My Architect sent me a Archicad 3D file from Archicad 19. It opens up fine, in SU and generally has all the layers, but the scenes in my templete grey out, the sketchup model only has faces. Is there a practicle way of being able to work on the model in SU.
Thanks
It automatically comes in with every edge “hidden” - you can either turn on the hidden lines or select it all and un-hide them.
Anyone have more to post on this topic? - working with archicad models In sketchup?
Not much. Archicad can export a 3D model in the sketchup (.skp) format. Archicad models (.pln or .pla) can only be opened in Archicad.
I’d be eternally grateful if someone would do a tutorial or list steps for organizing and working with an Archicad file that has been imported into sketchup. I think HOW to import is covered, but I have’t found enough working with an imported Archicad model.
Thanks!
The problem is that the SketchUp export from Archicad is basically a huge mess of faces and edges with little about it to organize, and, for instance, a multistory whole building will be such a huge file that it will bring SketchUp to its knees. Try exporting only small parts of the Archicad model and working with them.
Watch out on accuracy, it could be similar problems as in Revit.
I use Archicad and export to Sketchup 2017 (AC doesn’t do 2018 at this time). Everything comes in as groups and the Archicad layers are brought into SU. There is no mess of lines and faces. Maybe this happened in the past but AC22 makes a clean SU model. The biggest issue is that walls do not join at corners so you have to do some boolean work to fix this. This is only an issue on outside corners. The export is one way only. There is no changing the SU model and sending it back to AC. You can do it but it takes some work. I use this procedure when I want to do the rendering in SU. Materials come across. Once you are in SU, you work as with any other SU model. Nothing special here. All the linework comes in on Layer 0 which is a plus. Not sure what you need. You get a model form AC which you can modify in a typical SU way.
KrisM
My frustrations with the Archicad model exported into SU are mainly when it comes to trying to work with one level (story) at a time. Maybe it is the way the Archicad file you are working on is set up? The Archicad model isn’t set up they way I would set up a SU model necessarily. Do you have layers set up by story that you can turn on and off? When I get the model into SU, the walls, for example, are all on and I have to try to make section cuts work to then work on them more (add furniture, wallpaper, wall finishes, etc) and it get really cumbersome. The other, more minor things is the the extra lines on faces (between faces) that archicad brings in.
Archicad works with stories but the usual practice is to have exterior walls for example on an “ext wall” layer not "ext wall - main floor " layer. Whoever does the archicad model could do it that way if it has to be done.
You could grab everything on a story in Sketchup and put all the objects on a story level. A bit of work.
The extra lines are Archicad exporting all the layers of the wall construction.
Bottom line is that there is no perfect translation for you. The programs are fundamentally different. I just use SU for rendering and so don’t have to deal with any of the issues that plague you.
Summary, You could get a good model from AC but the model would have to be done completely differently in AC for this to work. Layers would have to be duplicated for each story and walls could have only one thickness. This might complicate the document process in AC so might not be worth it.
The SketchUp exporter in Archicad supports model cropping with area selection or cutting planes so you are not obligated to export your full model.
Here Revit has an edge as it supports three modes of geometry display: Switch to Coarse and the internal layering of walls is ignored.