SketchUp for Construction
Have you been looking for information about SketchUp for construction? SketchUp construction design software is widely used in your sector, a respected and popular tool used to speed up design, making the entire process smoother and faster. SketchUp Pro lets you identify potential issues before they become real-world problems, figure out a fair price for a construction project, and help your clients understand the plans more clearly and easily than ever before. Here’s what you need to know about the benefits of creating top class SketchUp construction drawings. By the end of this article you’ll know exactly why it’s such a good idea to know how to build a house in SketchUp.
SketchUp 3D Construction Modelling
SketchUps 3D construction modelling capabilities provide incredibly valuable design visualisation. As someone who works in the construction sector building plans are second nature to you, but not necessarily for your less-experienced clients. SketchUp construction documents make it a whole lot easier for non-experts to understand your plans.
SketchUp Viewer lets people investigate, evaluate and explore construction design projects before they’re brought to life, something that saves money, time and hassle. It means you can carry out revisions at an early stage before actually committing to the final construction documentation. SketchUp construction plans even come with the capability to use AR/VR to evaluate the different construction design options virtually. It’s a powerful tool that’s very easy to use as well as fun. And that makes it the perfect choice for construction contractors, small and large.
SketchUp Construction Drawings
SketchUp for construction, using SketchUp Pro in conjunction with Layout, is a brilliant way to create accurate, useful, clear construction drawings directly from 3D models. It can be done in two ways, each with its own pros and cons.
Firstly, you can get the 2D information from the model itself. This means the model has to be very accurate in the first place. It’s important to add colour and texture to the interior of the elements so the sectioned model is good and clear. It also helps to apply a different colour or texture to each different kind of material. Using this method means your plans and sections are always closely related to the model. When you make a change in 2D it doesn’t take much work to make it appear in 3D. On the down-side the modelling takes longer and you need to know all about the construction of the building in detail.
Alternatively you can generate a 2D group in SketchUp that contains all the 2D info you need, generated simply by right-clicking on the section plane. When you edit this group you can add all the fine detail you need to create accurate plans and sections. It’s handy not having to model everything in detail and being able to control the level of detail, but on the down side there’s no link between the model itself and the Layout presentation. Plus, the details of the section cut involves a 2D job, something SketchUp isn’t primarily designed for. On the other hand there are always TIG 2D Tools to rely on, and Layout itself helps a lot.
Layout lets you include essentials like dimensions, labels and text, all of which matter when you’re trying to get the details of a construction project across quickly, clearly and accurately. In exactly the same way you’d use old-school word processor tech, you type text into the drawing area. You can also import text from a file or even add Auto-Text defined on special fields inserted into the document. And the text can be formatted to your brand for great brand synergy.
Labels and dimensions are impressive. Labels come with an arrowed leader line which makes it easy to highlight individual elements. It can show Auto-Text as well as data from a SketchUp model. And dimensions display measurements either on the page or from a SketchUp model. You can share your SketchUp drawings in a variety of popular standard formats and import them into different CAD software tools. And you can print SketchUp for construction drawings easily, which is great when you prefer to work from printed diagrams rather than a screen.
Would you like to check out how to use more aspects of this great tool? Take a look at our tutorials, then figure out whether you need the free or Pro version via our handy comparison page.
Now you know what SketchUp drawings, SketchUp dimensions and SketchUp diagrams can do for you. Will you be harnessing the amazing power of SketchUp Pro for your next construction project?
