• Forma

Send a proposal from Revit back to Forma

Send an updated proposal with changes made in Revit from Revit back to Forma.


Step-by-step guide

Taking advantage of the interoperability between Forma and Revit can enhance the design process. After sending a Forma proposal to Revit to develop design components, it can be sent back to update the proposal in Forma. This enables further analysis and measurement against project goals as the design progresses.

  1. In Revit, open the Forma proposal.

In the Revit interface, the open Forma design displays a proposed group of model buildings surrounded by contextual buildings, trees, roads, and other design components

  1. Complete any necessary design changes.

In this example, the surrounding design components are hidden to create a clean view of the proposed buildings. Then, to simulate a typical workflow, the selected exterior walls of the tallest building are changed to Exterior Glazing, and the roof slope is changed for two of the structures.

The Forma proposal in the Revit drawing area, with all of the design components hidden except the proposed buildings, while changes are being made to the rooflines of two of the buildings.

To send the updated design back to Forma:

  1. On the ribbon, select the Massing & Site tab.
  2. In the Forma panel, select Update Proposal.
  3. In the Update Forma Proposal dialog box, expand the drop-down.

Note: Selecting (none) synchronizes the whole model, and selecting Cover Sheet View or 3D sends specific elements for update.

  1. In this case, select (3D).

The Revit drawing window showing the Update Forma Proposal (Beta) dialog box, with 3D being selected in the expanded drop-down, and in the background, the model group, with changed rooflines on two of the buildings.

  1. Click Update.

A confirmation message specifies the elements that Forma will create and those it will convert to meshes.

A Revit confirmation message specifying the elements that Forma will create and those it will convert to meshes, with the option to select Yes or No.

  1. Click Yes to load the proposal.
  2. Open Forma.
  3. In the Navigator, select the proposal that was just sent back from Revit—in this case, the Forma Revit link proposal.

On the canvas, notice that the two buildings without Revit changes remain Forma-native, meaning that the areas for these buildings can still be viewed in the right panel.

The Forma interface, showing the proposal sent back from Revit open on the canvas. The two buildings without Revit changes are called out, one of these buildings is selected, and areas for the selected building are displayed in the right panel.

However, the buildings with Revit changes are now converted to mesh objects, and Forma is currently unable to calculate the areas for these buildings.

In Forma, one of the buildings with Revit changes is selected on the canvas, with no area metrics calculated in the right panel.

Note that these area numbers can be controlled in Revit. It is also possible to add or remove buildings in Revit, and those changes will be reflected in Forma.