Skip to content or navigation


Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space

Trimble’s SketchUp product managing director shares with us some insight about where LayOut is headed. Straight at CAD and BIM…

Advertisement

Earlier this week Architosh broke with the story that Trimble had quietly updated their SketchUp website and tipped off, via the company’s product blog, that SketchUp 2013 was now available for download. When we reported this it was so new that the company was still flipping switches back on the web server and certain functions didn’t quite work properly with the downloads. The company quickly got those matters squared away.

The following day Trimble officially announced the SketchUp 2013 product lineup, including a re-branded free version in the form of SketchUp Make, plus its newest big feature, the Extensions Warehouse, both a web-resource (a la, iTunes’ product listings on the web) and an application-based internal web browser for discovery and acquisition of extensions (plugins) for SketchUp users.

The Other Big News

But there were other big news, perhaps a bit less exciting initially for some, mentioned officially and expanded upon by long-time product managing director, John Bacus, who took the time to communicate additional details with us this week. That news was about LayOut 2013, which is greatly enhanced in this version, with important seeds inside for the future.

“The majority of our customers for SketchUp Pro work professionally in the AEC community,” said Bacus, “where drawings are still the primary method for communicating design ideas for construction. ” The importance of drawings in the BIM era is duly noted. And  Trimble’s SketchUp team is clearly getting more focused on taking LayOut into the CAD production direction. New features in LayOut 2013 include a modern hatching system, important improvements to labeling and dimensioning and more. “We’re keen to make that (LayOut) into a full-featured drawing tool for architects,” said Bacus, “with all the tools that you’d expect from a modern CAD system.”

01 - Extension Warehouse, a view from within the new SketchUp 2013. The window provides searching, browsing and previews, including video of various plugin extensions for SU 2013.

01 – Extension Warehouse, a view from within the new SketchUp 2013. The window provides searching, browsing and previews, including video of various plugin extensions for SU 2013.

Already many current SketchUp customers use the product exclusively or nearly exclusively as their primary production tool for construction documents, including numerous 3D working drawing details–always something that construction folks and building owners can appreciate. Bacus was keen to show us the work of Nick Sonder Architect and promised that we will see more of that kind of thing in the future from more SketchUp users.

For more information on the new SketchUp 2013 visit their website here.

Architosh Analysis

SketchUp’s new corporate home, Trimble, definitely suggest different kinds of possibilities for SketchUp long-term, including seeing its deeper potential within AEC in particular. In this release the company has its new “SLAPI SDK”, which is how developers of other systems (CAD and BIM for instance) can compile native SketchUp file format interoperability into their applications. Bacus noted that it is through this updated SDK (software development kit) that SketchUp itself is able to build “file-level data interoperability” across the spectrum of Trimble Buildings products.

What we are really seeing in this release in 2013 is the makings of a much grander vision for SketchUp in the world of AEC, while at the same time, with just a simple name change saying very clearly that they are very committed to the “maker movement” which they helped enable. When Bacus says “all the tools that you’d expect from a modern CAD system” that naturally implies BIM as well. After all, that is what a modern CAD system in AEC is today.

Reader Comments

  1. Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space | Architosh http://t.co/QgLZLjEWsi

  2. #CAD Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space http://t.co/puoS9Pu6Ny

  3. #CAD Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space http://t.co/puoS9Pu6Ny

  4. mRT @architosh: Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space: http://t.co/3xvXNITnJs

  5. Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space | Architosh http://t.co/QgLZLjEWsi

  6. #CAD Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space http://t.co/puoS9Pu6Ny

  7. mRT @architosh: Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space: http://t.co/3xvXNITnJs

  8. Trimble’s SketchUp looking to enter CAD/BIM space? http://t.co/YGL4PO7AUT (although I still can’t imagine myself drafting in SU)

  9. Trimble’s SketchUp looking to enter CAD/BIM space? http://t.co/YGL4PO7AUT (although I still can’t imagine myself drafting in SU)

  10. “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  11. RT @TrimbleMEP: “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  12. RT @TrimbleMEP: “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  13. “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  14. “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  15. RT @TrimbleMEP: “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  16. RT @TrimbleMEP: “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  17. RT @TrimbleMEP: “Trimble’s SketchUp looking destined to enter CAD/BIM space” http://t.co/KAHUzLOdyT

  18. Article in @architosh on recent news from @TrimbleBuilding: #SketchUp Looking Determined to Enter #CAD/#BIM Space”. http://t.co/vIzuKOr0AS

  19. Article in @architosh on recent news from @TrimbleBuilding: #SketchUp Looking Determined to Enter #CAD/#BIM Space”. http://t.co/vIzuKOr0AS

  20. Article in @architosh on our recent #SketchUp 2013 news: “SketchUp Looking Determined to Enter #CAD/#BIM Space.” http://t.co/FAZiEcXxCv

Comments are closed.

architosh

INSIDER Xpresso 
Monthly newsletter with a focus on emTech (AI, machine learning, AAD, AR, robotics, 3d printing, and smart cities) its impact on CAD professionals.)

Subscribe now — it’s free!.

INSIDER Xpresso keeps CAD industry professionals up-to-date on next-gen emerging technologies (emTech) that will revolutionize the worlds of AEC and manufacturing and design. As an Xpresso reader, you will hear from some of the most important voices inventing and using the very latest tech in areas such as AI, machine learning, algorithm-aided design (AAD), AR, VR, MR, 3D printing, 3D computer vision, robotics, and SmartCities technologies.

Each issue arrives in your inbox on the first Sunday of the month. Issue #1 arrived on March 3, 2019. Full archives and easy navigation for your pleasure. Enjoy! 

Sign-up for our monthly newsletter
architosh INSIDER Xpresso.

  • Architosh will never pass any of your information onto third parties.
  • For more information read our privacy policy.
  • It is easy to unsubscribe at any time. Follow the links in the newletter footer.

(Recommended. These infrequent sponsored emails help us to provide our Xpresso newsletter for free.)

 
INSIDER Membership

Read 3 free Feature or Analysis articles per month.

Or, subscribe now for unlimited full access to Architosh.