Managing BCF Information

BIM Collaboration Format (BCF) allows collaborators to exchange comments between software applications without exchanging the entire BIM model. Issues, proposals, and change requests about a project are “topics” in the BCF file, linked to specific objects in the BIM model. The BCF file only contains comments; it does not modify the model. It can be used to navigate to issues in the model, respond to comments, assign, and resolve issues.

The Vectorworks program allows BCF files to be created, opened, modified, and saved.

There are two typical workflows that take advantage of BCF functionality.

●    If exchanging information from a colleague through IFC, import the IFC file into the Vectorworks program, and open the associated .bcfzip file. Navigate to the issues, add or change topics and comments, and save the .bcfzip file to return to your colleague.

●    In the Vectorworks program, create or open a model, and export it as an IFC project. Open it in Solibri Model Checker for evaluation and presentation, and save comments, issues, and requests as a .bcfzip file. You or your colleague can then open the model and the .bcfzip file in the Vectorworks program; navigate to the issues, add or change topics and comments, and save the .bcfzip and any changes to the model.

To open or view, edit, and save a BCF file:

1. Open the Vectorworks file that is associated or will become associated with the BCF file.

For best results, the BIM model in the Vectorworks file should exactly match the version of the model that was used when the BCF file was created. An alert displays if this is not the case.

2. If you are creating a new BCF file associated with the Vectorworks file, and there is an issue, comment, or change request that becomes apparent while reviewing the Vectorworks file, select the related object.

3. Select AEC > Open BCF Manager.

The Open BCF Manager command is available for Vectorworks Landmark and Spotlight software but is not present in the those workspaces. It can be added to the Landmark and Spotlight workspaces (see Customizing Workspaces).

The BCF Manager dialog box opens.

Click to show/hide the parameters.

Parameter	Description
New	Creates a new BCF file that is associated with the current Vectorworks file, automatically clearing any displayed BCF information. Save any unsaved changes before clicking New, or they will be lost.
Open	Opens a BCF file related to the project, automatically clearing any displayed BCF information. Select the desired .bcfzip file from the Open BCF dialog box and click Open. If the model in the current Vectorworks file is different from the model the BCF file was created with, an alert displays. When you open a BCF file, certain resources are added to the Vectorworks file. Save any unsaved changes before clicking Open, or they will be lost.
Save	Saves the current BCF data as a .bcfzip file. To replace the current .bcfzip file, saving any changes to topics and comments, locate and select the current file and confirm that it should be replaced. When creating a new .bcf file, a new, untitled, associated Vectorworks file is automatically created.
Close	Closes the current BCF file, automatically clearing any displayed BCF information.
Render mode	Select either Wireframe or OpenGL render mode for the snapshot display in the BCF Manager
List of Topics	Displays the topics; select a topic to view associated comments
Filters	Filters the displayed topics according to the specified criteria
Assigned to me	Displays only topics assigned to you. The Vectorworks program identifies users by Username, which is the name each person uses to log into the computer.
For selected object(s)	Displays only topics associated with the current selection in the Vectorworks drawing
Filter list	Filters the topics according to the Status; Show Only Active displays topics with a status of Open or Assigned, and Show Only Resolved displays topics with a status of Resolved or Closed.
Topic List	Lists the topics according to any set filters. Each topic’s date (of creation or modification), title, status, and type displays. The topics are listed in the order that they were created. Double-click on a topic to switch the drawing view to the location of the topic. The related objects are selected, and the view is similar to the snapshot. To make it easier to see the selected objects, the classes and layers of unselected objects are hidden. If the view does not show the correct objects, select View > Zoom > Fit to Objects to zoom in on the selected objects. Alternatively, click Fit to Objects from the View bar.
New Topic	Opens the New Topic dialog box, for adding a BCF topic as described in the following section
Edit Topic	Opens the Edit Topic dialog box, to edit the currently selected topic as described in the following section
Snapshot	Displays an image of the objects described in the selected topic; double-clicking on a topic switches the drawing to that view. If the snapshot was created in a different software application, it may not exactly match the view in the Vectorworks file.
Comments on Selected Topic	All comments associated with the selected topic display; each comment’s date, abbreviated comment text, and author displays in the list. The entire comment text for the selected comment displays at the bottom of the dialog box.
New Comment	Opens the New Comment dialog box, for adding a new comment to the selected topic as described in the following section
Edit Comment	Opens the Edit Comment dialog box, to edit the currently selected topic as described in the following section. Only the author can edit a comment. You cannot edit someone else’s comments.
Delete Comment	Deletes the currently selected comment. Only the author can delete a comment. You cannot delete someone else’s comments.
Comment	Displays the full text of the selected comment

4. After editing or creating BCF topics and comments, save the information by clicking Save and specifying a file name and location for the .bcfzip file.

5. Click OK.

Creating and Editing BCF Topics

New topics can be created for the Vectorworks model, and current topics can be edited.

To create or edit BCF topics:

1. From the BCF manager, click New Topic, or select a topic and click Edit Topic.

The New Topic or Edit Topic dialog box opens.

Click to show/hide the parameters.

Parameter	Description
Topic Title	Enter a title for the topic that describes the issue or request
Date	Displays the date/time that the topic was created or edited
Author	Displays the author’s name; the Vectorworks program identifies users by Username, which is the name each person uses to log into the computer
Description	Enter a more lengthy description, providing more details than the title if necessary
Status	Select one of four possible topic statuses
Assigned To	Enter the name (email, and so on) of the person assigned to address the issue or request
Type	Select one of six possible categories for the topic
Priority	Rank the topic by selecting one of the priority categories
Labels	Select one or more labels for the topic by clicking in the first column. A check mark in the column indicates that the label will be applied. Click again to deselect the label and remove the check mark.

2. Click OK to add or edit the topic.

Creating, Editing, and Deleting BCF Comments

A selected topic can include comments, and a snapshot associated with the comment can be saved and then displayed in the snapshot area.

Comments can only be edited or deleted by the author of the comment.

To add or edit a BCF comment:

1. From the BCF Manager, select a topic from the list of topics.

2. Comments that are already associated with the selected topic display in the Comments on Selected Topic area. Select one for editing and click Edit Comment. Create a new comment associated with the topic by clicking New Comment.

The New Comment or Edit Comment dialog box opens.

Click to show/hide the parameters.

Parameter	Description
Snapshot	Displays an attached snapshot of the current drawing view, when one has been saved with the comment
Attach Snapshot	Attaches the drawing view to the comment as a snapshot
Comment	Enter or edit a comment about the topic
Store the selection of elements	For BCF version 2.1 and later, saves the current selection status of objects in the drawing along with the comment

3. Click OK to edit the comment or to add the comment to the topic.

To delete a comment, select it and click Delete Comment.

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