With Bluebeam Revu's advanced customization features, you can infuse your drawings with personalization and unparalleled clarity, enabling you to tell a visual story that resonates with your client and the AEC team.
Consider you're working on a complex architectural project, and you're tasked with creating a comprehensive set of drawings. The drawings must convey the technical details and be easy to understand. This is where creating Bluebeam custom line styles comes into play.
Why Create Custom Line Styles in Bluebeam Revu
With Bluebeam custom line styles, you can give life to your AEC drawings, transforming them into meaningful visual narratives that effortlessly guide the viewer's attention and comprehension. For instance, using a bold dashed line to represent a demarcation on a floor plan subtly indicates the transition between two distinct areas. Or perhaps you want to emphasize the strength and stability of a structural element by incorporating a distinctive, solid double line.
Beyond visuals, Bluebeam custom line styles offer many practical benefits. You can create unique line styles to match your specific project requirements. Furthermore, you can share your custom line sets with your AEC teams to ensure consistency across drawings and improve collaboration. Whether you're an architect, engineer, contractor, or designer, utilizing Bluebeam custom line styles empowers you to deliver precise and compelling AEC drawings.
Creating Bluebeam Custom Line Styles in Revu 21
Bluebeam Revu 21 offers a straightforward way to create and modify custom line sets that you can import, export, and share with your team members for design consistency. In Bluebeam Revu, you can:
- Create a New Line Style Set
- Create a New Line Style in an Existing Set
- Modify a Line Style
- Import or Export a Line Style Set
Read the following step-by-step guides to create custom lines for consistent AEC workflows in Bluebeam Revu 21.
Creating a New Line Style Set
Line style sets allow you to organize related line styles, making them easier to find when needed. In addition, you can export and share these sets with others, just like Hatch Patterns or Tool Sets. Let's dive into the process of creating a new line-style set.
Step 1 - Start with a Blank PDF
Open Bluebeam Revu and create a new Blank PDF document. This will serve as the canvas for our line style customization.
Step 2 - Add a Line Markup
We must create a line markup on the PDF to access the line style editor. Locate the "Line" tool in the toolbar and use it to draw a line anywhere on the document.
Step 3 - Open the Properties Tab
Right-click on your created line markup and choose "Properties" from the context menu. The Properties panel will pop out, providing access to various customization options.
Step 4 - Access the Line Style Manager
In the Properties panel, click on the "Style" menu. From the available options, select "Manage" to open the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box. This is where we'll create and manage our line style sets.
Step 5 - Add a New Line Style Set
Within the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box, click the "Add" button. This action will open the Line Style Set dialog box.
Step 6 - Name Your Line Style Set
In the Add Line Style Set dialog box, choose "New." In the Title field, provide a suitable name for your line style set. The Location field will automatically populate with the file name as you type.
Step 7 - Choose a Save Location (Optional)
If you wish to change the default save location for your line style set, click on the folder icon. Select a desired local or network folder to save your line set. You can also save the location relative to your current Profile by selecting the "Relative Path" option. Alternatively, uncheck the box to save the full path.
Step 8 - Confirm and Edit the Line Style Set
Click "OK" to create your line style set. You will now see the Edit Line Style Set dialog box, where you can further customize your line styles if desired.
Step 9 - Customize Line Styles (Optional)
In the Edit Line Style Set dialog box, you can add, modify, or delete line styles within the set. Add a new line style and take your time to tailor it to your preferences. Once you are satisfied with the default styles, you can click “OK” and proceed to the next step.
*Read the next section of this guide to see how to create a tailored Bluebeam custom line style.
Step 10 - Save and Finalize
Once you have made any desired modifications, click "OK" to save your changes and finalize the creation of the line style set. This is it. Your Bluebeam custom line styles are now ready to be utilized.
Now, you can create New Line Style(s) in an Existing Line Style Set.
Creating a New Line Style in an Existing Line Style Set
Step 1 - Select the Line Style Set
In the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box, select the line style set you want to modify. Click on it to select it, and then click "Modify." Please note that the Standard line style set cannot be modified.
