Creating and editing components in SketchUp helps you manage recurring elements in your model efficiently.
Components are SketchUp entities that allow you to group geometry (edges and faces) together and reuse that group throughout your model. Any changes made to one instance of a component will automatically update all other instances, saving significant time when modeling identical objects like windows, doors, or furniture.
Creating a Component
You can create a component from existing geometry in your model.
Here are the steps:
- Select the Geometry: Use the Select tool (Spacebar) to select all the edges and faces you want to include in your component. You can drag a selection box or hold Ctrl (Windows) / Option (Mac) to add or remove items from a selection.
- Context-Click: Right-click (context-click) on the selected geometry.
- Choose "Make Component": From the context menu, select "Make Component".
- Define Component Properties: The "Create Component" dialog box will appear.
- Name: Give your component a descriptive name (e.g., "Standard Window 01", "Dining Chair"). Good names make your model easier to navigate.
- Description (Optional): Add a brief description.
- Alignment: Set the component's axes (origin and direction) if needed. This is important for placing and orienting the component. The default is usually sufficient to start.
- Glue To (Optional): Define how the component interacts with surfaces (e.g., glues to vertical, horizontal, or any surface).
- Cut Opening (Optional): If the component (like a window or door) should cut a hole in a face, check this box.
- Always face camera (Optional): Makes the component always face the camera (useful for 2D elements like trees or people).
- Shadows (Optional): Determines if the component casts shadows.
- Create: Click the "Create" button.
Your selected geometry is now a component.
Editing a Component
To modify an existing component instance, you need to open its editing context. Any changes you make while in this context will affect all instances of that component in your model.
To open the context for the unique component:
- Double-click the component: The most common and quickest method.
- Select it, context-click the selection, and choose Edit Component: An alternative via the right-click menu.
Once you have opened the component for editing:
- The component you are editing will appear in solid colors, while the rest of your model will fade slightly, indicating you are inside the component's context.
- Use the SketchUp drawing tools (Line, Arc, Push/Pull, Move, etc.) to make changes to the component's geometry.
- You can add or delete geometry, resize elements, and apply materials just as you would in the main model space.
- When you are finished editing, click outside the component's bounding box or press the Escape key to exit the editing context.
Making a Component Unique
If you want to edit a component instance without affecting the others, you must make it unique first.
- Select the component instance you want to modify separately.
- Context-click the selected component.
- Choose "Make Unique".
- This creates a new component definition based on the selected instance. You can then edit this new component definition without changing the original one.
Summary Table: Components vs. Groups
| Feature | Component | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Reusability | Designed for multiple instances; linked | Single instance; not linked |
| Editing | Edit one instance, all update (unless unique) | Edit one instance; does not affect others |
| Name/Meta Info | Can be named, described, properties defined | Simple grouping; no unique name/description |
| File Size | Smaller file size for multiple instances | Can increase file size for multiple identical copies |
| Cut Opening | Can cut openings in faces | Cannot cut openings directly |
Understanding how to create and edit components is fundamental to efficient and organized modeling in SketchUp, especially for complex projects with repeating elements.
