Nick, thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to check up/reply to this thread. Multipage layering - that’s partially the key! Although that helps more with plans that are wholly on their own page (I typically have basement/main on one sheet and upper/roof on the next) it certainly does highlight the use of multipage layering that are used with other scrapbook items (e.g. titleblocks) that have a repetitive nature to them. Keeping my eyes out for a component-like solution to my workflow and hopefully it’s on Trimble’s priority to-do list.
This thread has been going for a few years. Hopefully this is development rather than sitting on the back burner.
Components as specifications and LEVELS!! would dramatically improve my ability to deliver projects on time. It’s not easy being a solo freelance building designer with no one else to check your work. Components would reduce the painstaking repetition of final delivery. Components may even add years to my life. Yes I’d like to see them soon thank you.
I’d also like to see them interact with a drawing labeling system. So if you remove or add a drawing in the sequence, it is updated.
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Absolutely. Find and replace would add massive professional weight to Layout. Can we all push for this feature??
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@Sonder @Marc @DaveR
Resurrecting the main need for components in Layout, it can be made to happen using a new type of layer? Just like the way that you can make a layer appear on every page we need a variant of a layer which can be applied to non-skp-objects which will appear on any page but are independent in terms of scaling, position, and line weights.
Case in question, I am using exploded vector drawings in various pages that show layered section fills thru a section. if i want the section fill to update everywhere i have to make a scaled drawing and paste it into every instance and scale it. There are also things like hatches on multiple pages or fills with special linked colors. if i have a master drawing and i want the shape to remain consistent but i want my edits to be propagated like a block in every drawing but possibly with different scales or lineweights but maintain the identical shape i want that feature.
So- if i want a certain shape that is a trapezoid for example to be a trapezoid with a hatch and color red in the same room, in a different position, on a specific layer, on any page, in any quantity on a page, so that if edit it in the master or on any page, it will change on all pages - i want that feature.
Doors in a drawing unlinked from sketchup, i want open 45 or 90 i can make the change to one door and it does it throughout.
If i import a sketchup model and there is an array of parts that are componentized like dowels on a balustrade i want to be able to put them on a layer and make adjustments to a shop drawing and it makes throughout.
in this capability there can be a warning and a capability to unlink and or move to another layer incase customisation differing to the other instances is needed.
this change only should apply to a group of objects or a grouped object and not an object alone. that way you have a container with which to apply attributes. the container could have a dashed line around it like the dots of a scaled drawing and the container could display a scale and the amount of entities in the model. there could be an outliner for the objects in the model that have this behaviour and the pages they are on too so that you can hide and show and lock and unlock and jump to all locations and groups that they are in in order to isolate and check the hierarchy within a drawing.
so on i blah blah. hope this catches the attention of someone at sketchup. im afraid my way of wording things may not be the best to relate to a workflow but im sure it would eliminate chunks of time spent moving between pages in a set of drawings if you can edit a block and even save blocks in scrapbooks and reuse them all over a drawing and they are styled different on the outside but the shape and contents of the block remain the same all over the drawing.
Everything seems to be sooooo complicated. Layout already has group (we half way there) So you simply take that group and make it duplicatable like a component in SU or a block in CAD. That’s it.
And I know I’m getting annoying with this request: but if the API of Layout would finally accept extensions… several conversations on this community could be satisfied. SketchUp is one of the best simple 3D software on the market BECAUSE of its extension’s library. If Layout would use the same approach, it could become one of the best drafting software… until then, it’s one of the worst!
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Trimble is focusing on “Live Components” 
“Live components” in Layout… I would be in heaven!
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Hello.
Thank you LayOut team (and SketchUp team, too) for your hard work to keep them simple and powerful.
I’m making a construction documents for a high rise building (25 floors, 130,000 square meters) in LayOut with 300 pages A1 size which is separated into many layout files. When I need to adjust globally some drawing symbols, it’s really a painful to our team. So today, I made a search, found this topic and bump to send a request for “Component feature” in LayOut.
I wish this feature (this big dream) can become true.
Wish you all the best, SketchUp team!
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Hot links within the drawing would be great. Even greater if it would translate to a pdf created by LayOut. Pdf already hast this ability.
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Has anything happened with components in Layout yet?
I see the thread was started in 2016… L O L
How has something not been done!? L O L
I am doing wall labels and wants to make a basic label that I can update later on every floor.
Additionally, I still want Layout to have the ability to make no print layers.
Any updates?
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Looking for a solution to this in 2023, I cannot believe this is still not a function. Frustrated at the lack of development for basic documentation tools in this program. Trying hard to push for sketchup for professional documentation but here we go again. Back to Revit.
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Waiting for Components in layout for Sketchup be like…
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It would be awesome for this to work through scrapbooks where simply editing the scrapbook element automatically updates all instances in a given file.
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I agree using scrapbooks seem to work fine for me and reading through this has inspired a higher level of scrapbook items. The ability to “pass through” attributes would be ok I suppose but opening components in SU with all the tools isnt a big deal. Ive been thinking a broader entity info ability would be very powerful. Currently I find only five fields available to pass through to a label or auto text in layout. as an example a door or window label I use the Instance field for the ID of that component 101,102 ect. This works great if the design changes and I need to reorder the numbers I only change in one place an all relative scenes in layout are updated. Components also make info available but its hit and miss. As an example Marvin or Pella window components from the warehouse contain a lot of info available to a label but its not organized so its difficult to use this info to fill in schedules ect. for something like a R.O. an expanded user definable with some base attributes would improve the ability to extract reports and BIM type information. Im not thinking a table that can change the attributes of a component just collecting information specific to that particular instance either taken from the component or manually input.
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And here we are… 2024 is out, and no sign of a component like feature…
Yes, and still must use a trick like this:
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It made my day. Thank you
But is is heavy to render everytime ? If I make a sockets for example?
Actually half year ago I started to use SketchUp Layout for 2D Dokumentation for Interiors (After long time in Autocad). An this problems with component really made me nervous. I started to create Light and Electric plans in SketchUp, because of it and that’s no full vector export from Layout. It’s extremely trouble to give vor Electrician DWG file for his own work.
I would love to see LO have component capabilities.
I’ve been using LO for 2D detail drafting, and have grown to like how it works and the results.
I for one, hope Trimble and the SU/LO team not only add component capabilities to LO, but also expand LO’s 2D drafting as well as graphic functionalities. Trimble, please don’t abandon LO for some other drafting program. It is great to have something like this work so well with SU. Of course there is always room for improvement.
I think of Layout as a cross between a 2D drafting Paperspace program like AutoCAD Lite and a graphic layout program like Adobe Illustrator that has the super power of inserting SU files for annotations. It would be fantastic to take the best of those type of programs and empower even more creative freedom to the users.
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