What You Need To Know About SketchUp Layout

SketchUp is one of the most popular 3D modelling software solutions in the world.

Here are a few key facts:

• 33,500,000 Annual Activations
• Over 1,000,000,000 completed Projects using SketchUp
• 109,000 followers on Twitter
• 759,000 followers on Google +
• 370,000 likes on Facebook

An intuitive and quick to learn 3D conceptual design modelling platform, SketchUp enables more participation and collaboration across workflows.

However what is less known is the Layout tool in SketchUp and I’ve been asked many times recently “What is Layout, what does it do”?

LayOut is a tool for creating documentation from your SketchUp model and is part of the SketchUp Pro Suite.

Layout combines SketchUp models with text and 2D vector illustration to help you produce beautiful presentations, permit submittals, construction documents, and other dimensioned drawings. It allows you to produce professional drawing sets, provides powerful dimensioning, drawing and page layout tools to create working drawings and presentations from SketchUp models.

How it works

You start in SketchUp, draw your project and create scenes to show the different views. You can send the file to LayOut, add dimensions, labels, other text, photos and then export a PDF file to send to a client or use it to do a presentation on screen.

The dynamic link between the SketchUp model and the LayOut document means that any edits you make in your SketchUp model, will be reflected in the LayOut document. Drawings can also be exported as DWG/DXF files for use in any CAD program and you can combine dimensions, text, and graphics, add logos and title blocks to LayOut templates for brand consistency.

LayOut also has the ability to assign different drawing scales to SketchUp model views and dimension them without leaving LayOut and without using a separate CAD tool.

Drawings are dynamically linked to 3D models and SketchUp models are dynamically linked to your LayOut file so any changes you make in SketchUp are automatically reflected in your documents.

Lastly, you can link to files in the cloud via Dropbox, Google Drive or Trimble Connect.

  

A single LayOut document can be used for both printing and on-screen presentations as well as to create high-resolution large format prints which you can export as PDF files for onward distribution, or to present directly from the application... in 3D.

Explore LayOutby watching the videos below:
 

To learn more about SketchUp, please contact Excitech – https://www.excitech.co.uk/Products/SketchUp-Pro