Imported SketchUp model looking hell'ish

Hello everyone,

First proper post here, I’m tucking in to UE at last. Taken me a while to get round to it.
Anyway, my goal will just be to learn how to use the engine in order to import one of my 3D models (made in SketchUp) and (eventually) have a player able to 1st person around the model, with gun in hand, able to destroy the model bit by bit…

Why???

Because I was new to modeling at the time, I used some quite long-winded methods to create my model. It was the first proper model I ever made really as far as something true to life (developed out of CAD 2d files) of a real site (new builds housing estate) here in South-East UK.

I’m pretty happy with how the model turned out and I learned a few lessons about doing things quicker (eventually)!

Here is the real thing, now built by Persimmon Homes (2nd largest new builds developer in the UK):

Here is the model in SketchUp…

EXPORTING FROM SKETCHUP:

I used the DATASMITH EXPORTER FOR SKETCHUP as found on the official site, exporting seemed successful with no errors.
When I imported the file in to UE, I had warnings that the lighting needed to be built, so I did that, it still looked bad (with crazy shadows where they really ought not to be)…

After reading here:
https://forums.unrealengine.com/deve…ne-is-so-large
That I should add an IMPORTANCE VOLUME, I did so. Then I re-built the lighting but it still looks awful.
Colours are bad, fair enough, the roof has no material on it, but I don’t understand why the shadows and artefacts are there on the roof tiles.

I am fairly used to using TwinMotion to tweak lighting , (I know UE is a whoolle lot more), but as a newbie… is there a way to adjust real-time lighting to see how you want things to look?

As you can tell my first task is just to get this model looking decent. And then I can eventually go about business of making it destructable (I’m still researching the best approach to achieve this).

**Thanks for any newbie advice guys!

PS, one last thing, this is how it looks on the Sketchfab site after a little adjustment over there:

https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/wwx-…81171c0674a8b1**

The issue there is with how the roof is modeled, since it has so many overlapping pieces it makes shadow underneath. You’ll need to increase the lightmap resolution on that mesh to improve how the shadows look

I suggest to import your Sketchup file inside Meshmatic and optimize the file. Since you’re trying to import a CAD file into Unreal, it makes it easier to instantiate all the repeated parts like the tiles on the roof and then generate normals for them. After that, you can export the design as a Datasmith or an FBX and import it into Unreal. Download Meshmatic and follow this video tutorial. Message me if need help. https://meshmatic3d.com/knowledge-base-2/quick-optimization/

meshmatic is terrible and that $90/month would be better spent elseware. the $90 plan gets you extreamly simple “automatic” tools that do basics of 3d modeling
$90/month for:
“The mesh clean up includes tools to combine meshes, delete non-manifold faces, fill holes, generate LOD’s, remove duplicate faces and vertices”
and
"Hierarchy optimization includes tools to combine children to a single mesh, to delete extra parents/nodes, delete empty nodes "
total waste of $90 imo.