Create and manage IDS specifications for BIM projects
IDS Compass is an online IDS editor for teams defining BIM information requirements. Create specifications, organise reusable libraries, and manage the requirements for each project phase and release. Use AI assistance to develop a starting draft, then review the details before sharing it with your project team.
Create your first IDS or request a demo — both start with beta access.
Give each requirement a clear structure
A useful requirement identifies the information needed and the objects it applies to. Begin with a familiar task, such as requesting an agreed property on a group of walls, and build a specification your team can discuss and use.
Give specifications meaningful names and descriptions. Explain why the information is required and how it will be used. This context helps the person preparing the model understand the purpose of the delivery.
New to the format? Read our guide to what IDS means in BIM.
Reuse specifications across projects
Your team should be able to build on requirements it has already reviewed. Organise specifications into libraries and use them as a starting point for future work.
Review the assumptions each time you reuse a specification. An asset owner's information needs, the agreed IFC version and the delivery stage may differ between projects. A reusable library is most useful when its scope is clear.
Organise requirements by project phase and release
The information needed for an early design decision may differ from the information needed at handover. IDS Compass lets you organise your work around projects, phases and releases so that the specification set has a clear delivery context.
Use meaningful release names and descriptions to explain the purpose of each issue. Make it clear to the receiving team which release should guide its next delivery.
Use AI assistance to start from plain language
Describe the information you need in everyday project language and use AI assistance to develop an initial specification. Review the selected objects, information fields and value rules before accepting the draft.
A useful prompt includes the object group, the required information and the purpose of the check. For example: “I need the agreed classification recorded for the wall types included in this design delivery.”
The next step is to resolve the project's exact classification system and codes, then test the resulting specification.
Prepare requirements for the checking workflow
Decide how the team will review the specification and check its IFC delivery. Check software support for the IDS and IFC versions being exchanged, and keep the issued requirement set identifiable.
Our IDS validation guide explains the checks to plan before using results to assess a delivery.
Start with one requirement that matters.
Bring a requirement from your current project. Structure it, review it, and use the experience to build a specification library your team understands.
Private beta · free while in beta.