CalqLearn Calq: a building from A to Z
From your first click to a complete building, one step at a time. Every lesson is done on the real board, and every picture and moving picture is taken from it.
The course follows one building from beginning to end: four storeys, shops on the ground floor and flats above. Each part is a stage a BIM project goes through: setting the project up, the site, the brief, the massing, the building elements, the rooms, the views, the drawings and sheets, the checks and the exchange in IFC.
It works to the international standards Calq is built on: ISO 19650 for naming and issuing information, ISO 7200 for the title block, IFC for the model you hand over, Uniclass and IPMS for classification and areas. Where a lesson touches a standard, it says what the tool follows.
Everything here runs on a free account. Open Calq in another tab and do each step as you read it.
Part 0Start here
Open Calq, find your way round the board, move in the views and pick up the tools.
- 0.1Open Calq and start a modelOpen the modeller in your browser, choose your language and see how a draft becomes a saved model.
- 0.2The board, edge by edgeWhere everything lives: the menus, the views as tabs, the tool palette, the right rail and the cursor line.
- 0.3Views, tabs and splitOpen any view from the + of the tabs, split the board to see views side by side and choose which view each pane shows.
- 0.4Move around a viewZoom with the wheel, pan with the middle button, orbit in 3D with Shift and the middle button, and fit the view back.
- 0.5Tools, codes and snapsTake a tool by its two-letter code, draw with the snaps, undo and redo, and find any command.
Part 1Set up the project
Before anything is drawn: how the information is named, the storeys, the structural grid and where the building stands on the earth.
- 1.1Name the information (ISO 19650)Give the model its project code, its originator and its volume, so every file, sheet and export is named to ISO 19650; fill the title block and choose the project's standards.
- 1.2Levels and storeysName the ground floor, add the storeys above, give the shop storey its height and move between the storeys.
- 1.3The structural gridLay the grid the building is set out on, add a grid line by hand and dimension every bay in one click.
- 1.4Coordinates and true northPlace the project base point, the survey point and true north, so the model stands at its real place on the earth and its IFC says so.
Part 2The site
The plot, the ground and its levels, what stands round it and the rules that apply to it.
- 2.1The plotDraw the plot's boundary, read its area, give each edge its role and its setback, and see what the map can bring in round it.
- 2.2The plot's rulesWrite the plot's planning rules as they are given (setbacks, site coverage, floor area ratio, height and storeys, and where they come from) and read what they allow.
- 2.3The groundBring in the ground the building stands on, draw it as contours or tinted, see it in 3D and read it in figures.
Part 3The brief
The spaces the building must hold, brought in from a spreadsheet and checked against the model.
- 3.1How the Programme worksWhat the Programme is, the three things it does (build the brief, link the rooms to it, track the design against it) and where each lives in its drawer.
- 3.2Bring in the briefRead the client's schedule of accommodation from Excel or a CSV into the Programme drawer, check what was read and accept it.
- 3.3The lines of the briefGive a line its own asks, add a line by hand, say which rooms belong together and read the mix of homes.
- 3.4The brief on the planPut the brief's rooms down on the plan with the tray, read each one measured against its line, and see the check follow a change.
- 3.5Roles, revisions and sign-offSee what the brief owner, the designer, the reviewer and the approver may do, bring in a new issue of the schedule and accept what it changes.
Part 4Massing
The building as volumes first: masses, the brush, the spine and design options to compare.
- 4.1The zoning envelopeTurn the plot and its rules into the largest mass they allow on the ground, then give it the storeys the floor area ratio permits.
- 4.2Massing options from the briefLet Calq try every block form on the plot for the brief, inside its rules, and choose from a gallery of measured massing options before any room is drawn.
- 4.3Masses by handDraw a mass of shops, pull a block of flats up off its roof, and give each mass its use and its storeys.
- 4.4Shape a massStep a mass back as it rises, round its corners, taper it, and take any of it back with one undo.
