Using Forma Board to Present Your Building Design

Forma Board enables you to deliver design reviews without losing BIM context, making it a powerful complement to Forma Building Design.

With minimal effort, you can bring your work from Forma Building Design into Forma Board. Simply capture screenshots in Forma Building Design and switch to Forma Board, or add an exported Revit file from Forma Building Design directly into Board for a more detailed review workflow.

Presenting Screenshots from Forma Building Design

  • Capture a screenshot in Forma Building Design.
  • Switch to Forma Board, then open an existing Board or create a new one.P
  • Paste the screenshot image directly onto the board.
    • image

Rendering Your Forma Building Design Screenshots

  • Users with commercial Forma Licenses can convert screenshots to renderings directly on the Forma Board using the AI rendering service.
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  • If you have an educational Forma License, you can still render your screenshot images:
    • Paste your screenshot into any of the web-based image rendering tools:
      • Google Gemini
      • Chat GPT
      • Perplexity
      • Grok
    • Enter a series of prompts describing the scene you’d like to create.
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  • Then, copy the resulting image and paste it into the Forma Board
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Presenting Revit Projects Exported from Forma Building Design

  • In Forma Building Design, export a Revit file and save it to Data Management.
  • In Forma Board, open the right-hand menu, select Data Management, and click Add file.
  • Locate and select the Revit file exported from Forma Building Design.
  • A frame of the file will appear in Forma Board.

From this frame, you can:

  • Select Extract sheets and views to choose which sheets to add to the board.
  • Select Create thumbnail to open a 3D view and define your preferred perspective.

Tips for Effectively Sharing Your Work

  • Use Forma Boards as a storytelling and sequencing tool, not just as a collection of images or analysis outputs
  • Avoid “data dump” boards with disconnected heat maps and screenshots
  • Structure the information on your boards like a case study:
    • The Problem — What site constraint or design challenge is being addressed?
    • The Evidence — What do the analysis results show?
    • The Response — What design or massing decision was made based on those findings?
  • This approach:
    • Helps communicate design reasoning, not just visual comparison
    • Supports clearer presentations, design reviews, and performance-based design discussions