Can't Insert Empty Component when importing 3DS file

I’m trying to import a 3DS file into Sketchup, this usually works fine, however on this occasion i’m getting an error message saying; Can’t Insert Empty Component.

Unfortunately I can’t share the file because it belongs to a client.

However I wondered if this is something common when trying to import 3DS files.

The original was created on Vectorworks and imported to 3DS so I can open it on Sketchup, I was hoping maybe there was another file or method of exporting I could ask our client to try in order for me to open it.

Any advice much appreciated.

Try opening in some other application or viewer that supports 3DS (to verify that geometry has actually been exported) ?