I recently had the opportunity to attend Bluebeam’s eXtreme Conference in Austin, TX. In addition to being informative, this conference was also incredibly fun. The conference was held at the downtown JW Marriott, on several floors of the hotel. Each floor had several auditoriums dedicated to one-to-two hour sessions on different Bluebeam Revu related topics. As a result, I was able to learn about a ton of new Revu featires, including Bluebeam Studio and Studio Prime. Outside of the auditoriums were booths dedicated to sponsors. Many of these featured products that integrate with Bluebeam Revu. Lastly, there was also an interactive zone where participants in the conference could try out Bluebeam Revu 2019.

Keynote Presentation

The keynote presentation discussed the upcoming features in Bluebeam Revu 2019. Since the release of Bluebeam Revu 2018 in April, there have been over one million new downloads of the software. Revu 2018 featured a new intuitive interface, allowing many people to discover features that have existed for years. However, the highlight of the keynote presentation was Project Atlas. This is a startup company that Bluebeam recent acquired. They describe this program as ‘the Google-Maps of building projects.’

Project Atlas

The founders of Project Atlas discussed how their software integrates with Google Maps. Project Atlas works by overlaying CAD files of project layouts on the actual location. With the software, project managers can walk their jobsite and use Project Atlas to see the CAD file. They can even use an ‘elevator’ button to view different floors. They can drop pins on the map and upload files to that pin. This allows project managers and inspectors to view RFIs, pictures and questions at the actual location they pertain to.

If a project manager’s team has Project Atlas linked to their mobile device, the team members can be seen on the map in real time. The software even integrates with drones that can be deployed to map the progress of the project, and overlay the progress photos on top of the map. Best of all, Project Atlas will integrate with Bluebeam Revu. You can overlay PDFs on the map, and files can be uploaded to pins from Studio Projects.

Bluebeam Revu Lectures

After the keynote, I attended several lectures from Bluebeam and Bluebeam Revu users. I learned about Bluebeam Studio, administering Bluebeam Revu across large organizations, and how 3D designers use Revu with their CAD software. Most notably, at a session for Bluebeam Studio 101, I learned about using Studio Projects. Studio Projects is a cloud storage system for all kinds of files. From here, you can share a project file as a link that you can send via email.

Link Sharing

The link sharing feature allows you to require a password, flatten the file and even set an expiration for the link. Here’s how to do this in Revu eXtreme 2018: Open Bluebeam Studio from the Panel Access bar. Open a project in Studio Projects. Navigate to the file you want to share. Right click on the file thumbnail preview. Click on ‘Link Sharing.’ A dialogue box will open, with options to set an expiration date, set a password, and flatten the file. When you are ready, select ‘OK’ and copy the link to your clipboard. Now, you can send the document via email! Here is a GIF of the process:

The conference concluded with a rooftop dinner where Bluebeam’s own CEO played lead guitar and vocals with the band for several songs. I had a lot of fun, learned a lot more about Bluebeam and Bluebeam Revu, and I am looking forward to Bluebeam’s eXtreme conference in Washington DC in 2019!

Here is the link to learn more about Bluebeam eXtreme Conference in 2019 https://bluebeamextreme.com

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please use the comment section on the bottom of this page. Don’t forget to subscribe to our blog to get more Bluebeam Revu tips & tricks directly in your inbox!

Lauren Hecker is the instructor for the Bluebeam Revu Essentials and Advanced courses. To see her next open enrollment course, please visit our calendar. To schedule an onsite or custom course, please contact us!