# Import of DWG autocad files loses critical detail **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Requests\ **Created:** [March 16, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252 "2021-03-16T18:16:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SuperChief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e495f1/32.png) [@SuperChief](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/SuperChief)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/1 "2021-03-16T18:16:35Z")
I’ve been using Sketchup since 2014 and my number one complaint stays the same. When I receive a DWG drawing from an architect or engineer and import it I lose the text and line weights/color which makes complicated drawings difficult to comprehend. Almost as bad, layers are not preserved. I don’t care about most objects but there isn’t a drawing I get without layers, text, or lines indicating details, it makes me want to switch to autocad since that is what the professionals I deal with are using. Anyone figured out how to handle this? I see other people have complained about it. Definitely a feature request!! ---
**Author:** ![Anssi](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/anssi/32/105_2.png) [@Anssi](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Anssi)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2021, 8:01pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/2 "2021-03-16T20:01:55Z")
> [@SuperChief](#): > > Almost as bad, layers are not preserved. They **are** preserved in **import**. They are **not** preserved when you **Export** a **2D** screenshot to DWG. The import only imports objects that have an equivalent in SketchUp. SketchUp doesn’t support text. SketchUp has labels that are not 3D objects like text in AutoCad but screen elements. ---
**Author:** ![paul.millet](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/paul.millet/32/236258_2.png) [@paul.millet](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/paul.millet)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/3 "2021-03-16T20:14:46Z")
hello, Sketchup is not a dwg reader ! you shouldn’t need text to re-use what’s been drawn. If you have troubles to read plans without it, there are free dwg viewers such as autodesk trueview that you can leave open on another screen (or half the screen) while working in sketchup. As Anssi said, layers import just fine, so do blocks (that are converted to components) and even line weights depending on how they’ve been set up in autocad. If you really need the text to be imported, you can ask your architects or engineers to explode it in autocad before sending you the file, it will convert it to line/polylines or you can even do it yourself in illustrator (or equivalent). ---
**Author:** ![Odd\_Haakon\_Byberg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d26b3c/32.png) [@Odd\_Haakon\_Byberg](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Odd_Haakon_Byberg)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2021, 1:25pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/4 "2021-03-17T13:25:37Z")
colors are preserved too, as coloured entities, if you turn on" Color by Material". That should be enough to distinguish what’s what in the import. ![Screenshot 2021-03-17 at 14.22.55](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/original/3X/2/4/240ebefdc75a6883e5ebce79bcd41724caca37fa.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![glen7654321](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/glen7654321/32/2566_2.png) [@glen7654321](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/glen7654321)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2021, 6:39pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/5 "2021-03-23T18:39:03Z")
Are there any ways to get the text and dimensions importing properly? Without having to explode them in AutoCad. ---
**Author:** ![DaveR](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/daver/32/7601_2.png) [@DaveR](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/DaveR)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2021, 6:41pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/6 "2021-03-23T18:41:25Z")
You could try using TIG’s [Import DXF Text](https://sketchucation.com/pluginstore?pln=importDXFtext). It should work with dxf files at least. ---
**Author:** ![glen7654321](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/glen7654321/32/2566_2.png) [@glen7654321](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/glen7654321)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2021, 6:46pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/7 "2021-03-23T18:46:35Z")
Very nice. So SketchUp can import text. They just need to combine the two bits of code then. ---
**Author:** ![DaveR](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/daver/32/7601_2.png) [@DaveR](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/DaveR)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2021, 7:00pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/8 "2021-03-23T19:00:31Z")
Maybe. As I understand it the CAD importer is a 3rd party thing. That 3rd party would be the “they” you refer to. And while it might work for dxf files it still might not be possible with dwg files. BTW, please complete your profile with SketchUp version, operating system, and graphics card. ---
**Author:** ![glen7654321](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/glen7654321/32/2566_2.png) [@glen7654321](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/glen7654321)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 10:22am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/9 "2021-03-24T10:22:12Z")
I just updated the profile info. ---