Step 2 - Add a New Line Style
Within the Edit Line Style Set dialog box, click on the "Add" button. This will bring up the Add Line Style dialog box.
Step 3 - Name Your Line Style
In the Add Line Style dialog box, enter a name for your line style in the Name field. Choose a descriptive and meaningful name that reflects the characteristics of the style you're creating. Once you've entered the name, click "OK."
Step 4 - Customize the Line Style
The Line Style Editor will now appear, allowing you to customize the new line style. The Properties section of the editor allows you to preview the properties and appearance of the line style.
Take the following steps to modify the line style:
- Determine the Number of Lines - The line style starts with one line by default. To add another line, click the "+" button to the left of the Lines list. Select a line and click the "-" button to remove it.
- Control Line Position - Select a line from the Lines list and adjust the Offset setting to control its position. The default offset is 0.0 (the middle), and the offset range is -10.0 to 10.0.
- Add Line Components (Optional) - If desired, you can add Line Components to modify the appearance of the lines. Explore the options available in the Line Style Editor to customize the style.
Add your design offset and component width.
- Scale with Line Thickness - To ensure the line style automatically scales with its line width property when used, select the "Scale with Line Thickness" option.
- Description (Optional) - If you wish, you can enter a brief description of the line style in the Description field.
Once satisfied with the modifications, click "OK" to dismiss each dialog box. Your new line style is ready for use within the selected line style set.
Step 5 - Check Line Style & Discard the Temporary PDF
Apply a new line style from properties > style. Your sample line markup will be modified according to your chosen design and layout.
Modifying a Line Style
Once you have created a custom line style in Bluebeam Revu and want to modify it to match your preferences and requirements, you can come back anytime and access the Line Line Style Manager to modify your desired line style simply.
Let's walk through the steps:
Step 1 - Start with a Blank PDF
Open Bluebeam Revu and create a new blank PDF document.
Step 2 - Add a Line Markup
Create a line markup on the PDF to access the line style editor. Use the "Line" tool from the toolbar to draw a line anywhere on the document.
Step 3 - Open the Properties Tab
Right-click on the line markup you created and select "Properties" from the context menu. The Properties tab will appear, displaying various customization options.
Step 4 - Access the Line Style Manager
Within the Properties tab, click on the "Style" menu. From the options available, select "Manage" to open the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box. This is where we'll manage our line styles.
Step 5 - Select the Line Style Set
In the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box, choose the line style set containing the style you want to modify. Click to select it, and then click "Modify."
*Note that the Standard line style set cannot be modified.
Step 6 - Select the Line Style to Modify
Within the Edit Line Style Set dialog box, locate the line style you want to modify. Select it and click "Modify." The Line Style Editor will appear, displaying the settings for the selected line style.
Step 7 - Make Modifications
Within the Line Style Editor, you can modify various aspects of the line style to meet your current needs. Make desired modifications and click “Ok.”
*The second section of this guide on adding Bluebeam custom line styles covers more modification options and different line styling attributes.
Click save or OK to dismiss each of the dialog boxes. Your line style has now been successfully modified.
Importing and Exporting Line Style Sets
The Line style sets can be easily imported and exported, allowing you to share or use Bluebeam custom line styles. Follow these steps to import or export a line style set:
Step 1 - Import a Line Style Set
To import a line style set, click the "Import" button within the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box. This will prompt you to select a .blx file containing the line style set you want to import. Locate the desired .blx file and click "Open." The selected line style set will be automatically imported.
*You can also double-click a .blx file in Windows Explorer. It will automatically import your line style set into Bluebeam Revu.
Step 2 - Export a Line Style Set
To export a line style set, select the set you wish to export from the list in the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box. Once selected, click on the "Export" button. Choose a folder on your computer or network drive where you want to save the exported line style set, and then click "Save."
Step 3 - Confirm and Exit
Click "OK" in the Manage Line Style Sets dialog box to close it.
This is how you can create, manage, and use Bluebeam Custom Line Styles to differentiate demarcation and annotation workflows. By importing, exporting, and sharing line style sets with your team members, you can ensure consistency across teams and various AEC workflows.
