You connect Autodesk Forma and InEight with a CDE integration that moves models, drawings, documents and metadata between a design or delivery team's Forma project and the owner's or principal contractor's InEight environment. CDE Sync™ links both platforms through dedicated accounts, maps Forma custom attributes to InEight fields and logs every transfer, in one direction or both.
Why Forma teams deliver into InEight
Autodesk Forma is widely used by architects, engineers and builders for design collaboration, model coordination and document management. InEight is common on major capital projects, where owners and principal contractors manage document control alongside cost, schedule and construction. When a Forma-based team works on an InEight-run programme, every deliverable has to cross between them.
Without a connection, files are downloaded from Forma, renumbered, re-attributed and uploaded to InEight, and responses come back by email or download. Models are particularly awkward, because they are large and versions matter. Over hundreds of packages, the effort is significant and mismatched revisions become likely.
What carries across between Forma and InEight
CDE Sync™ synchronises models and documents with their version history and maps Forma custom attributes to InEight's fields. Document number, revision, status and discipline arrive in the form InEight expects, and responses can return to a nominated Forma folder. Every transfer is logged for audit and compliance.
The Autodesk Forma and InEight integration pages describe each connector, and CDE Sync for InEight covers InEight in more depth.
How to connect Forma and InEight, step by step
Agree the exchange: which packages move to InEight and which responses come back to Forma.
Obtain InEight's numbering, mandatory fields and transmittal requirements from the owner's document control team.
Have the Forma account administrator add a service account to the relevant projects.
Arrange an InEight service account with access to the destination areas.
Connect both platforms in the CDE Sync™ wizard and map Forma attributes to InEight fields.
Run a pilot exchange on one package and check versions and responses on both sides.
Switch on the schedule and extend to further packages.
Moving models as well as documents
Capital projects increasingly ask for models as formal deliverables, not just drawings. Owners want federated models for review, construction planning and, eventually, operations. A connection that moves models with their version history means the owner's InEight environment holds the same model versions the design team issued, ready for review without anyone uploading multi-gigabyte files by hand.
Agreeing which model formats and versions the owner needs is part of setup. Some owners want native models, others want exported formats, and many want both for different purposes. Our article on digital twin readiness covers why model handover planning pays off.
Day-to-day running is mostly about exceptions. A deliverable that fails a mandatory field rule in InEight is reported rather than lost, and the fix is made in Forma so the next run succeeds. The transfer log gives both parties a shared account of what was issued and when.
The same configuration can also bring other parties in. If a builder runs Procore or a specialist consultant uses ProjectWise, those platforms can join the exchange so every package reaches InEight through the same rules, without separate integration projects for each partner.
Security for major projects
Energy, resources and transport programmes often fall under the Security of Critical Infrastructure (SOCI) Act. CDE Sync™ streams files directly between Forma and InEight without storing them, encrypts data in transit and processes it in the Azure region you choose. Utopia Digital holds SOC 2 Type II and Cyber Essentials. See the Security Trust Portal and the global data region map.
Forma, InEight and the Utopiaverse™
A Forma to InEight connection is part of the Utopiaverse™, the connected record Utopia Digital builds across your platforms. CDE Sync™ keeps both aligned during delivery, CDE Backup™ keeps an independent copy in your own Azure, CDE Migrate™ handles moves onto or off either platform, and CDE Archive™ captures the record at completion. AI Insights searches design and owner content together, with answers that cite the source files. See also How Do I Connect InEight to My Other CDEs? and How Do I Connect Oracle Aconex and Autodesk Forma?
See Forma and InEight connected in the monthly live demo, or talk to the team about your programme.
