FAQ’s

FAQ’s

• What model areas can be selected? The model is arranged into Facades, which are model faces per orientation. You can get results for each Facade on the Forma model (glazing that contributes Heat Gain and Daylight). Results are based on spaces in the perimeter zones (6m/20ft depth from the glazed wall). If interior walls are placed in locations less than these values, these depths are used instead. Currently, the model is not isolated into Surfaces or Spaces to review results in specific rooms or spaces.
• How should the model be created? It is recommended to use the ‘Basic Building‘ tool in Forma to create the model (rather than ‘3D Sketch’, ‘Line Building’ or ‘House’ options).
• How do I select the model? Click on the uppermost roof on the model (if your model has multiple roof levels) to start the calculation process. Clicking on model walls or individual Floors will not initiate the analysis.
• Can I switch between different models in the same Forma project? Yes, it is possible to switch analysis from one model to another. Simply select the second model to start analysis (the first model selection will be cancelled but settings will be saved there).
• Will the results update automatically? Settings may need to be applied first before the changes are recalculated. If the model geometry is adjusted, the browser should be refreshed and the model re-selected to recalculate results for the new model condition. Selecting a different Energy Code or adjusting Overall Glazing Percentage should initiate an automatic recalculation.
• What if my model cannot be analyzed? It is recommended to use the ‘Basic Building‘ method in Forma to create models suitable for analysis. If you are not getting results for your project, it may have been created using the 3D Sketch method or imported from another software. The model must have floor levels to allow analysis. For these types of models, it may help to ‘Add Floors’ to the model by right clicking or editing. The model may then get results. For more complex models, it may help to simplify the model. Other models with large gaps between volumes, separate towers etc may not yet be supported. Development is ongoing to provide additional support for these conditions. Some imported geometry may not be currently supported.
• What happens if I reset Overall Glazing after setting individually for Facades? In this case, all Facades will reset to the single Overall Glazing value and separate Facade settings will be lost.
• How can shade devices be added to the model? Yes, shading devices can be automatically added to the proposal using the controls provided. Alternatively, using the ‘Volume – Cube‘ option in Forma, shade objects (canopies or vertical fins) can be modeled separately on required levels (rather than extending floors or roofs). See the section on Shading above on this page for more details.
• Can the previous settings be removed? Yes, there is a ‘Reset‘ button to remove all previous saved settings (glazing percentages/shades/windows/construction types etc. This is provided as a paintbrush icon beside the FenestraPro Support button.
• What if the existing model properties do not comply with the reference Energy Code? You may use the Construction Types panel to adjust constructions for walls, roofs, floors and glazing. Sample types are provided and selecting a different construction with an improved thermal performance, may then comply with the reference values. Note: there may be cases where no construction listed will be compliant with a reference value in an Energy Code/Building Regulation.
• Can the Forma model be sent to Revit? Yes, the Forma model along with the selected constructions, glazing areas, automatic shade devices and ‘internal walls’ can be converted to Revit geometry using the application’s Connect function. Please click on the button in Forma to review payment options.

