IFC space analysis
The Space Analysis template is focused on the spaces defined in the BIM file. The information regarding the spaces have already been automatically extracted by Vcad when the file was first uploaded. In particular, the example shown in this article is an .ifc file and it goes without saying that it must contain spaces to use this type of template.
Template structure
The Space Analysis template has six visuals:
- Vcad custom visual with the model already setup
- Floor list
- Description and number of spaces list
- Space name list
- Number of floors selected
- Number of spaces selected
Let’s review these visuals in detail.
1. Vcad custom visual
The Vcad custom visual is already loaded in the template and set up with the model we had selected when downloading the template. The visualizer is linked to the data displayed in the other visuals allowing us to filter and highlight elements of the model base on selections in the other visuals as well as filter the data in the other visuals based on selections in the visualizer.
2. Floor list
The Floor List visual displays the list of all the floors defined in the model.
3. Description and number of spaces list
The Description and number of spaces List visual displays the list of all the description of the spaces defined in the model and its number.
4. Space name list
The Space Name List visual displays the list of all the names of the spaces defined in the model.
5. Number of floors selected
The Number of Floors selected visual displays the list of the floors selected.
6. Number of spaces selected
The Number of Spaces selected visual displays the list of the spaces selected.
Available Datasets
The template will include various datasets. These tables contain all the data extracted from the BIM file.
Asset
The ASSET table contains the data relating to each asset present in the .ifc file, name, entity, assetExternalId, assetGuid, description, type, tag, id and guid of the belonging space.
The columns that deserve more attention are the assetExternalId, tag and assetGuid.
These columns can be used as unique asset identifiers. If you want to add external data sources to the template, the added data must contain one of these values for the model and the visuals already present to be linked to them.
It is worth to mention that, differently from assetGuid and tag, the assetExternalId column may change if the model is updated later on. The software used to create the .ifc model may generate new assetExternalId values for the elements.
Asset attributes
The Asset Attributes table contains the attributes of the assets.
The link between the Asset table and the Asset Attributes table is given by the assetExternalId and / or the assetGuid. Any type of asset attribute present in the .ifc file is added to this table, thus making the complete set of information available to the user, this information can be used for creating customized reports from the downloaded template.
Floors
The Floors table contains the list of floors present in the .ifc model.
The data of the floors is fundamental in the creation of the report because, among other things, it allows you to filter the assets or spaces according to the floor they belong to. Some of the templates available on the portal www.bimservices.it use this data precisely to give the user the opportunity to isolate certain parts of the building and have a more detailed and clear view of the objects contained in the model or of the use of the spaces of a specific section.
Floor attributes
The Floors Attributes table contains the attributes of the floors.
The link between the Floors table and the Floors Attributes table is given by the FloorExternalId.
Spaces
The Spaces table contains all the spaces present in the .ifc file.
The unique index values for the Spaces table are SpaceGuid and the SpaceExternalId. In addition to the name of the spaces, the table also contains the description, which will give the intended use of the space, and is linked to the floor table via the FloorExternalId.
As for the assets, if the .ifc file is modified and subsequently extracted, regardless of what software is used, the SpaceExternalId may change, while the SpaceGuid will not. If you want to add an external data source, it is good practice to use the SpaceGuid as a unique identifier for the relationships between tables.
Space assets
The SpacesAssets table contains the space-asset association through the SpaceExternalId and the AssetExternalId.
This relationship identifies the assets contained in a certain space or, on the contrary, the space to which a certain asset belongs.
Space attributes
The Spaces Attributes table contains the attributes of the spaces present in the .ifc file.
The link between the Spaces table and the Spaces Attributes table is given by the SpaceExternalId.
Space floors
The SpacesFloors table contains the floor-space association through the FloorExternalId and the SpaceExternalId.
This relationship therefore identifies the spaces contained in a given floor or, on the contrary, the floor a given space belongs to. This relationship is used in the templates where the spaces are highlighted in addition to the selection by floor.