Previously it has been possible to upload ifc files to two separate places on Catenda Hub.

With the models as documents function these two locations for model files will be merged into one seamless function.

If you make a model in the models section, a document will be linked and created in the documents section. If you upload an IFC document you can use the "make model" action button to link and create a model in the models section.

With this function models in the models section can be handled like documents while models in the documents section can be handled just like models.

This article contains information about the following topics:

Now that the two sections have been linked it is important to note that there are still some key differences between the models and the documents sections.

In the models section you will be able to see all model-documents gathered in a list.

Here you will see your model-documents in a way that is similar to how they will be used in the 3D viewer.

In the documents section you will be able to see document-models in your document structure. Here you will see your document-models in a way that is similar to how they will be used in your common data environment.

All models are linked to each their own document and features from both sections can be used in both the models section and in the documents section.

With models as documents, the models section has changed in appearance. Instead of seeing menu items for each model they will now appear in a searchable table.

In the models section you will be able to find the following changes:

The model list has columns which display most of the information you need to know about your models.

By default you will see the model name of the model-document here.

The model name is also the name you will see in the revision selector in the 3D view.

You will also be able to see the document name and revision name column to see what name the document-model as in the documents section.

If a model has been hidden from you in the documents section you will still see it in the models table and revision selector as in the past, but will not be able to open it in 3D.

With the model table you can now select a range of models by holding shift and add or remove models from your selection with control.

Compared to only being able to open the selected models in 3D it is now possible to download, remove and open the 2D view of your selected models.

If you delete a model that is connected to a document, the document will loose the model connection, but the document will remain in the document section.

Creating a model-document

If you make a model with the create model button in the models section you will be asked to select where you want the linked document-model to end up in the documents-section.

In the create model dialogue you will also be able to give the model a name.

The resulting linked document-model will have the same as the model when it is created.

Catenda Hub will remember the folder you chose last and will automatically select it the next time you create a model-document.

If models as documents is enabled for a project that did not start out with this feature, a folder called 'Models' will appear in your folder structure containing all document-models that are linked to model-documents in the model section.

Document-models can be moved out of this folder to anywhere in the documents section you have access to and the models folder can be deleted if desired.

Creating a model-revision

To be able to upload new revisions to a model you now need at least write access to the document model. New revisions to the model can be added to the document and vice versa.

Downloading a model-revision

You need at least read access to the document-model to be able to download the model.

A right information panel will be available if a models i selected.

In this panel you will see your model information as well as a gray field that links to the document-model in the document section that is linked to this model-document.

You can now also add labels to your models.

While the visual changes are not as apparent as in the models section there are a few things that will change to the documents section when models as documents is activated.

In the documents section you will be able to find the following changes:

As soon as you have any models in the models section you will see a model filter appear in your filter menu. With this filter you can show/hide any document-models that have been created.

You will be able to tell apart a document-model from a regular document by the model badge on the bottom right of its icon.

Creating document-models

To be able to upload new revisions to a model you now need at least write access to the document model.

You do this by creating a model in the hamburger menu of a document.

After you do this you will see the document as a model in the models section.

The model-document in the models section will have the same name as the document model although these can each be changed later while they stay linked.
New revisions to the model can be added as revisions to the document and vice versa.

Uploading revisions to document-models

You need at least write access to the document-model to be able to upload new revisions to the model.

This means you can use the multi-upload feature to upload ifc files to multiple document-models at once

Downloading document-models

You need at least read access to the document-model to be able to download the model.

This means that you can configure access to allow the downloading of separate models instead of just all or no models.

When you have one ore more models selected you will be able to download, delete or load the 2D/3D views of those models in the respective viewer.

This means that you can delete multiple models at once instead of one-by-one like before.

If you delete a document that is connected to a model you will have to approve a warning that the model connected to the document will also be deleted.

Document-models can now be found in the documents section like any other document.

You can add labels to your document-model to find all document-models that belong to one type or you can structure your document-models in folders to make it easier to navigate to the right set of models.

See here for suggestions on how to structure your document-models so they are easy to find.

IFC files can now be uploaded as drafts so they can go through an approval process before they are published.

Names in the documents section often include compressed abbreviations to keep the document name short while showing some information about of what this document is about. The name of the document-model can therefore be different from the name of the model-document to keep it in line with the other documents in the documents section while maintaining an easy to read name to use in the 3D viewer in the models section.

The document name of the document-model will be the name that is recognized when uploading documents to the documents section.

If the name is similar to or the same as the document, a new revision will automatically be created just like with other documents.

Because document-models behave the same as regular models it is now possible to use the naming convention with document-models to ensure that the participants of your project give the right name to the document upon uploading.