Trimble Extends Survey and Engineering Workflow Support with SketchUp File Integration

New Functionality Integrates Native SketchUp File Support in Trimble Business Center Software

Trimble introduced today integration of SketchUp® file import and export capabilities in its Trimble® Business Center office software. By supporting model data from SketchUp, Trimble extends its capability to support survey and engineering organizations across their entire workflow. Acquired by Trimble from Google in 2012, SketchUp Pro is used by architects and engineers to easily create 3D models for visualization of structures.

As part of Trimble's suite of solutions, Trimble Business Center is the office software that fully integrates with Trimble's field solutions allowing surveyors, engineers, and geospatial professionals to edit, process and adjust data to produce high-quality deliverables.

"By adding SketchUp model support into our Trimble Business Center software, we further integrate the survey and engineering workflow with processing and modeling capabilities," said Alain Samaha, business area director for Trimble's Survey Solutions. "This integration can help ensure that survey and engineering companies are working with reliable, accurate data and models to enable improved productivity."

With the addition of SketchUp import support, Trimble Business Center now allows surveyors to calculate points based on 3D SketchUp Pro models generated by engineers and architects and transfer those points into Trimble Access™ field software for field work. Trimble Business Center's exporter functionality routes survey data back into SketchUp and provides survey and engineering companies and architects with a timely and accurate portrayal of the land layout as they begin design work.

"The new workflow capabilities that this data interoperability path can provide are exciting. It can enable increased collaboration between surveyors and construction design professionals, who can now make compelling new 3D visualizations of projects that include realistic representations of buildings and other such structures in real-world geospatial context," said Christopher Keating, business area director for SketchUp. "In addition, precise survey data can now be efficiently communicated from the field to the office, providing faster and more efficient design work in SketchUp 2013 for new construction projects of all types."

Trimble Business Center v2.9 & v3.0 with SketchUp file support are available now through Trimble's Survey Distribution Channel. SketchUp Pro 2013 is available for purchase through the SketchUp online store, the SketchUp sales team or the SketchUp reseller channel. For more information about SketchUp, visit: www.sketchup.com.