CU1605

SOFTWAREreview
Top marks
3D PDF markups, multi-plane cuts and the Tool Chest in Bluebeam Revu gives architects the
ability to communicate design ideas across CAD platforms quickly and more effectively
An increasing number of
architects and designers are
using PDFs to share their
designs with other architects, as they
use neutral format files that can be
viewed by anyone with a free PDF
viewer and come with markup and
annotation tools that provide
Bluebeam Revu x, y, and z cutting planes
3D PDFMarkup indicators in Revu
interactive two-way collaboration
capabilities.
Bluebeam Revu is just such a PDF
editor, but one that has focused on the
construction industry. Revu allows
users to create PDF documents from
all of the leading CAD and office
applications and, besides its library of
markup tools, comes with a range of
management tools combining, collating
and sorting documents on the fly or in
batch runs, recording markups,
planning and running collaboration
sessions and much more.
With the growing reliance on sharing
information within 3D models,
Bluebeam Revu has provided
enhanced markup capabilities in 3D
PDFs, making it easier to locate 3D
annotations and attachments in 3D
space. The process is as simple as
creating 2D PDFs, and a 3D PDF can
be created directly from Revit,
Navisworks Manage, Navisworks
Simulate and SketchUp, or just as
easily from an IFC file.
3D PDFs can either be created from a
full-page 3D model, a U3D or by
copying selections or views of a model
and pasting them into a 3D PDF. Once
created, the PDF viewer can be used
to navigate through complex models,
to change render modes and to isolate
parts of a model to provide greater
access to details. Revu's Transform
tool even allows users to manipulate
objects within the 3D PDF.
The 3D PDFs can also be shared
globally with project teams and clients
using Bluebeam Studio, a real time
sharing environment for Bluebeam
PDFs. The increased popularity of
PDFs for collaboration is probably due
to the dramatically smaller model sizes
involved compared to native CAD files.
3D PDF CUTTING PLANES
Cutting Planes are another feature that
aids model visibility. There is an icon
on the 3D Hover Bar at the top of the
display screen that turns on cutting
planes, allowing users to define x, y
and z axes, and to slice it along any
one or all three of the axes to open up
18
May/June 2016