• My Top Five Favorite Features of Forma Site Design in 2025 

    In 2025, Forma Site Design introduced targeted improvements across modeling, analysis, interoperability, and collaboration. Development focused on strengthening and stabilizing existing workflows, with emphasis on reliability, user control, and continuity between early site studies and downstream design tools.  The features below are the ones I consistently relied on this year because they directly reduced friction…

    Product

  • How to use Forma Board with Forma Data Management to capture design intent from the get-go

    Tl;dr: Early-stage architectural design is rarely short on ideas, inspiration, requirements, regulations, references, or stakeholders. What often lacks is shared clarity.  At the start of a project, information arrives from many directions: site constraints, early massing models, environmental metrics, reference imagery, screenshots, notes from meetings, and informal assumptions. By the end of the day your browser probably looks like mine: 5 windows,…

    Learning

  • How to: present your Forma Site Design findings in Forma Board

    Create a new board for your site Add a new frame Add widgets from Site Design Edit widgets Sun hours analysis widget Add external images Share the board Annotate your board Present the board You now have a collaborative online whiteboard that brings together data, visuals, and insights in a clear, shareable design narrative.

    Learning

  • Inside Forma Building Design: How architects’ feedback shapes better products

    As Principal Product Manager for Autodesk Forma Building Design, which will soon be launched, a big part of my work involves testing what we build with the people who will rely on it every day. Getting user feedback gives us clear input on the direction we should take in the development of the product. The whole team is involved, from the software engineers to UX designers, so they can engage with users…

    Product
  • Forma Building Design

    Looking ahead to 2026: Building on a strong AECO foundation

    Carl Christensen is Vice President, Product at Autodesk As we kick off 2026, there’s a lot to be excited about—and it all builds on the progress we made last year in shaping the Forma Industry Cloud. 2025 was very much about connecting the pieces and laying the groundwork for AECO’s first end-to-end industry cloud. At…

    Autodesk Forma
  • Forma Site Design sun hours analysis

    How to: analyze your first proposal

    In this article, you’ll learn how to run the sun hours analysis in Forma Site Design. The sun hours analysis provides a visual map of sun exposure – it’s a major part of any architecture site analysis. It shows how many hours of direct sunlight your site and building receive on specific dates. How to…

    Learning

  • Forma Site Design wins Architectural Record 2025 Architectural Products of the Year!

    We are proud to announce that Forma Site Design is a winner in the new software and technology category of the 2025 Architectural Record Best Architectural Products of the Year competition. Winners are selected by an independent jury of industry professionals and the Architectural Record team. The jury stated: “Forma Site Design is overhauling early-stage…

    Industry & Insights

  • How to: add your first building to an existing site in Forma Site Design

    This is the second article in our Quick Start learning series. Read the first article – How to: create your first site in Forma Site Design. You can create a schematic model in Forma Site Design using as little as two tools: Basic building and Move. This guide summarizes the essential tools and features used…

    Learning

  • Design for Good: The science behind the design at HMC Architects

    Executive summary Guided by their “Design for Good” ethos, HMC Architects are delivering pursuits with a new competitive edge thanks to AI and data-driven tools. A recent proposal for a STEM center at a California community college demanded an innovative design focused on sustainability and student needs–within a deadline of just four weeks.  Navigating the…

    Customer Stories

  • Forma+MVRDV workshop: three days of learning, conversations, and a nail-biting design competition

    In May 2025, the Forma Community team invited MVRDV to the Forma HQ in Oslo, Norway for an intensive workshop. We spent three days with eight architects from MVRDV, learning, testing, and getting a glimpse into the future. After weeks of planning, it was great to finally meet the whole team to Oslo. The first…

    Community