**Author:** ![glen7654321](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/glen7654321/32/2566_2.png) [@glen7654321](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/glen7654321)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 10:25am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/10 "2021-03-24T10:25:50Z")
I wonder why SketchUp hasn’t added support for text strings after all these years. ---
**Author:** ![Anssi](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/anssi/32/105_2.png) [@Anssi](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Anssi)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 5:26pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/11 "2021-03-24T17:26:20Z")
> [@glen7654321](#): > > I wonder why SketchUp hasn’t added support for text strings after all these years. To use an imported DWG as a modelling aid you only need the lines. SketchUp has never been intended to be a DWG viewer. In the AutoCad sense, SketchUp has no text, as model entities. ---
**Author:** ![pbacot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/41988e/32.png) [@pbacot](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/pbacot)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 5:55pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/12 "2021-03-24T17:55:40Z")
I am currently, this minute, locating existing trees on a SketchUp site model. Although I can handle it fine, for each position I have to refer back to the CAD file to find out which trees are which. I might end up labeling them in the model and it would also be nice if that text was just available to overlay in the model. To say this is a “third party” issue doesn’t matter. Trimble could find another third party. I’m a “third party” a lot of the time. I still have to do what’s required. ---
**Author:** ![MikeWayzovski](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/mikewayzovski/32/98346_2.png) [@MikeWayzovski](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/MikeWayzovski)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 6:34pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/13 "2021-03-24T18:34:20Z")
Maybe you can view it in a viewer and take a screenshot (png) import that, too ---
**Author:** ![Anssi](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/anssi/32/105_2.png) [@Anssi](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Anssi)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 7:34pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/14 "2021-03-24T19:34:37Z")
> [@pbacot](#): > > it would also be nice if that text was just available to overlay in the model. There is the problem. The AutoCad file has a text object positioned beside your tree. In SketchUp you cannot put a text object beside a tree. SketchUp text placement is related to pixels on your screen. When you zoom or orbit, text keeps its position. SketchUp text is like a post-it note. ---
**Author:** ![pbacot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/41988e/32.png) [@pbacot](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/pbacot)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 8:11pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/15 "2021-03-24T20:11:16Z")
True about SketchUp text. And if you put it in text made up of edges the file would easily become too heavy. ---
**Author:** ![pbacot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/41988e/32.png) [@pbacot](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/pbacot)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 8:13pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/16 "2021-03-24T20:13:31Z")
If i put in a screenshot will be better resolution than a pdf? I imported the pdf and it was illegible. ---
**Author:** ![MikeWayzovski](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/mikewayzovski/32/98346_2.png) [@MikeWayzovski](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/MikeWayzovski)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 9:09pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/17 "2021-03-24T21:09:08Z")
Setting the max textures in [menu] SketchUp \> Preferences \> OpenGL might improve. It all depends on what type of viewer and what monitor if you take a screenshot. ---
**Author:** ![RichH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@RichH](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/RichH)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 10:42pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/19 "2021-03-24T22:42:01Z")
When I’ve needed info from a PDF in a program that didn’t handle PDFs, I exported that PDF page or pages from a PDF reader as a bitmap of whatever resolution that would be readable (300 dpi), brought that JPG or PNG into an image editor, cropped it as necessary and then brought it into its final destination. ---
**Author:** ![pbacot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/41988e/32.png) [@pbacot](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/pbacot)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 11:31pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/20 "2021-03-24T23:31:02Z")
No, but I can make good images. The problem is SU limited resolution. This was a large site. Certainly I can cut the image up etc. By that time. I’ve already done it the other way. ---
**Author:** ![pwharton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b4bc9f/32.png) [@pwharton](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/pwharton)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2021, 11:59pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/import-of-dwg-autocad-files-loses-critical-detail/157252/21 "2021-03-24T23:59:52Z")
You can go into windows/preferences/ OpenGL and check “Use Maximum texture size”. This will help sharpen up most imported CAD images enough to work with. But when you are done you need to turn this function off to avoid issues with your graphics card.