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Create and edit floor plans

Available with the ArcGIS Indoors Spaces extension.

With Indoors Floor Plan Editor, you can create floor plans and edit floor plan data to reflect real-world physical changes in the workplace.

To create, open, and edit floor plans, you must have privileges associated with the default Data Editor role or higher. To import PDF, CAD, or BIM, and to upload images, you must have privileges associated with the default Publisher role or higher. If you're using a custom role, you must enable the Edit privilege for features in ArcGIS Enterprise to open and edit floor plans.

Note:

To upload images, a user must be the owner of the web map or the web map must be shared to a group with shared update capability enabled.

New floor plans can be kept private or shared with your organization. You can also update the sharing level of existing floor plans at any time.

Create a floor plan

You can use Floor Plan Editor to make edits to existing floor plans, import PDFs, CAD drawings, BIM models of floor plans, or create floor plans from scratch by tracing over an image. All updates are made in a plan, which is a working copy of the indoor data. You can review the updates made in a plan with others and merge them to the default plan to make the updates available in the indoor data shared to your organization.

To create a plan in Floor Plan Editor, complete the following steps:

  1. Verify that you are signed in to your ArcGIS organization and have privileges to create content.

  2. Open the Floor Plan Editor app.

  3. Click New Plan.

    The Create Plan panel appears.

  4. In the Create Plan panel, provide a title for the plan.

  5. Choose the appropriate Share With option as follows:

    • Private—The plan is only visible to you.

    • Organization—The plan is visible to the organization.

  6. Click Create Plan.

The new plan opens in Floor Plan Editor and is ready for floor plan editing.

Open an existing floor plan

In Floor Plan Editor, you can open floor plans created by others if the floor plan is shared with the organization.

After opening the Floor Plan Editor app, a list of available floor plans appears. You can open a floor plan from the list, or create a floor plan.

Note:

If you have trouble opening a floor plan, ensure that you have the necessary permissions. Contact your Enterprise organization administrator to request access.

To delete a floor plan, click Delete next to the plan. You can only delete a floor plan if you created it, unless you are an administrator. Administrators can delete all plans. A plan cannot be deleted while it is open.

Floor plan editing

After creating or opening a floor plan, you can access the navigation pane containing a variety of tools for editing floor plan data in a web browser.

Any saved changes to a floor plan exist only in that plan until they are pushed to the default floor plan.

The following functionality is available when editing floor plans:

  • Plan—Create, delete, open, and update sharing of plans.

  • Edit—Select a feature on the map, and access the editing tools by clicking Edit on the pop-up.

    Note:

    Editing feature attachments is not supported.

  • Draw—Draw new units or walls, and set attributes.

  • Split units—Split a unit into two units and insert a wall where you want to split the unit. Available options for the new wall are determined by the configuration option that defines walls.

  • Add—Draw a new site, facility, or level and set its attributes.

  • Place—Place entryways, windows, floor transitions, and furniture from the palette.

  • Copy and paste—Copy and paste objects in the drawing.

  • Merge—Merge multiple Units or Details features into a single feature.

  • Manage plan—Push changes from the current plan to the default plan, or pull changes from the default plan to the current plan.

  • Import—Create floor plans by importing data from PDF, CAD drawings, or BIM models.

  • Grid—Customize the grid spacing, rotation, and placement.

  • Images—Add floor plan images and adjust their transparency to trace over while drawing features.

Note:

The accuracy of measurements and area calculations depends on the spatial reference of the web map.

Import PDF

You can import floor plans from PDFs. An ArcGIS Server Advanced license is required and you must have privileges associated with the default role of Publisher or higher to import PDFs.

A PDF can have vector data, raster data, or both. PDFs with vector data, such as a PDF exported from CAD, store floor plan information in scalable graphics. PDFs with raster data store floor plan information in images using pixels. Floor Plan Editor supports PDFs with vector data, but not PDFs with raster data. If a PDF contains both vector and raster data, only the vector elements are imported. You can choose a specific page of a PDF to import when uploading the PDF.

Tip:

You can verify whether the floor plan on the selected page of the uploaded PDF is vector or raster by zooming in using any PDF viewer. Sharp and clear lines indicate vector; pixelation indicates raster.

After a PDF loads, you can define the site, facility name, and the level information. Floor Plan Editor automatically detects doors and places them in the Details layer with the USE TYPE populated as Door.

Floor Plan Editor automatically excludes text in the PDF. You can also draw a processing boundary around your floor plan to exclude content from importing, such as linework from text boxes, tables, PDF symbology, or architectural information. Floor Plan Editor imports anything completely inside the processing boundary. It does not import anything partially intersecting or outside of the processing boundary.

Import BIM models

You can import BIM models to create 2D floor plans. You must have privileges associated with the default role of Publisher or higher to import a BIM model. An ArcGIS Server Advanced license is required to import BIM models. Only BIM models from .rvt files are supported, and .ifc files are not supported.

