Automated Compliance Checks for Multi-Agency Rules (Without IFC Conversion in BIM)

Digital Asset Delivery and Project Management

Challenge Statement Owner

Forum Architects offer full professional services that include architectural, master planning, and interior design. It has an excellent track record in the design and delivery of a wide range of projects such as commercial offices, healthcare, tertiary education and sports facilities, luxury condominiums, large-scale residential master planning, design hotels, and retail shopping complexes.

Background

CORENET X (COnstruction and Real Estate NETwork eXchange) is Singapore’s next-generation digital platform for regulatory submissions. It requires architects and engineers to submit their building models in an open-standard format called IFC (Industry Foundation Classes). This is intended to allow automated checking of models against government regulations using rule engines.

However, the conversion of architectural models into IFC format requires significant rework. For example, even if a wall or door has already been modelled, a new parameter must be created just to populate the “IFC Object Type Name”. This means doing the same work twice. The new IFC requirement requires additional manual input, where users must reclassify and retype every element, often manually.

The IFC classification process is especially tedious for complex regulatory requirements, such as those from URA (Urban Redevelopment Authority), BCA (Building Control Authority), PUB (Public Utilities Board), Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and National Environment Agency (NEA). Because each project and consultant team names and structures their elements differently, there is no consistent standard. This results in errors, missed checks, and multiple Written Directions from agencies, which delay project approvals and erode confidence in digital processes.

Scripts for automated rule-checking currently rely on fixed strings and tags. Without a reliable classification and naming convention, these scripts are unlikely to produce accurate results. IFC-based rule-checking requires that the model’s elements be correctly mapped and named according to regulatory expectations. However, in practice, this mapping is inconsistent, and few firms have reliable tools to support it.

Forum Architects believes that rule-checking should be possible using the original native model, without converting to IFC. They are particularly interested in solutions that separate the classification or mapping process from the compliance-checking logic, ensuring each can be managed independently for greater accuracy and flexibility.

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The Challenge

How might we automate the mapping of BIM elements, without IFC-SG parameters, to create an AI-driven solution within modelling software that automatically checks building designs against multi-agency Singapore regulatory codes during the design phase?

Requirements

Functional Requirements

Perform automated compliance checks on native BIM models
Enable consultants to check models with over 90% rule coverage
Maintain data integrity by avoiding remodelling or reclassification for submission
Separate mapping logic from rule-checking functionality to enhance flexibility and reuse

Technical Requirements

Core Requirements:

Must integrate with BIM platforms such as Revit as a plugin or via API
Modular architecture that separates mapping of native BIM elements and execution of rule-based compliance checks
In-model operation without requiring IFC export or remodelling
Support for semantic classification beyond fixed string matching

Additional Preferences:

Rule versioning and update system to reflect regulatory changes
Visual tagging of compliance status within model
Customisable rule sets for different project types or agencies
Lightweight, deployable plugin architecture with minimal user training required
Reporting dashboard for summarising flagged items, with exportable logs

‍Expected Outcomes

Significant reduction in man-hours spent on compliance formatting
Reduced risk of submission rejection or delay
Preservation of modelling fidelity by avoiding unnecessary data transformation
Improved trust in digital regulatory workflows

Deployment Environment and Constraints

The tool must operate inside architects’ preferred BIM tools during the design process. It should work in native modelling environments using the project’s existing element types, naming conventions, and classification. Models will often vary in how elements are named or structured, so the AI solution must be flexible enough to interpret and adapt to these variations without requiring users to conform to a single rigid standard.

Proof-of-concept (POC)/Pilot Support

Forum Architects will support the POC by:

Providing two ongoing projects as testbeds
Sharing feedback from multiple team members using different modelling styles
Supplying structured parameter mapping and naming templates
Co-defining test cases based on common regulatory clauses from agencies
Participating in structured user testing and refinement sessions

‍Commercialisation and Scaling

Once validated, the solution can be deployed across architectural firms working on public and private projects in Singapore. Forum Architects sees this as an industry-wide need and will advocate for broader adoption through the CORENET X ecosystem.