There are a ton of awesome sketchup components in Google’s 3D warehouse and in other various corners of the web but if you’re not adding them to your local sketchup library you’re doing yourself a disservice. With each well constructed sketchup model comes 5 that are complete junk.  It’s important when you find good models to hold onto them and work towards customizing them to your own modeling style and material preferences.

In this guide we’ll be delving into 5 reasons you should be creating your own local sketchup library (that is saving models you find and like to your computer).

5 Reasons You Should Create A Local Sketchup Library

1. Most importantly, building your sketchup library saves you time. Searching through the Google 3d warehouse isn’t doing you any favors.  Importing even a few of the wrong components into your model can greatly increase your file size slowing down your workflow.  Purging the file is a good practice, but if you can avoid it after each time you import a component the better.
2. Your sketchup library lets you keep what you like.  It’s very possible that the user who uploaded on of your favorite models could take it down and then your out of luck.  If you don’t have to, don’t rely on them keeping it there.
3. I’ve found that after building your sketchup library you’ll take ownership over the components you use. You’ll start customizing them to your own preferences and style.  This will  not only greatly improve your models and help give them your own signature, but will helped you learn a lot about the way other people model.
4. Information is power.  While that’s true, more importantly, we mean quality information is power.  Simply put, the more better quality things you have over your competitors the more advantage you have.  Take what’s good, make it better, and use that to propel yourself towards success.
5. Building your sketchup library gives you the option to work offline.  Sometimes the power goes out or your internet goes down.  If your working on a tight deadline for a demanding client, that can be a huge problem. Not to mention that sometimes the internet can be a huge hindrance on productivity.  Maybe you want to turn off the internet and really crank things out.  And finally, having your library on your computer can give you the freedom of mobility.  You can model on the plane, on a bus, in a coffee shop, and don’t have to worry about you selected venue has wifi or not.
   

Hope this helps! Happy modeling!

Leave a comment below and let us know your own thoughts on creating a sketchup library