Item: Bluebeam
Rating: 10
Author: Bob Kramer, RCDD, LEED AP

Overall Satisfaction with Bluebeam Revu

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Revu in several different ways. First, it's a great tool both in the office and when on job sites to document existing conditions with both markups and photos, which are embedded in the PDF. We use it in the office for redlining progress drawings, as well as reviewing and marking up contractor drawings, submittals, RFIs, and other project-related documents. Using the studio feature, we can collaborate with other members of the design team directly inside Revu. Revu is also used to document ongoing progress site visits. We use the iPad app for the fieldwork, and the desktop application while in the office. Using Revu allows for concise and legible markups, as well as the ability to generate summary reports of markups.

Pros and Cons

Pros

General PDF viewing: it seems to have the best PDF engine for speed and accuracy.
Redlining PDFs: it's simple to use and can create custom stamps easily.

Cons

REVU for ipad is not as easy to use as the desktop application.
The recent change of the user interface when going to the 2018 version was somewhat confusing. We have users on both older and newer versions.

Return on Investment

It allows us to be better organized.
It allows for quicker turnaround when reviewing submittals and job site visit reports.

Alternatives Considered

Adobe Acrobat DC

Revu was much easier to use, more cost-effective, and is more generally used in the construction and design industry than Adobe. We found Adobe to be more of a resource hog, as well as being bloated with offers for other Adobe applications, which many times would slow down a computer or laptop.

We also tried some of the freeware or shareware applications, which were very limited in their functionality and lacking technical support.

Support Rating

Overall we have had only a couple of times where we needed to contact support, as the product seems to be very stable, and most functions are very well documented. The few times we have had to contact support, usually via chat, our question or issue was resolved very quickly.

Key Insights

Do you think Bluebeam delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Bluebeam's feature set?

Yes

Did Bluebeam live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Bluebeam go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Bluebeam again?

Yes

Other Software Used

AutoCAD, Microsoft 365 Business, Egnyte

Likelihood to Recommend

General PDF creation and editing, as well as markup and combining of various PDFs, are great daily use features. We also use stamps quite often when marking up contractor submittals and related documents.

It's a much faster and easier application to use and master than the Adobe products, which seem to be very bloated and slow. I don't have any scenarios where Revu is less appropriate. It's our go-to application for anything using a PDF file format.

Bluebeam Feature Ratings

Comments

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Revu can handle all PDF related tasks with ease.