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SketchUp, IFC and DXF export and import

Send the building to your architect, MEP consultant or BIM team as COLLADA, glTF, IFC or DXF plans of each level. Models made in SketchUp come back into the building's 3D view as reference models, and an IFC file opens as the building's IFC model. SketchUp's own .skp files are not read or written: save them as COLLADA or IFC in SketchUp first.

PLANSScale only

Built and checked in code, with tests for the IFC and DXF writers and the upload checks. Not yet opened in SketchUp itself or tried on a customer's files.

Compare plans How it works

The problem it solves

Your architect works in SketchUp, so the building is drawn twice: once by them, once by your engineer.
The MEP consultant asks for each floor plan in DXF, and someone redraws it in AutoCAD.
The client's BIM model never reaches the site team.
A facade concept made in SketchUp cannot be seen next to the building you are pricing.

How it works

Open the building in 3D: the project > Building in 3D, or 3D Design > Buildings in 3D > the building > Designer. Press SketchUp at the bottom left of the 3D view.
Under Send the building, press COLLADA (.dae) or glTF (.glb) to save what the view shows now. Hide a level, the roof or the outside first if you do not want it. Press IFC for the building model, or the DXF link of a level.
In SketchUp, use File > Import and choose the file. COLLADA works in every SketchUp Pro version; glTF in newer ones, Blender and most 3D tools; DXF in any CAD program.
To bring a model back, choose a COLLADA, glTF or OBJ file under Bring a model from SketchUp. It is kept on the building as a reference model, with a tick to show or hide it.
Place and size it on the building's form, tab SketchUp and Other Models. Set At X and At Y on the site plan, Raised, Turned and Scale. An IFC file goes on the building's IFC model instead.

Everything it does

Export

COLLADA (.dae): what the 3D view draws (walls, slabs, roofs, stairs, facades, the garden), with its colours. Each part is named by its level and room or element. Pictures on surfaces are not sent; metres, y up
glTF (.glb): the same parts with the pictures on surfaces
IFC4: storeys, walls with their doors, windows and openings, slabs, columns, beams, and the rooms as spaces
DXF, one per level (R12, mm): both faces of every wall broken at openings, door swings, windows, slabs, columns, beams, room names and areas
COLLADA and glTF are written in your browser from the open view; IFC and DXF are downloaded from the server
IFC and DXF hold no sloped roofs, finishes or furniture: use COLLADA or glTF for the whole look

Import

COLLADA (.dae), glTF binary (.glb) and OBJ (.obj) as reference models, drawn where you place them. They are not taken apart into walls and rooms, and not counted in the BOQ
IFC (.ifc) onto the building's IFC model, shown with its storeys, IFC types and an element's properties; zipped .ifczip is refused
Files up to 60 MB; a file that is not what its name says is refused with the reason
.skp refused with: SketchUp files (.skp): save as COLLADA or IFC in SketchUp first
Scale 1 for files in metres; an OBJ in millimetres is 0.001, in inches 0.0254

What is not sent

The IFC model and reference models brought in from elsewhere
Labels, guides and light glows

Who may do what

Downloads for signed-in users who may read the building
Adding, changing and removing reference models for users who may change the building

Not built

Reading or writing SketchUp's own .skp files (needs Trimble's kit on a Windows or Mac machine)
Turning an imported model into the building's own walls and rooms: export its plan as DXF and use 2D to 3D instead
DWG files: DXF only
Placing reference models by dragging in 3D: they are placed by numbers on the building's form

Who uses it

Design engineerSends the building to the architect and consultants, and brings their SketchUp models back for reference.

Architect or MEP consultantReceives the IFC model or the DXF plan of each level.

Project managerOpens the client's BIM model in the building's 3D view to check it against the site.

Where you use it

Web: the SketchUp panel at the bottom left of the building's 3D view (Building in 3D on the project, or the Designer of the building)
Web: Construction Projects > 3D Design > Buildings in 3D > the building > SketchUp and Other Models tab
Not on the client portal and not in the SmartMy Construction app

What you control

Settings

Per reference model: name, Made In (SketchUp to start with), Shown in 3D, At X, At Y, Raised, Turned, Scale (1), notes

Works with

SmartMy InteriorsThe same SketchUp panel is on the Interiors 3D views, so a builder and an interior studio exchange the same building.

Questions

Can I open a .skp file directly?

No. In SketchUp use File > Export > 3D Model and save as COLLADA or IFC, then add that file. Reading .skp needs Trimble's kit, which does not run on our servers.

Does a SketchUp model become part of our building and its BOQ?

No. It shows in the 3D view as a reference model where you place it. To make it the building's own walls and rooms, export its plan as DXF from SketchUp and read it with 2D to 3D.

Can I send the plans to AutoCAD?

Yes. Each level downloads as a DXF in millimetres with walls, openings, door swings, room names and areas. DWG is not offered.

Can our consultant open the IFC in Revit?

The IFC4 file holds storeys, walls with openings, slabs, columns, beams and rooms as spaces, which Revit, ArchiCAD and BlenderBIM import. Sloped roofs and finishes are not in it.

Has this been tried in SketchUp?

Not yet. The export and import are written and checked in code, with tests for the IFC and DXF writers. We try it with your SketchUp version before you rely on it.

Related features

DESIGN STUDIOThe building in 3DDraw the building on its plot, wall by wall and level by level. See it in 3D with its roof, site, neighbours, stairs, facade and garden. Cut it open, check the sun at any hour and walk in from the gate. Print the A3 drawing set, open the architect's IFC model beside it and make lifelike photos in the browser.DESIGN STUDIO2D drawings to 3D with AIUpload a floor plan or elevation as a picture, a PDF page or a DXF. The plan is read into walls, doors, windows, rooms and the roof; you check what was found and the scale, then press Build in 3D. The building opens in the designer, ready for its BOQ. A picture or PDF takes about 50 AI credits a drawing; a DXF is read without them.DESIGN STUDIOBOQ from the 3D modelPress one button on the project and the building's 3D model becomes a draft BOQ, a section a trade, with quantities and your rates. The walls, concrete, roofing and glazing come from the elements drawn. The tiles, paint, false ceilings, points, stairs, facades and garden come from the finishes and the outside.PLANT, SCHEDULE, QUALITY, SAFETYMS Project and Primavera P6 import and exportBring the programme in from Microsoft Project (XML) or Primavera P6 (XER) with its work breakdown, dates, progress and links. Keep it up to date from the site, and send it back to the client or main contractor as a Microsoft Project file.

See your next site report on it.

Tell us what you build, how many sites you run and how your client hears about progress today. We will set up a project with you and send your first daily update.

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