Note:

Importing BIM models is supported only for .rvt file versions 2021-2026.

After a BIM model loads, you can define the site, facility name, and the ground floor, and select the floors to import from the model. You can also define the fields to use for the room name and room use type attributes.

Import CAD drawings

You can import CAD drawings to create floor plans. After a CAD drawing loads, you can define room boundaries and doors. You can also define lines that represent detail features such as walls, windows, stairs, and furniture. You must have privileges associated with the default role of Publisher or higher to import a CAD drawing. An ArcGIS Server Advanced license is required to import CAD drawings.

If the CAD drawing has not been prepared for use in ArcGIS Indoors, you can use ArcGIS Indoors for AutoCAD to prepare the drawing for import. Only CAD drawings from .dwg files are supported; .dgn files are not supported.

Note:

You may have CAD drawings that have different spatial references depending on their geographic location. The imported floor plan data matches the spatial reference of the branch versioned feature layer that contains the Indoors data.

Georeference a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model using Floor Plan Editor

You can use Floor Plan Editor to georeference a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model to place it in the correct geographic location. Georeferencing involves placing control points to set the geographic location of the building.

Note:

If you already have associated auxiliary files (.aux.xml), projection files (.prj), and world files (.wld3), you do not need to georeference the data.

To georeference a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model using the Floor Plan Editor app, complete the following steps:

  1. Upload the PDF (.pdf), CAD (.dwg), or BIM (.rvt) file.

  2. Click Align to map, and click Georeference.

    A split screen view opens. One screen displays the data from the uploaded PDF, CAD, or BIM file. The other screen displays the map.

  3. Add the first control point in the PDF, CAD, or BIM preview on a corner of the level.

    Tip:

    You can snap to lines in the preview to help with placing a control point.

  4. Add a corresponding first point on the map that represents the same corner of the level chosen from the preview.

    Tip:

    You can search for an address using the Search tool on the map to find the facility you want to import floor plans for. If you are importing floor plans of the ground floor of a facility, you can use the basemap to identify the facility boundary, and use it to place the control points.

  5. Add a second control point in the preview on a different corner of the chosen level.

    Note:

    It is recommended that you place the second control point on an opposite and diagonal corner for increased georeferencing accuracy.

  6. Add a second control point on the map matching the location of the level's second control point from the preview.

  7. Click Apply.

    You can click Undo to make corrections as needed.

The PDF, CAD, or BIM preview now appears on the map at the location specified by the control points and is ready to continue the import process.

Georeference a CAD drawing using ArcGIS for AutoCAD

To georeference a CAD drawing using ArcGIS for AutoCAD, complete the following steps:

  1. Download and install the ArcGIS for AutoCAD plug-in for Autodesk AutoCAD.

  2. Set the coordinate system for the CAD drawing.

  3. Save the CAD drawing.

You can use the CAD drawing to import floor plan data in Floor Plan Editor.

Georeference a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model using ArcGIS Pro

To georeference a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model using ArcGIS Pro, complete the following steps:

  1. Add the PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model to a map in ArcGIS Pro.

  2. Georeference the PDF, CAD drawing or BIM model.

  3. Save the transformation.

ArcGIS Pro creates associated auxiliary files (.aux.xml), projection files (.prj), and world files (.wld3) in the same folder location as the PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model as part of the georeferencing process. When importing a PDF, CAD, or BIM data georeferenced using ArcGIS Pro, be sure to upload these associated .aux.xml, .prj, and .wld or .wld3 files with the PDF, CAD, or BIM file.

Note:

After georeferencing a PDF in ArcGIS Pro, do not apply or save rotation changes in a PDF viewer. Doing so alters the file content and invalidates the georeferencing, resulting in misalignment when the PDF is uploaded to Floor Plan Editor.

When uploading a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model georeferenced using ArcGIS Pro, the .pdf, .dwg, or .rvt file and the associated .aux.xml, .prj, and .wld or .wld3 files are also uploaded in a zip file as an item in your ArcGIS organization. After uploading the PDF, CAD, or BIM file, a preview is generated that you can edit before importing. You can open the saved preview again to continue making edits in a later session.

Caution:

Closing the browser window during the import process causes the import to fail, and uploaded items associated with the import process remain in the organization.

If you have a Sites layer in the map, you must draw a site before importing a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model to ensure that all facilities are accessible using the floor filter. The site can be a general boundary that contains the buildings planned for import. Some common site examples include a university campus or a hospital, which include a large area containing multiple facilities.

Note:

After importing a PDF, CAD drawing, or BIM model in the current plan, use the Manage Plan panel to push your changes before importing other PDFs, CAD drawings, or BIM models to ensure your changes are committed.