Known Issues

• Currently the Basic Building type in Forma is supported to create geometry for analysis (‘Line Building’ and ‘House’ types are not yet supported). Geometry created using the 3D Sketch tool in Forma is also not currently supported. To analyze all parts of a project together, the model should be created at the same time (draw a footprint shape and extrude). Adjustments can then be made on each level using the ‘Floor Plan’ tool. Further use of the ‘Buildings – Basic Building‘ tool to add more geometry, will in effect create separate buildings which can be selected and analyzed separately.
• Results will not be produced if the entire model is not selected (if only one floor or selected floors are selected). In this case please select the proposed design by clicking on the uppermost roof.
• Adjusting the Forma geometry while the Envelope Analysis extension has already loaded will not automatically update the extension. In this case, please use the Escape key on your keyboard to disengage from the editing mode and select the model again to analyze.
• Adding internal walls or adjusting the geometry on the proposal after you have already analyzed it and defined settings using the extension (Windows, WWR, Shades etc, will typically lose these settings when the extension is relaunched, since external surfaces will be reconfigured by internal divisions. In this case, you will need to recreate these settings when you restart the extension. It is good practice to adjust the model for the intended condition before analyzing and to create alternate proposals in Forma for any variations.
• Larger projects will take a little longer to process since glazing has to be applied to each story, so please allow the calculations to complete. There may be very large models such as masterplans where a memory limit will restrict analysis.
• If you are analyzing one proposal and switch to another proposal in the same project, facade renders may persist from the previous model. In this case, please refresh your browser to reset, select the new proposal and allow the extension to load the active model.
• Changing geometry – please refresh your browser windows after changing geometry of the proposal. You may deactivate the extension by going to Forma’s Area Metrics area etc and make any changes here. Then, when complete, refresh the browser window and activate the Envelope Analysis extension. Since new surfaces may be identified and old surfaces may now be deleted, previous settings (glazing/shading etc) may not always be able to be applied to the updated proposal.
• Energy Code values that are provided may be simplified where there are multiple recommendations for construction types (eg. flat roof, sloped roof, heated/unheated floors, element materials wood/metal etc). When the ‘Use Modelled Properties‘ option is used, the selection is not saved if the project is refreshed or closed and reopened (please check and select again).
• If you have multiple buildings in your project, only one can be analyzed at any one time. Selecting all buildings will only produce results for one. Currently, as you select another building, calculations will commence and then display for this (results for the previous building do not continue to display but are stored if you wish to return to the first building). Attempting to add geometry to existing proposals in Forma by using the Basic Building tool, sketching a new footprint and extruding, will typically produce another separate model. It is recommended to use the floor plans to make any revisions to an existing proposal.
• If part of the building is underground, you may want to model this part separately, otherwise if it is part of the main model, it will also be assigned glazing when you set the window to wall ratio and get results. You can also edit the floor plans in Forma using the Area Metrics option. This way you can step the floor plans so that lower levels are less exposed underground. This issue is to be addressed in a future release where underground areas may be recognized and possibly excluded.
• If using ‘Connect‘ to send a Forma model to Revit with shading geometry (modeled in Forma), the import may fail. Please make a copy of your proposal in Forma without any shade geometry on the surfaces and export this version instead. Version 9.0 of FenestraPro for Revit does support shade exports when shade devices are configured using the Facade controls in Envelope Analysis.
• If moving the model to a different level, duplicating floors or adding new geometry, sometimes geometry may get overlapped or duplicate floors created on the same level if ceiling heights are not uniform. This can cause issues when trying to analyze the model. Please check by selecting a floor plan and checking where this level is positioned in the project. You may also try to delete a floor level and undo (Ctrl +Z) to check if there are duplicates (caution should obviously be taken when modifying the model).
• If the Forma model is exported to Revit using the Forma function (‘Send to Revit add-in’), you may need to refresh the browser to continue using the extension or to open the Facades List – this issue is being explored.
• It is not recommended to have multiple projects open in separate browser tabs at the same time (since multiple simultaneous updates are not yet supported). Please work with one project at a time, close this and open another project.
• If you have made settings on the model and then choose to change the geometry of the model, the settings may not update to the new geometry straight away (for example, windows will not recalculate). You may refresh your browser window and select the model again. If you are having issues, a ‘Reset’ button is provided in the form of a brush icon. This will cancel any existing settings and you may begin again.
• Your browser may timeout if calculations are ongoing for larger models and it may show a message asking if you want to ‘Wait’ or ‘Exit page’, you may ignore this message and allow the calculation to continue or click ‘Wait’

More Complex Models

• There may still be some model conditions which will have difficulty being analyzed. These are currently being explored and improved. Glazing may not get applied to walls that are slanted (non vertical walls). There may be some projects with multiple imports/content which will prevent the extension from running correctly. This is being explored and a solution is to be deployed soon. If you have issues with a Forma project, please contact us at support@fenestrapro.com and we can advise.
• Models that may have different floor plans on each level, require an intelligent division and identification of external Facades and internal spaces. Models where some floors have an independent design, may cantilever, recess or have different roof heights are now supported.
• Models using 3D Sketch and separate project geometry created using the ‘Basic Building’ will not be analyzed by selecting a window around all geometry in the project.  The model should be selected by clicking on the roof of the model (all connected geometry will then be loaded). Geometry that is created separately will currently only be analyzed independently.