Atlasly + Revit

Setting up the site context in Revit — importing constraint boundaries, building a Toposurface from contours, placing neighbouring building masses — is time-consuming when done manually. Atlasly generates all of this from a single site analysis and exports it as a DXF that Revit imports directly.

The DXF route is the most practical for Revit. It brings in constraint layer geometry (flood zones, conservation areas, TPOs) and topographic contour lines that can be used to define a Revit Toposurface.

Step-by-step: Import DXF into Revit

1. Run a site analysis at atlasly.app/generate
2. Click Export → DXF
3. In Revit, open your project and navigate to the site plan view
4. Go to Insert → Import CAD
5. Select the Atlasly DXF file; set Import units to metres
6. Set Positioning to Auto - Center to Center (or Origin to Origin if your Revit origin is set to BNG)
7. Click Open — all Atlasly layers import as a CAD import group
8. Use Query in the Import Instance Properties to view individual layers

Creating a Toposurface from Atlasly contours

1. After importing the DXF, go to the Massing & Site tab
2. Click Toposurface → Create from Import → Select Import Instance
3. Click the imported Atlasly DXF group
4. In the layer selection dialog, select contourMajor and contourMinor
5. Revit reads the contour elevations and generates a Toposurface mesh
6. Adjust the Toposurface material as needed; the terrain is ready for grading, section cuts, and shadow studies

Using constraint layers in Revit

After importing the DXF, the planning constraint layers (flood zones, conservation areas, TPOs) appear as lines in the CAD import. To use them as Revit elements:

• Use Explode → Partial Explode on the CAD import to access individual layer geometry
• Trace over constraint boundaries with Revit Detail Lines or Region Fills on the site plan view
• Annotate with Revit Tags linked to the constraint type

Constraint boundary lines in the DXF are 2D polylines at elevation 0. They work best as reference lines in the site plan view, not as 3D objects in the model.

What Atlasly exports to DXF

• Topography: contourMajor (10 m), contourMinor (2 m), contourText (elevation labels)
• Buildings: surrounding building footprints
• Roads: road centrelines by classification
• Constraints: flood zones, conservation areas, listed buildings, TPOs, Article 4, Green Belt, SSSI, landfill, radon
• Water and green space: water bodies, waterways, parks, trees
• Site: site boundary polygon

Working in Forma Site Design first?

Revit 2027 is a Forma Connected Client, so many teams now start massing in Forma Site Design. Atlasly runs there as an extension: it reads the drawn site limit and screens it against UK planning constraints before the scheme moves to Revit. See Atlasly + Forma Site Design.

Accuracy and limitations

The Atlasly DXF is suitable for RIBA Stage 0–2 site analysis, pre-application work, and planning submissions. Topographic accuracy is ±2–5 m (OS Terrain 50 source). For construction-level Revit models, commission a licensed topographic survey and import the measured survey point cloud directly.