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upFront.eZine
T h e B u s i n e s s o f C A D
Five Minutes with Bluebeam [out-PDF'ing Adobe]
by Ralph Grabowski
The height of the Internet bubble coincided with a large number of companies writing software to output CAD drawings in PostScript
format. As Adobe moved into the CAD market with Acrobat 6, imagine our surprise in learning that some CAD-PDF vendors are more
than just surviving.
One of them is Bluebeam, who, as we spoke with them last week, were close to moving into larger offices.
"How," we asked, "were you able to survive in this market?" We understand the CAD market, was the message CEO Richard Lee
repeated several times during the interview. And primarily focused on the architect and the AEC market.
Plus, customers get a lot for their US $250 spent on the software:
- Tightly integrated with AutoCAD
- Create half-size and A-size check plots
- Output to PDF and six other formats
- Twice as fast as Acrobat in generating PDFs from CAD drawings
- Batch printing
- Line merge options
- Bluebeam Express submits drawings to reprographic firms.
- Bluebeam Stapler creates PDF books by dragging and dropping files
As he was talking, I downloaded and installed the software. When I launched AutoCAD, its menu was very broad, what with the
Bluebeam and Adobe and Acrobat items added (the last two from Acrobat Pro 7). Bluebeam's print dialog is refreshingly clean,
and it quickly generated the PDF, and opened the file in Acrobat Reader.
"What," we wondered, "do you make of Adobe stepping into the periphery of CAD?" Not a problem, says Bluebeam. While Adobe is
adding CAD-specific features, CAD is not the big market for them. To Bluebeam's benefit, Adobe was the one who spent the money
legitimizing PDF for CAD. [And, we suspect, Autodesk's anti-Acrobat campaign of last year probably caused a few firms to
speculate that PDF must be pretty good if Autodesk is so against it.]
"When," we asked, "will you support 3D?" Bluebeam will support 3D as it develops. He is not convinced there is a demand yet
for 3D in PDF. After all, architects still build from 2D drawings, as are mechanical designs. "Steak and sizzle" is the
description for 3D, because it looks nice, but lacks the information found in 2D drawings.
"Which," we continued, "CAD vendors are you supporting?" Right now just AutoCAD (because it has the big market) and
SolidWorks (because it is the fastest growing). MicroStation uses Adobe's library to output PDF and U3D files. In future
releases, Bluebeam plans to add:
- Support for DWF and eDrawings (embedded into PDF).
- Redlining and markups, with the ability to capture all design changes, and then generate reports.
"Why," we concluded, "the unusual name?" The company had hired a naming expert, but then came up with Blue (as in blueprint)
and Beam (as in structures) on its own.
About Ralph Grabowski:
Ralph Grabowski is editor at upFront.eZine Publishing, Ltd. (previously known as XYZ Publishing, Ltd.). Ralph is the
author of over 70 books and several hundred articles for dozens magazines and newsletters about CAD, graphics, and
the Internet.
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