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IFC Open BIM Workflow

Process IFC files for open BIM collaboration with external partners.

Workflow Overview

External Partners
ArchiCAD
Tekla
Bentley
Other BIM
IFC Exchange
IFC Files
RAPS Processing
Upload
Translate SVF2
APS Cloud
OSS Bucket
Viewables
Metadata
Coordination
Forge Viewer
Reports
Partners→IFC→Process→Cloud→Output

CLI Approach

Step 1: Upload IFC File

raps object upload my-bucket model.ifc

Step 2: Translate to SVF2

URN=$(raps object urn my-bucket model.ifc --output plain)
raps translate start "$URN" --format svf2 --wait

Step 3: Verify Translation

raps translate manifest "$URN"

Step 4: Extract IFC Data

# Get metadata
raps derivative metadata "$URN" --output json > ifc-metadata.json

# Get IFC property sets
raps derivative properties "$URN" --output json > ifc-properties.json

# Get model hierarchy
raps derivative tree "$URN" --output json > ifc-tree.json

Step 5: Analyze IFC Content

# Count elements by IFC type
cat ifc-properties.json | jq '
  group_by(.properties.IfcType) |
  map({type: .[0].properties.IfcType, count: length}) |
  sort_by(-.count)'

# List all property sets
cat ifc-properties.json | jq '[.[].properties | keys] | flatten | unique'

CI/CD Pipeline

# .github/workflows/ifc-processing.yml
name: IFC Processing Pipeline

on:
  push:
    paths:
      - 'ifc/**/*.ifc'

env:
  BUCKET: ifc-exchange-${{ github.repository_id }}

jobs:
  process-ifc:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Install RAPS
        run: cargo install raps

      - name: Setup bucket
        env:
          APS_CLIENT_ID: ${{ secrets.APS_CLIENT_ID }}
          APS_CLIENT_SECRET: ${{ secrets.APS_CLIENT_SECRET }}
        run: |
          raps bucket create --key "$BUCKET" --policy persistent --region US 2>/dev/null || true

      - name: Process IFC files
        env:
          APS_CLIENT_ID: ${{ secrets.APS_CLIENT_ID }}
          APS_CLIENT_SECRET: ${{ secrets.APS_CLIENT_SECRET }}
        run: |
          mkdir -p ./ifc-reports

          for ifc in ifc/**/*.ifc; do
            [ -f "$ifc" ] || continue

            filename=$(basename "$ifc")
            name="${filename%.ifc}"

            echo "Processing: $ifc"

            # Upload
            raps object upload "$BUCKET" "$ifc"

            # Translate
            URN=$(raps object urn "$BUCKET" "$filename" --output plain)
            raps translate start "$URN" --format svf2 --wait

            # Extract metadata
            raps derivative metadata "$URN" --output json > "./ifc-reports/${name}-metadata.json"
            raps derivative properties "$URN" --output json > "./ifc-reports/${name}-properties.json"

            # Generate report
            echo "# IFC Report: $filename" > "./ifc-reports/${name}-report.md"
            echo "Processed: $(date)" >> "./ifc-reports/${name}-report.md"
            echo "" >> "./ifc-reports/${name}-report.md"
            echo "## Element Count by Type" >> "./ifc-reports/${name}-report.md"
            cat "./ifc-reports/${name}-properties.json" | jq -r '
              group_by(.properties.IfcType) |
              map({type: .[0].properties.IfcType, count: length}) |
              sort_by(-.count) |
              .[] | "- \(.type): \(.count)"
            ' >> "./ifc-reports/${name}-report.md"
          done

      - name: Upload reports
        uses: actions/upload-artifact@v4
        with:
          name: ifc-reports
          path: ./ifc-reports/

Pipeline Flow

Git Push
ifc/**/*.ifc changed
For Each IFC
Upload to OSS
↓
Translate SVF2
↓
Extract Metadata
↓
Generate Report
Artifacts
metadata.json
properties.json
report.md

MCP Integration

Process IFC from Partner

User: "We received IFC files from the structural engineer. Upload them and check if they translated correctly."
User
AI Assistant
RAPS MCP
APS Cloud
Process partner IFC files
→
aps_object_upload()
→
Upload IFC
→
aps_translate_start()
→
Wait for completion:
aps_translate_manifest()
→
Check status
→
aps_derivative_properties()
→
Get properties
→
IFC data
←
Translation complete + summary

AI Response:

The structural IFC file has been uploaded and translated successfully.

Model Summary:

  • File: structural-model.ifc
  • Status: Complete
  • Elements: 2,847 total

By IFC Type:

  • IfcColumn: 156
  • IfcBeam: 89
  • IfcSlab: 12
  • IfcFooting: 24
  • IfcWall: 45
  • IfcConnection: 2,521

Compare IFC Versions

User: "Compare the structural IFC we received today with last week's version"

AI Response:

IFC Version Comparison:

Element TypeLast WeekTodayChange
IfcColumn148156+8
IfcBeam8589+4
IfcSlab12120
IfcFooting24240
Total2,7892,847+58

New elements appear to be in Grid Lines E-F, Levels 3-4.

IFC Validation

Check Required Properties

# Verify all elements have required properties
cat ifc-properties.json | jq '
  [.[] | select(
    .properties.GlobalId == null or
    .properties.Name == null
  )] | length'

Export Property Set Summary

# List all Pset definitions
cat ifc-properties.json | jq '
  [.[].properties | to_entries | .[] | select(.key | startswith("Pset_"))] |
  group_by(.key) |
  map({pset: .[0].key, count: length})'

Validate IFC Schema

# Check IFC types distribution
cat ifc-properties.json | jq '
  group_by(.properties.IfcType) |
  map({
    type: .[0].properties.IfcType,
    count: length,
    hasGlobalId: ([.[] | select(.properties.GlobalId != null)] | length),
    hasName: ([.[] | select(.properties.Name != null)] | length)
  }) |
  sort_by(-.count)'