Fire-resistance of Cross-Laminated Timber

  Canadian researchers recently put Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT), a somewhat new building product, to the test to determine fire-resistance properties. Their findings were: The tests demonstrated that CLT assemblies can achieve significant fire resistance that is close to three hours in some cases with even unprotected CLT under full loading conditions. The failure modes were […] Read more..

Improve your WebGL models on Sketchfab with the new material editor

As I mentioned before on this site, Sketchfab is a great way to share your 3D models – for example using my SketchUp uploader plugin. One thing that was happening with SketchUp models in particular, however, was that they usually looked very “flat” on the Sketchfab website. Materials typically have a rather dull appearance and transparent […] Read more..

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year 2013!

I sincerely hope this post finds you all happy and healthy. Enjoy your holidays (whatever you celebrate and wherever you are) and any time off that you can spend with your family. I wish you all a successful new year and all the best for your future endeavors. It remains to be seen whether politicians […] Read more..

Sketchfab uploader plugin updated to v.1.4

[sketchfab id=”9UlsCfk5yh11kDMfLSM1nUfRCsY” start=”0″ spin=”0.3″ controls=”0″] I just updated the Sketchfab uploader plugin for SketchUp to v.1.4. You can now set your model on upload as private and assign a password (as long as you at least have a PRO account). It also sports a shiny new image. The full list of changes is: Support for […] Read more..

My SketchUp Book is Out!

This is an exciting week! My book “Architectural Design with SketchUp” is now available from all of the online booksellers and should be in stores soon, too. After a year of writing and a few months editing and finalizing, it feels really good to see the final product now on store shelves and on Amazon’s […] Read more..

How can you turn yourself into a vase?

Still need a good present idea and have a MakerBot laying around? Using SketchUp, you can easily turn your or a loved one’s silhouette into a rotational sculpture that can be a pedestal, vase, candle holder or anything else you like. With a 3D printer or a CNC lathe you have everything you need to […] Read more..