ifcopenshell-mcp

Talk to your BIM models in natural language. An open-source MCP server for IfcOpenShell — query, validate, convert, and compare IFC files through AI agents.

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For Architects (no coding required)

What does this do?

Drag an .ifc file into Claude and ask questions like:

"How many fire doors are on Level 2?"

Claude reads your model and answers:

Found 2 IfcDoor elements with FireRating=R60:
- Fire Exit GF (Ground Floor)
- Fire Exit L2 (Level 2)

No Revit. No Navisworks. No SQL. Just drag, ask, get answers.

What can I ask?

You ask...	It does...
"Summarize this model"	Shows project name, total elements, spatial structure
"How many walls on Ground Floor?"	Counts and lists them with IDs
"Validate that all elements have materials"	QA/QC report: PASS / FAIL / WARNING per element
"Extract concrete quantities for Level 1"	Area, volume, length organized by element
"What changed since last week's version?"	Diff report: added, removed, modified elements
"Convert this to GLB for web viewing"	Creates a 3D file viewable in any browser

Complete tool list at the bottom of this page.

How to install (5 minutes, one time only)

Step 1: Install uv (a tiny installer). Open your terminal once and paste:

Windows (PowerShell):

powershell -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

Mac (Terminal):

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

Step 2: Download this tool. In the same terminal:

git clone https://github.com/Daviidro/ifcopenshell-mcp.git
cd ifcopenshell-mcp
uv sync

Step 3: Tell Claude about it. Open Claude Desktop → Settings → Developer → Edit Config, and paste:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ifcopenshell": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": ["run", "ifcopenshell-mcp"],
      "cwd": "D:/ifcopenshell-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. Done. Drag any .ifc file and start asking.

Is this safe?

Yes. Your files never leave your computer. Period.

• Everything runs 100% locally — no cloud, no accounts, no internet needed
• It only reads IFC files you explicitly drag into Claude — nothing else
• It cannot write files outside your project folder
• It cannot access system files
• The code is open source (MIT) — anyone can inspect every line
• Built on IfcOpenShell, trusted by thousands of architects and engineers since 2011

No telemetry. No analytics. No hidden anything.

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For Developers (contributing code)

Tools

Tool	Description	Example question
query_ifc_elements	Search by type, level, or properties	"Show all fire doors"
get_ifc_statistics	Model overview and class distribution	"Give me a summary"
get_element_properties	Full properties of one element by GUID	"Details of wall 3GQqVv..."
list_ifc_spaces	All rooms/spaces	"List all rooms"
validate_ifc_model	QA/QC: materials, properties, containment, naming	"Validate this model"
compare_ifc_models	Diff between two IFC versions	"What changed?"
extract_ifc_quantities	Quantity takeoffs (markdown/CSV/JSON)	"Concrete volume?"
convert_ifc_to_gltf	IFC to GLB for web visualization	"Make it viewable online"

Supported formats

• IFC2x3, IFC4, IFC4.3 (.ifc, .ifczip, .ifcxml)
• Output: markdown, CSV, JSON
• GLB: requires IFC files with geometric representations. Semantic-only IFCs report conversion failure.

Setup

git clone https://github.com/Daviidro/ifcopenshell-mcp.git
cd ifcopenshell-mcp
uv sync
uv run pytest tests/ -v    # 19 tests, all must pass

Tests

uv run pytest tests/ -v
# Expected: 19 passed (13 functional + 6 error handling)

Roadmap

• [ ] Clash detection (bounding box)
• [ ] COBie spreadsheet export
• [ ] IFC to Revit roundtrip via Speckle
• [ ] Classification system validation (Uniclass, OmniClass)

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md. Built on IfcOpenShell (LGPL-3.0) and MCP. Also check out the official IfcOpenShell MCP.

Ecosystem

• speckle-mcp — AEC interoperability
• bim-agent — Multi-MCP orchestrator
• awesome-aec-mcp — Curated MCP list

License

MIT — see LICENSE file.