of the first one. the new macbook pro is a mavericks with usb 3.0 dongle, but the vw2012 won't start as the dongle doesn't light up. the reinstallation of the dongle support package fails (it says it's already installed). i'd like to work further on my files before i upgrade to vw2014, what workaround is available? thx, rob

michael, thanks a lot, great stuff you're exploring the boundaries of the application. give me a few days to chew on it. besides, i'll upgrade to v2014 in two-weeks time. rob

well, no, not the schedule itself -> the label, displayed graphically on the floor plan. rob

yes, that's my goal. one column would suffice (for the label). rob

hi, is there a way to have a door schedule in two rows on a plan? i mean e.g. one row for an id prefix, the other one for the id label. or even the third one for the id suffix? thx, rob

jeez, i have autosave every 45 minutes and with files over 250 mb the saving times are annoying nevertheless. it's but still vw2012...

i still don't get the reset, but i've managed to copy the window attributes from an older file. i've noticed that if the sash width offset was set to 'null', the window looked ok. when i change it to the desired offset of a value '2', the blue fill comes in. rob

hi, after some strange vw settings reset (most of the classes have got fills with solids), the windows have now a part filled, although all window classes have been manually repaired (sill, glazing, lintel). it's the same look all windows have in 2d floor plan views. can anybody help to remove the fill? i may have forgotten some obscure class. it's been not a good week with vw... thx. rob

hi, the list of troubles won't end, now i have an ifc export issue. the walls, previously displaying in solibri with semi-transparency and with materials listed in the attributes table (to the left), now, after having been modelled with integrated columns (walls have been cut into pieces) and fitted to the slab above, have lost their materials and that semi-transparency from older ifc export version. i enclose a solibri screenshot with a messed-up wall selected, and also a screenshot with a part of this wall with previous, proper appearance. additionally vw crashes a few moments after generating the ifc model. is there a way to check what's going on? btw, how can i roll back the 'fit wall to roof' command? in archicad there are a few options of removing the seo's for operators and target shapes. is something like this present in vw? thx, rob

dieter, ok, so it's the floor plan bounding. i can do this while creating a slab (bounding to the walls automatically or via manual polyline shape). there's but no way to change the manual bounding to the 'pick boundary' when the slab is already created, if that's what you mean. the selection returns to 'manual', when clicked. i can't thus see the components in the object info, the button is greyed-out (the one under the selection to the right on the pic). is this the right interpretation of what you've posted? update: ok, the slab was determined earlier, so the components are available from the settings of this particular slab, for all its appearances in the project. i can set the bounding here (auto-bound to the wall or core faces - outer or inner), but it doesn't work the way i want them (see my previous posts). rob

@dieter i still don't get it. you bind them manually or using the components settings? rob

hi, me again i've got a window where i want to set the components overlap for better thermal insulation. the window setting > exterior wall detail > set to number of components '1' actually works, but the component display is non-existent. the wall has components of hatch fill, but the window-in-wall components don't show this way (a picture). they're blank. is there a way to repair it? rob

thanks, sonny. i was aware of the direction, but the error in reasoning was on my side. i generally use all composed elements' assignment to the overall classes. i.e. all external walls are in the class 'wall-external', and their components are in the various subclasses, like 'wall-concrete', 'wall-insulation' a.s.o. here i must treat the whole shape as a component. the result is: i must create the particularly shaped slabs as a mix of component elements, placed in appropriate classes. thanks again for the correction in my thinking. rob

as it turns out, my trouble with roof faces is practically the same as with extrudes: i can't assign materials to the slab. and i need them for the materials take-off. is there a way to assign, say, material concrete (the same as in the wall or slab components) to a modelled 3d shape (such as extrude, roof face, hardscape or any other solid)? i presume, only in this way i can complete the materials summary. am i right? i'm amazed how i missed this until now? thanks in advance, rob

yeah, it makes sense. i have to do it for the last slab, which is bent in 3d. btw, how do you mean 'bind them'? i thought the construction slab is extending to the wall cores outer face (i can manage it manually, like in the 3rd shot from my post #197875), and the finish slab is being modelled when the walls are already set (like in real life), within the rooms, right? and yes, the troubles remain with the door areas. or do you mean the finish slab everywhere, not cut in pieces of each room size? thanks for input. rob