BIM project organization

Projects and folders: how a BIM project is structured in SeveUp App

A BIM project quickly piles up models, documents and checking rules. You need to know which ones belong together and what they are compared against. SeveUp App sorts all of this on two levels.

The first level is called "Projects". A project usually carries the name of a development, and it can depend on a "Parent project" to hold sub-projects. The project selector, at the top of the sidebar, switches from one to another. The library only shows the content of the current project. Some SeveUp pages speak of a space: it is the same object.

The second level is called "Folders". A folder groups the models, documents, BIM requirements and dashboards of one scope, for example a building or a phase. Its tabs follow that split: "Setup", "Models", "Documents", "BIM requirements", "Generated dashboards" and "3D views". You link resources that already sit in the library.

Your models may already be sorted into directories on a computer. In that case, the "Import PC folders" button creates one folder per dropped directory, as long as it contains .ifc or .ifczip files. Names already taken are unchecked to avoid duplicates.

A folder setup: base point, storeys and expected properties

The setup defines what every model of a folder must comply with. Two models placed differently overlap badly in coordination. The setup shows it at upload time, model by model, rather than in a clash meeting.

The "Coordinates" step describes the expected base point: the "Unit", the X, Y and Z values, the "Tolerance (m)", the "Expected true north (°)" and the "Coordinate system (EPSG)". An empty axis is not compared, which has nothing to do with a zero value. The tolerance also applies to storey elevations. In the IFC standard, georeferencing goes through the IfcMapConversion entity and storeys through IfcBuildingStorey.

The "Storeys" step lists the expected storeys with their elevation. The "Compared elevation" choice offers two modes. "Absolute elevation" detects a different height datum between models, while "Elevation relative to the building" only looks at the storey elevation within the building. A storey without an elevation is compared by name only.

The "Data" step covers the property sets and properties each model must contain. From a reference model, the assistant shows the fill rate of each property and can pre-select those that reach a threshold. You can also "Paste a list" or "Import from a folder IDS".

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Configure a folder setup, step by step

The assistant opens from a folder's "Setup" tab, or from the "Setup" entry in its row menu in the "Folders" list. Nothing is saved before the last step. The configure folder setup guide complements this walkthrough.

1. Open the folder, then the "Setup" tab. If it has no setup yet, click "Set up the folder".
2. Choose the "Starting point": "From a reference model", "Reuse another folder's setup" or "Start from scratch". A folder that is already set up also offers "Start from the current setup".
3. With a reference model, the base point, storeys and property sets are read from the file. Check them in the "Coordinates" and "Storeys" steps, especially the unit and the elevation mode.
4. In the "Data" step, keep the properties every model must carry, or import them from an IDS attached to the folder.
5. In the "Summary", read "What changes compared with the current setup" then "Effect on the folder's models", which counts compliant models, those with gaps and those not processed yet. Then click "Confirm and save".
6. With each new revision of the reference model, a banner lists the values that change. "Review and apply" takes those values, "Ignore" keeps the setup as it is.

Revision retention, naming conventions and IFC spaces

A model piles up revisions as files are uploaded, and all of them are kept by default. The "Revision retention" setting is made per top-level project, from the settings icon on its row in the "Projects" list. The "Revisions to keep per model" field sets how many to keep. Beyond that, the oldest ones are archived, hidden but restorable for 90 days, then permanently deleted. The configure revision retention guide gives the details.

Naming conventions, depending on the plan, validate model names on import. A convention is defined by a delimiter and properties. Assigned during a bulk import, it automatically rejects incorrectly named files. Forms, also depending on the plan, are built from sections and typed fields. Both modules are still being rolled out.

In an IFC model, rooms, premises and zones are spaces, described by the IfcSpace entity. The understand space cards guide sets out this vocabulary. In the 3D viewer, the IfcSpace and IfcZone classes are hidden on opening, because their volumes wrap walls, doors and windows. Shown again from the class tree, they appear in a very transparent tint.

Common mistakes when setting up a BIM project

The costliest one is to pick a badly placed model as the reference. The assistant suggests what it reads. If the model uses local coordinates (0, 0, 0), that is what will be suggested, and correctly georeferenced models will come out with gaps. Check the base point before confirming, and the unit too: the assistant warns you when it could not read it.

An empty axis and an axis at zero do not say the same thing. Left empty, Z is not compared. Set to 0, it requires a zero elevation and flags every model placed at its real altitude.

The elevation mode depends on the project. If all models share the same height datum, the absolute mode spots the one that drifts. If each design office works in relative elevations, the relative mode avoids gaps that are not real.

A last trap is folders without a project. A folder attached to no project stays invisible in the library, which is filtered by project. The folders list groups them under "Folders without a project", with an action to attach them to the current project. Deleting a folder archives it, and "Restore" brings it back. "Delete permanently", on the other hand, erases models, documents, BIM requirements and dashboards with no way back.

Going further

The setup checks how a model is placed and the data it is expected to carry. The health of the file itself belongs to IFC quality and audit. To require properties by class or by value, see BIM requirements and IDS. A folder's results are then read in dashboards and reporting, and the manage IFC models guide covers uploading models. For the international vocabulary behind information requirements, the BEP and the common data environment, see our ISO 19650 overview.