Profile Builder is a set of powerful easy-to-use parametric modeling tools for SketchUp. It has become an ESSENTIAL SketchUp extension for thousands of customers world-wide. By using Profile Builder, you will be able to model faster than ever before. Not only that, your models will be SMARTER and adaptable to design changes.
Parametric Profiles: Say Good-bye to Follow-Me!
The essence of Profile Builder is the ability to create smart extrusions (we call these ‘Profile Members’) using parametric profiles. A profile can be any shape and can even be a polyline.
Create smart walls, mouldings, framing, curbs, piping, railings, roof details, and foundations – the possibilities are endless!
Create and Save Custom Profiles
Profiles can be saved to your local library complete with custom name, orientation (anchor point, offsets, rotation), dimensions, material, tag, extrusion mode, and junction style. Create a new Profile simply by drawing a face or polyline in your model and adding it as a new Profile. Once you save the profile, you can load it and then re-use it in future projects.
Smart Assemblies – Combine Profiles and Components
Imagine modeling a complex railing, multi-layer wall, fence, stud-wall, staircase, or streetscape in seconds! Profile Builder lets you create and save fully customizable parametric smart assemblies. You will be absolutely amazed with what you can do with Assemblies in Profile Builder!
Don’t want to make your own assemblies? No problem! Just download one of the many pre-made assemblies from the 3D Warehouse and customize it to make it your own!
Editable Holes and Openings
Cut through nested groups and components with ease using a suite of hole editing tools. Profile Members and Assemblies remember the properties and locations of their holes so you can modify the object and the holes will be re-generated in the proper location.
New in version 4 is the ability to select, move, copy, and edit existing hole attributes. Holes in assemblies also persist even after editing the path and assembly properties.
Build a Profile Along any Path – Profiles Stay the Correct Orientation
One of the biggest complaints about the SketchUp Follow Me tool is how the profile orientation tends to rotate along complex paths. Profile Builder can handle almost any path you throw at it and will always maintain the expected orientation of the Profile. Not only that, it will apply proper texture positioning and edge softening automatically! Notice in the image below how the Profile Builder Modes show the expected continuous texture position and orientation along the extruded path.
In some situations, the Follow Me approach can provide the desired result so Profile Builder includes a Follow Me mode to simulate the classic SketchUp behavior but with the advantages of creating fully parametric smart objects that are editable with the Profile Builder tools.
Revolve a Profile
Revolve a Profile in two clicks to create a parametric 3D revolved Profile Member! These types of objects are normally time-consuming to create in SketchUp but Profile Builder can do it in seconds!
Smart-Path Selection
The Smart-Path Select tool is useful for quickly selecting a specific path of edges among other complex geometry. Simply double-click an edge and the tool will automatically select an appropriate path for you to build a Profile or Assembly along. Or, you can click individual edges in sequence and the tool will auto-select all edges forming the shortest path between the clicked edges.
Non-Destructive Editing Tools
When we say Profile Builder is parametric, we mean it! Any Profile Member or Assembly can be edited without losing its intelligent parameters. Change the profile, material, height, width, orientation, and even the extrusion path after creation. Use the Extend Tool to split or adjust the length of the object and use the Trimming Tools to apply the finishing touches. Below, four Profile Members are selected and trimmed simultaneously against a solid pipe using the Profile Builder Trim to Solid Tool.
In a survey of our customers, 42% said that they use Profile Builder in over 90% of their SketchUp projects and 74% said that they use it in OVER HALF of their SketchUp projects.
In the same survey, over 25% said that Profile Builder could save them over 100 hours of work per year! And 47% said that it could save them over 50 hours per year!
What is your time worth? What would you pay to save 50 hours of work? What about 100 hours?
