Getting Started with IfcOpenShell: A Beginner’s Guide

import csv import ifcopenshell ifc = ifcopenshell.open("example.ifc") walls = ifc.by_type("IfcWall") with open("wall_quantities.csv", "w", newline="") as f:     writer = csv.writer(f)     writer.writerow(["GlobalId", "Name", "Length", "Height"])     for w in walls:         gid = w.GlobalId         name = getattr(w, "Name", "")         # Example: find quantities in PropertySets (implementation varies)         length = ""         height = ""         writer.writerow([gid, name, length, height]) 

Customize property extraction based on the PSET and quantity item names used in your models.

Resources and next steps

• IfcOpenShell GitHub repository — source code and build instructions.
• BlenderBIM Add-on — full BIM authoring in Blender using IfcOpenShell.
• IFC schema documentation — understand entity definitions and relationships.
• Community forums and GitHub issues — useful for troubleshooting platform-specific build problems.

IfcOpenShell bridges raw IFC data and practical BIM workflows. Start by installing the Python package or BlenderBIM, explore your IFC with simple scripts, extract properties and geometry, and gradually automate the tasks most valuable to your workflow.