IfcMCP is an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that exposes IfcOpenShell query and edit tools to AI coding assistants such as Claude. It wraps :doc:`IfcQuery <ifcquery>` and :doc:`IfcEdit <ifcedit>`, holding the IFC model in memory across tool calls so no file I/O is required between operations.

The ifcmcp package can also be used directly as a Python library without the MCP server layer.

To use IfcMCP as an MCP server, install it together with the mcp package:

pip install 'ifcmcp[mcp]'

If you only want to use the library directly (without an MCP client):

pip install ifcmcp

Or install from source:

1. :doc:`Install IfcOpenShell <ifcopenshell-python/installation>`
2. Clone the IfcOpenShell repository.
3. cd /path/to/IfcOpenShell/src/ifcmcp
4. pip install '.[mcp]'

Add the server to your MCP client. For Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport stdio ifc -- ifcmcp

Or add to .mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ifc": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "ifcmcp"
    }
  }
}

Session tools

• ifc_new(schema="IFC4") — create a new empty model in memory
• ifc_load(path) — open an IFC file into memory
• ifc_reset() — unload the current model, freeing all session state
• ifc_save(path="") — write model to disk; empty path overwrites the original

Query tools

• ifc_summary() — schema version, entity counts, project metadata
• ifc_tree() — full spatial hierarchy
• ifc_info(element_id) — deep inspection by step ID
• ifc_select(query) — filter elements by IFC class
• ifc_relations(element_id, traverse="") — relationships for an element
• ifc_clash(element_id, ...) — geometric intersection and clearance checks
• ifc_validate(express_rules=False) — schema and constraint validation
• ifc_schedule(max_depth=None) — work schedules with nested task trees
• ifc_cost(max_depth=None) — cost schedules with nested cost item trees
• ifc_schema(entity_type) — IFC class documentation
• ifc_contexts() — geometric representation contexts
• ifc_materials() — material definitions

Drawing and rendering tools

• ifc_plot(...) — generate a 2D drawing via ifcopenshell.draw and return it as an inline image the AI assistant can inspect; SVG always available, PNG requires cairosvg
• ifc_render(...) — off-screen 3D render returned as an inline PNG image the AI assistant can inspect; requires pyvista and the IfcOpenShell C++ geometry bindings

ShapeBuilder tools

• ifc_shape_list() — list all available ShapeBuilder methods
• ifc_shape_docs(method) — documentation for a specific ShapeBuilder method
• ifc_shape(method, params="{}") — execute a ShapeBuilder method; entity references resolved by step ID

Edit tools

• ifc_list(module="") — list API modules or functions
• ifc_docs(function_path) — documentation for an API function
• ifc_edit(function_path, params="{}") — execute an ifcopenshell.api mutation
• ifc_quantify(rule, selector="") — run quantity take-off; writes IfcElementQuantity psets in-place

ifc_load("/path/to/model.ifc")
ifc_summary()
ifc_tree()
ifc_info(42)
ifc_edit("root.remove_product", '{"product": "42"}')
ifc_save()

.. seealso::

   :doc:`IfcQuery <ifcquery>` and :doc:`IfcEdit <ifcedit>` provide the same
   functionality as standalone CLI tools for scripting and automation.