The Apple Silicon version of the Archicad connector is planned for the next version (2.16).
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- Does Archicad currently support the display of Properties (Property Manager)?
- Where exactly can I view information about a Layer?
- Is it planned to analyze such functions that are not directly reflected in the model, such as the Library Manager?
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Hi @_Sergii_Holomah,
Speckle supports number of properties from Archicad and the easiest way to find them is in the web viewer. Just select any object and you can see all data associated with it. All model data is available in the data panel on the left.
Unfortunately, layer information is currently not supported but it can be added. Could you tell me how would this help you in your workflow? Also, more details on your Library Manager use case would be hugely appreciated.
There are more ways to access non-geometrical data for analysis and dashboards. You can try our Excel and PowerBI Connectors or Specklepy.
Thanks Pavol Knapo, I know about these panels and the properties you show. But I want to analyze the files created by my colleagues in as much detail as possible. Therefore, I need to know whether the layer of an element in the model is correctly selected. In Archicad, one of the weak points is the library manager. It contains the Library Embedded area, where third-party libraries can be loaded. Therefore, I would like to control the use of these libraries. Whether they are really used in the project, as well as the size and content of this library in the file. In addition, I want to perform the most detailed analysis of the information in the file using Power BI. This information, in addition to the standard information available, currently does not contain properties that are set formally in Property Manager. Therefore, I really need access to this data.
Our Archicad Connector is still in development and it doesn’t support all properties and types, unsupported types are imported as morphs (direct shapes).
However, we already implemented classification properties, maybe this could be a viable workflow at the moment. See this example
Demo project
Archicad Classification Demo.pbix (1.7 MB)
Which library specific properties you would need for your PowerBI analysis?
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Thank you, Pavol Knapo, for the great example! But I’ve already implemented everything you show in the Power BI example before. Unfortunately, you only use the Speckle and Archicad classification of elements. I need some other entities, such as Property Manager, IFC Properties, Layers. I am looking forward to the implementation of these items. If you need any help with testing the application in the Archicad/Power Bi environment, please contact
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Thank you for your feedback, we will definitely add more Archicad/IFC properties to support your workflow soon.
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As for the Library Manager. You need access to:
- its contents (all nested items)
- The names of the items
- The volume of these elements
- Statuses of using elements (objects, instance, attributes)
- Warnings related to libraries
Hi Pavol,
We are a company in Hong Kong that has been using Archicad and Rhino for many years. We are trying to implement Speckle in our daily work and it’s fantastic, but one of the first limitations we found with the current version of the AC connector AND the web viewer is that doesn’t support LAYERS and CLASSIFICATIONS. Those 2 are the most important properties probably together with the unique ID, element ID and custom properties.
Those are the base data of any work in Archicad. The tool is way less important than Classifications or layers.
In our workflow with Rhino, currently, all the elements get the layer of the tool they are using in Archicad to be made. (zone, slab, column…) so if you build a piece of furniture with a slab tool, you will be stuck with a table in the slab layer inside Rhino, as well as in the web viewer.
For this reason, archicad relies heavily on layers AND classifications (classifications, more in line with BIM workflows). Each element gets classified with the purpose, regardless of the tool that you have used to build it. Another step of this workflow will be to separate the elements into layers. For instance, furniture built with slabs can be added in a “loose furniture layer” or “fixed furniture layer”
Lastly, more advanced workflows will include the addition of custom properties to further inform those elements with other pieces of data (fire rating, stage, subcontractor… anything you can think of)
Rhino layers should inherit directly the layers from Archicad (that would be the preferred workflow and that is what happens now if you save a AC file into Rhino format)
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Hey Jorge,
Great to hear that you enjoy your experience with Speckle and thank you for your feedback.
Model objects in Speckle are organised in collections by object type, structure we implement consistently across all our connectors. This is geared towards object type workflows but I understand your preference for layers. We will add layer property to Archicad objects which will help to filter the model and will enable re-shuffling your model by layer with automation features we are currently working on, more news soon.
Classification properties have been implemented recently and you access them in any object. It is currently not possible to filter by classification in the Viewer but our aim is to enable filtering by any property. By the way, we will talk about the latest Viewer updates at our next Community Stand Up next week, check it out.
In the meantime, you can try our PowerBI Connector with embedded Viewer which gives you more flexibility and allows filtering by classification. Here is a demo:
https://speckle.xyz/streams/82b42e69c4/commits/33803aa26f
Archicad Classification Demo.pbix (1.7 MB)
Receiving BIM objects with properties to Rhino is already enabled for Revit and Archicad will follow too. You will be able to access object data in user attributes.
Could you tell me more about your workflows? You build furniture pieces in Archicad and then you send to Rhino for fabrication documentation? Do you also send models from Rhino to Archicad? Any more details would be great.
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With AC27 released - is there a timetable for compatibility update?
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Hi @tsor we are going to add support for Archicad 27 either in the current or the next release. Stay tuned.
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Hi Pavol! Sorry for the late reply. I’d be happy to set a zoom call for a more in-depth conversation about workflows in Archicad and why classifications, custom properties and layers are very important.
We are an architectural design company, working mainly in large urban developments, residential towers and other typologies. https://www.weareenzyme.com/
We use Archicad as our BIM tool, as a repository of the project data and as a documentation tool. We go in and out to Rhino/Grasshopper, sometimes Blender or SketchUp (less and less) for the specific design of elements, or for automation/connection to other sources (rhino/grasshopper) but at the end all our models are compiled into Archicad for documentation, scheduling, and detailing.
I would like to use Speckle to enhance all these workflows but also as a tool to audit the project, collaborate with other stakeholders, generate reports and even use webhooks, and automation for different tasks. I am currently exploring the Speckle APIs to see what can we do with the data that is in Speckle, to improve the productivity of the team, connect with other sources… etc
As @leceta mentioned, we are also developing an opensource Python API for ArchiCAD that will enable automation and manipulation of data inside ArchiCAD, and perhaps there are possible workflows between speckle and tapir. (https://www.archicad-api.com/)(GitHub - ENZYME-APD/tapir-archicad-automation: The easiest way to use the JSON/Python API from Archicad without knowing how to code.)
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Hey @j.beneitez , sounds like we have a lot to discuss 
Please find a suitable time in my calendar and we take it from there.
I have used TApir in grasshopper to add quantities and other data that was missing from “vanilla” AC streams, creating an “augmented” commit that we fed into LCA or other analysis workflows. So I am very excited about you guys joining forces here, keep up the good work!
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Done! See you next week!
This is wonderful! Thanks for sharing @Andrei. I’d be happy to explore more of these integrations and collaborations between the two projects
Just noticed that support for AC27 was included in one of the latest versions. Appreciate the effort to keep it supported - keep up the good work 
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@tsor: How did you manage that? We are currently trying it out and it does not allow to open it. For our project we would very likely need to Archicad 27 support .
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