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How to Create Custom Count Tools in Bluebeam Revu 20

by | Mar 12, 2020 | Bluebeam Revu, Tips & Tricks | 2 comments

The Count tool in Bluebeam Revu is a measurement markup tool that allows you to keep a running count of items in your PDF. It can be used to track quantities of individual items, such as the number of lighting fixtures in an electrical plan or the number of sinks in a bathroom floor plan. Each time you place a Count, Revu will keep a running tally of each item you select when using the tool.

To access the Count tool, select the Tools dropdown menu. Navigate down to Measure, then select Count from the list of Measurement Tools.

Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
By default, the Count tool will appear as a check mark on your PDF – but what you may not know is that you can customize your Count tool to change its appearance.

Bluebeam Revu comes with several options for changing the appearance of your Count tool. One way to customize the Count tool is to open up the Properties panel when Count is selected. Under the Appearance section, there are several preloaded options to choose from to customize the shape of your Count, including a circle, rectangle, and diamond variation.

Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
There may be times when the preloaded Count options don’t fit the needs of your project. If you need to customize your Count tool even further, Revu lets you turn any markup tool into a Count tool. To create your own custom Count tool, first you’ll have to figure out what you want your Count to look like.

In my floor plan, I want to take a count of all of the doorways. To do this, I’ll create a door symbol for my Count tool. For this door symbol, I’ll use a rectangle markup and customize it so that it has a brown line and fill color with a vertical line hatchmark.

Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
Now that I’ve created the symbol I want to use as my Count tool, I’ll open up the Tool Chest from the Panel Access bar.
Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
From the Tool Chest, Revu gives you the ability to turn any tool into a Count measurement. To do this, the markup you want to use will need to just be in a tool set other than Recent Tools. I’ll add my door symbol to the My Tools tool set by right clicking on the tool and selecting Add to Tool Chest.
Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
Once you have your markup tool in a Tool Set, right click on the tool. From the dropdown menu, select Create Count. A new version of the tool will appear in the tool set with a Count symbol affixed to it. This tool has now been made into a Count measurement. You can now grab your custom tool and start counting items, and Revu will keep a running tally of each item you select.
Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
If you open up the Markups List, you’ll see that the door symbol I’ve created is listed as a Count measurement.
Using the count measurement markup tool in Bluebeam Revu 2019
You can continue to create different Count tools for all of you needs, and with the ability to turn any markup tool into a Count tool, the customization options are essentially limitless.

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

Lauren Hecker is a Bluebeam Certified Instructor and teaches Onsite Bluebeam Certified Courses, virtual Bluebeam Basics and Advanced courses, and custom onsite or virtual courses. To see her next open enrollment course, please visit our calendar. To schedule an onsite or custom course, please contact us!

2 Comments

  1. Peter Deniet
    Peter Deniet on July 1, 2022 at 9:38 am

    It appears that the Count tool tallies items per page, with each page having its own total. Is there a way to generate a tally total for the entire document, including multiple pages?

    Reply
    • Lauren Hecker
      Lauren Hecker on July 11, 2022 at 1:16 pm

      Hi Peter,
      You can’t tie the Count Tool to tally across pages – as you switch to a new page, a new Count will be created. However, from the Markups List, if you have the “Count” column displaying, you will be able the total tally across the entire document. This total, which will appear at the top of the Count column, will give you the total of all counts across the document’s pages.

      Reply

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