- 4.5The brushPaint masses along a stroke: the brush as deep as a building, its use and its storeys loaded, its corners mitred, and Ctrl to carve.
- 4.6The spineDraw a street as a curve and let buildings stand along both sides of it, their flats laid by the plan engine.
- 4.7Design optionsTry a part of the model another way, flip between the options in every view, compare them, and settle on one.
Part 5Building elements
Walls and their types, doors and windows, floors, roofs, stairs, ramps, railings, columns, beams and curtain walls.
- 5.1WallsDraw walls of a real build-up, as a rectangle or point by point, read what a wall carries and see it in 3D.
- 5.2Doors, windows and curtain wallsHost a door and windows in walls, then close the shopfront with a curtain wall.
- 5.3Floors and roofsFit a floor and a roof to the walls in one click each, and see how the walls follow the roof.
- 5.4Stairs and rampsDraw a stair that climbs a storey with its railings, and a ramp beside it.
- 5.5The structureLay a structural frame read off the walls: a grid, and a column at every crossing.
Part 6Rooms and interiors
Rooms, areas and zones, units of flats, finishes, furniture and your own parametric components.
- 6.1RoomsPlace a room in a space with one click, every room at once, split an open space with a separator, then name and number them.
- 6.2Propose a layoutLet Calq lay out the rooms, walls, doors and windows inside an outline, then work on what it drew like anything you draw.
- 6.3Areas and zonesMeasure the floor by the rules of an area scheme, and group rooms into zones: a dwelling, a fire compartment, a heating zone.
- 6.4Units of flatsDraw a flat once, save it as a unit, repeat it as a block, and change every copy with one edit.
- 6.5Finishes and furnitureFurnish every room by what it is for, place a piece from the library, dress the walls and paint with real materials.
- 6.6Your own componentsMake a parametric component of your own: parameters with formulas, types and checks, placed like any other piece.
Part 7Editing the model
Move, copy, rotate, mirror, array and align; grips, constraints, groups, phases and options.
- 7.1Move, copy, rotate and mirrorSelect what to change, drag it, drop a copy, turn it about a point and copy it across a line.
- 7.2Offset, align, array and scaleLay a wall parallel to another at a typed distance, line walls up, repeat one at a spacing, and scale a whole room.
- 7.3Split, trim, fillet and matchCut a wall in two, close a corner, round one with a curved wall, and give one wall another's type.
- 7.4Grips, constraints and pinReshape a wall by its grips, hold two walls parallel, and pin what must not move.
- 7.5Groups and copies to the storeysGroup walls so they pick and move as one, change the group from inside, and repeat it on the storeys above.
- 7.6Hide, isolate and phasesShow only what you work on, hide a whole kind of element, and mark what exists, what comes down and what is new.
Part 8Views
Plans, sections, elevations and 3D; the section box, graphics, drawing styles and scales.
- 8.1Sections and elevationsCut the building with a section, stand outside it for an elevation, cut it at any angle, and keep every mark on the plan.
- 8.23D and the section boxTurn the 3D view into a perspective, then cut it down with the section box to see inside, storey by storey.
- 8.3A view's own graphicsDecide what one view draws and how: its categories, its filters, its detail level and its view range, without touching any other view.
- 8.4Drawing styles and the scaleChoose how every view is drawn from one style, and give each view its scale from the one table of scales.
- 8.5View templates and cropsSave a view's settings as a template that other views follow, and crop a plan into dependent views.
Part 9Drawings and sheets
Dimensions, tags and leaders, drafting views and details, schedules, sheets, the title block and the drawing set.
- 9.1DimensionsLet Calq dimension the plan by its scale, see what each scale draws, and add a dimension of your own in three clicks.
- 9.2Tags, notes and the keyShow and hide the tags, write a note, point a callout at the stair, read a level, and let the key explain the plan.
- 9.3Drafting views and detailsHave Calq draw every detail the model calls for, open one, and mark it up with the drafting view's own tools.
