Exporting to SketchUp

[Duncan303]

Hi,

 

Looking to see if anyone has any tips on exporting files from Form Z to SketchUp.

 

I quiet often get asked by clients to provide 3d work to add to a larger models based in SketchUp.

 

My go to whenever exporting/importing between different CAD platforms is DWG but I've had a few comments regards some of the models I've sent people in the past - generally to do with surface objects.

 

I'm not familiar with SketchUp although i have dabbled a little bit in the past.

 

Looking for some recommendations regards file types, whether models should be smooth or facetted, scaling issues, surfaces objects and any other thoughts from the forum.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Duncan

 

 

[Tech]

Hi Duncan,

 

I would try DAE, or DWG as Facetted for SketchUp.  Do either of those work for your files?

[mleblanc]

Due to the nature of the business I have to use sketchup a lot and I usually use the dwg way to transfer file from FMZ to skp.

It is better if you separate each group of object a a separate file and that you import each file - one after the other - in sketchup. If you have a bookcase, you would put the shelve as a dwg file, the casing as another and the book as a third. This is the easiest way I found in order to get a somewhat clean model that is not packed in one object in skp. There is other way, but in any case, expect to spend a good amount of effort cleaning your skp after.

 

I wish there could be a direct way to export to skp which provide options to respect the nomencalture ( layer, color, instance) of sketchup.

 

 

M 

[Duncan303]

Thanks for the tips - I'll let you know how I get on with some of the methods described. Wish there was and .skp export option! Actually import quiet a bit of stuff from the 3d Warehouse and although some of it hasn't the greatest geometry it's good for using within visual and concept design.

 

[Tech]

Hi Duncan,

 

Yes, the 3d Warehouse can be quite useful, but we would highly recommend checking anything imported from SketchUp with the Object Doctor to see what issues exist, then choose the Fix option (and usually uncheck the Missing Faces option), and run the Dr again.  Finally, choose Add to Selection again and run it one more time to see if anything should be discarded or rebuilt, or if it is worth including in your project...

[Duncan303]

Hi All,

Thankfully this is not really an issue anymore - persuaded our new designer to move away from SketchUp to FormZ so converting my files is no longer an issue. After a few attempts I realised that I don't fundamentally like the modelling functionality of SketchUp - the geometry just isn't up to the level of FormZ or other Cad applications. I know it works for a huge number of people but it's not for me or our business.

Agree with above comment - I always run object doctor when I've imported something from 3D Warehouse.

thanks

[Shibui Design]

Sketchup can be refreshingly simple to use in it's approach yet frustrating at the same time. I'm curious to know anyone else's thoughts on using sketchup in a FormZ workflow. Duncan303- what were the keys to persuading your new designer to FormZ? Curious to hear anyone else's story.

[Tech]

Hi Duncan,

 

Yes, many people are moving away from SketchUp due to the geometry issues that most encounter.  Glad you were able to "persuade" your new designer of the benefits of formZ!

[etroxel]

DAE is by far the best way to go simply because it saves most textures and each object in FormZ translates into a group so you aren't stuck with SU's infamous (in a bad way) sticky geometry. The biggest issue for cleaning up models in SU is to reverse any faces necessary (usually glass ends up backwards in my models) because formZ treats polygons as double-sided while SU treats them single sided. Usually half of them are backwards every time I do it. You'll have to select the faces and right-click on them and choose the Reverse Face command from the contextual menu. You'll also have to paint the backsides of them with the same material so you can see through them from both sides. The way around this is to check which way your normals are facing in formZ ahead of time, then all you'll have to do is paint the back sides in SU. 

 

The other cleanup I do is to triple click on curved objects and click the smoothing feature in SU to clean up unnecessary edges from showing.

[rich f]

Thankfully this is not really an issue anymore - persuaded our new designer to move away from SketchUp to FormZ 

 

Yes, many people are moving away from SketchUp due to the geometry issues that most encounter.

 

This is great to hear... maybe without the mass of Google behind it Sketchup will lose a little steam.

 

Somewhat off topic, but for FormZ to be a solid part of a workflow we really need more tools to work with other programs and all the real-time rendering engines that are happening (i.e., FBX) I would love to get more people using it in lieu of Sketchup/Rhino but without more rendering options it is hard to justify switching. (I know there is another VRay tease out there...)

 

more off topic.. the forum search requires 4 characters... so I can't search for "FBX" to see recent comments on the subject...