ARCHICAD’s Newest Tool Unifies Experimental Design with BIM

GRAPHISOFT has announced a major update to its Grasshopper-ARCHICAD Live Connection module, making it easier for designers to bring algorithmically driven design into a BIM environment.

GRAPHISOFT's Live Connection tool allows real-time collaboration between ARCHICAD BIM software and the Grasshopper algorithmic design environment.

According to GRAPHISOFT, this new update to its bi-directional live connection software provides designers with a new level of intelligent workflows between the two design environments, algorithmic design and BIM. Critical to this workflow enhancement is the new “Deconstruct” function that gives users the option to use their BIM models as the cornerstone of their design while relying on the algorithmic logic embedded in Grasshopper to experiment with novel geometries. By combining the two programs in a single, unified flow, architectural designers can preserve the core logic that makes BIM an indispensable tool while simultaneously leveraging the free-flowing experimental nature of Grasshopper.

With these new tools, architects will presumably be given greater opportunity to experiment with building forms and devise ever-more ingenious solutions to the problems that arise in building projects. In fact, Michele Calvano, an architect and researcher at Sapienza University, field-tested GRAPHISOFT’s latest tool during a BIM reconstruction project of Grisciano, Italy.

“The Deconstruct function in the Grasshopper-ARCHICAD Live Connection made it possible for us to reconstruct the BIM models of the buildings of Grisciano, Italy, by acting as a bridge between the models and the conceptual design,” said Calvano, project architect.

Further information about Calvano’s project, and an in-depth explanation of the power of GRAPHISOFT’s Live Connection tool can be found in the following video.

GRAPHISOFT’s Live Connection software is currently available for both Mac and Windows operating systems.