- 9.4Schedules, liveOpen a schedule of the model, change an element from its row, and add the field you need.
- 9.5The presentationLay the model out on sheets by a template, choose the paper and the style, and change what a frame shows.
- 9.6The sheet, the title block and the setCompose a sheet by hand, edit its ISO 7200 title block, and print the drawing set as a PDF.
Part 10Checks and data
The model check, the code check, quantities, cost and carbon, and issues raised as BCF.
- 10.1Check the model's informationCheck what the model holds against what its milestone asks, on the IFC it exports, and find each object that falls short.
- 10.2The building code checkCheck the model against a jurisdiction's building code, read what governs the building over its life, and draw the result on the drawings.
- 10.3Quantities and schedulesRead every element of the model as schedules and a quantity takeoff, pick elements from their rows and take it all out as CSV.
- 10.4Fabric, daylight, carbon and costRead the model's fabric against an energy standard, its daylight, its embodied carbon against the RIBA and LETI targets, and an indicative build cost.
- 10.5Issues as BCFRaise an issue on the elements and the view it is about, give it a status and a thread, and exchange issues with other tools as BCF.
Part 11Exchange
IFC4, IFC 4.3 and IFC2X3 out, gbXML for energy, DXF for CAD; images, DXF, DWG, PDFs and meshes in.
- 11.1Take the model outThe Export menu: IFC in three schemas for coordination, gbXML for energy, DXF for CAD, and the files that travel beside them.
- 11.2Trace over a drawingLay a plan image under the model, set its true scale from one known length, and draw the walls over it.
- 11.3CAD and PDF drawings inPut a DXF, DWG or PDF drawing into a drafting view at its true scale, and open a model file as Calq's own elements.
- 11.4Meshes and the Revit linkBring a 3D object from SketchUp, Blender or any modeller into the library as a component, and see how a model is linked to Revit.
Part 12Working together
The people on a model and their roles, live cursors, comments and sign-off from a link.
- 12.1Save the model, then share itWhy sharing starts with saving, what a guest board offers, and who can open a model once it is saved.
- 12.2People on a model and their rolesInvite people into one model, each in one role, and have the approver sign the brief off from a link.
- 12.3Live together: cursors, selections and commentsWork in one model at the same time as others: see where they point and what they select, and leave comments pinned to the model.
- 12.4Saving and the model's historyUndo and redo on the board, and the history a saved model keeps: every version, to restore, to name or to keep as an option.
Part 13Calq AI and outside assistants
Asking Calq AI to build and check, and connecting Calq to the assistant you already use.
- 13.1Calq AI on the boardWhere Calq AI lives: the first tab of the right rail, its head, its suggestions and its composer, and the / key that opens it from anywhere.
- 13.2Ask for a buildingSay the building in a sentence: Calq AI reads it back, says what is still missing and shows the plan it would follow before anything is drawn.
- 13.3A request at workHow a signed-in Calq AI works through a request: the three ways it may work, one line per step, then one summary with Show, Keep and Undo, and your conversations.
- 13.4Connect an outside assistantGive ChatGPT, Claude or any assistant that speaks MCP the one address of Calq, say yes once, and it works on your models with the tools of Calq AI.
Part 14Mastery
The drafting commands, your own tools, rendering and the walkthrough film.
- 14.1Commands and the keymapGive a command a code of your own, draw by typing lengths in the cursor line, take a tool again from the right-click menu, and keep a script as a tool of your own.
- 14.2PreferencesSet the language, the look, how the tools stand on the board, the scale reading, the snaps, the sun on plans and the keyboard, once for every model.
- 14.3The sun and its shadowsPut the sun on a plan, pull it along its path, choose the day and the hour, and see the same sun in 3D.
- 14.4RenderingOpen the Live Render, choose its mood, its sun and its lens, and take a picture, a film or a panorama out of it.
- 14.5The walkthrough filmDraw a camera path round the model, set each point, play it and export it as a video.
Start the courseNo account is needed to follow along.