#Revit to sketchup how to#
#Revit to sketchup software#

It is possible, however, to create jpeg images from SketchUp, import them into your Revit drawing space, then populate that drawing with an overlay of text, schedules, or even linework. Even though youвЂ™re building a 3D model in Revit, itвЂ™s hard to properly visualize it without spending countless hours with the clunky system of viewports, section boxes, and rendering plugins.ДЄnd while 3D views in Revit can aid in portraying the design intent of a 3D space, SketchUp is always going to be better. Even when the project reaches the later stages of development and youвЂ™re drawing detailed interior elevations, those interiors should be considered in SketchUp before a single drawing is created in Revit. Unfortunately, as I mentioned, RevitвЂ™s capabilities as a design tool simply arenвЂ™t good enough to lean heavily on it at the onset of a new project. Revit is not best used as a design tool (slow, methodical, a tad clumsy), so it is important to keep working the design in SketchUp if things need to be changed, updated, or modified. The SketchUp model should be used as a constant point of reference, making sure the plans, sections, elevations, and details all reflect the design intent portrayed in the SketchUp model. Once the design is more or less frozen, the Revit model can be detailed and the drawing set can be built-out.

Visualizations can be created at this point, although it is risky to show too much of a finished product to the client before the design has had enough time to evolve. There must be an exact replica of the site constraints and general building massing in both Revit and SketchUp, and those 3D models should be developed in parallel throughout the process.ДЄt the front end, though, the emphasis stays on SketchUp as client meetings are frequent in an attempt to iron out big picture design issues and functional organization. The building or renovation doesnвЂ™t need to make its way into full-blown documentation for sometime, although even in early stages itвЂ™s important to create a rudimentary set of working drawings in Revit. Of course, every project starts with the design, or as I like to call it, SketchUp territory. ItвЂ™s unfortunate the two programs donвЂ™t directly interface, but if you build your workflow and design process around the back-and-forth between these two pieces of software, the result is the best of both worlds: design and documentation. In steps Revit, the pre-eminent building information modeling program that has the power and toolset to create detailed construction documents, take-offs, and material schedules that can shed light on the blind spots that continue to plague SketchUp.

#Revit to sketchup how to#

As mentioned, however, it falls well short as a tool to produce realistic and accurate construction documents that can aptly tell a contractor how to execute your design. Also, from a presentation and rendering perspective, there are a number of great plugins that transform it into a visualization powerhouse. SketchUp is a great design tool because it is fast, nimble, and easy for your clients to understand what direction the design is heading.

However, the program is limited at best, and would only be capable enough to produce drawings for small renovations or interior overhauls.

#Revit to sketchup software#

SketchUp has tried to bridge this gap with the introduction of Layou, an auxiliary program to the base software that allows you to set up sheets, dimension, and create a crude set of construction documents to hand off to contractors or builders. The problem is, there isnвЂ™t one single piece of design software that can handle the demands of all the components that make up an architectвЂ™s job.

Architects are always in search of the perfect workflow process that combines design, redesign, and production into a cohesive, seamless, well-oiled machine.