The Quantity Link tool helps create accurate bid calculations and improve quantity takeoffs by transferring measurement totals from a local PDF to an Excel spreadsheet in real-time. Since a PDF may contain multiple types of measurement totals, you can use filters to transfer the totals you need and create detailed estimates much faster.
With Revu 20 & below, you must have Revu eXtreme to access Quantity Link. For Revu 21 users, you must have a Complete subscription plan for this functionality.
Set custom filters for your project
The default filters in Revu include Subject, Label, Color, Author, and Layer. But what happens if you want to use a filter that isn’t on the list? For example, say you’re creating a bid proposal for a concrete project, but PSI Strength isn’t a filter option. With Revu, you can create a column in the Markups List and then use it as a custom filter with Quantity Link.
Follow these steps to set up Quantity Link in Excel and add measurement totals:
Open the Excel file you want to link.
Right-click on a cell and go to Quantity Link > Create.
From the dialog, click Add to select the source PDF(s).
Click OK to add the file(s).
From the Create Link dialog, go to Total and select a measurement type (e.g. length, area, volume) from the dropdown. Use the subsequent dropdowns to add more filters for that Total.
Make a custom column in the Markups List
Since Quantity Link filters are based on existing columns in the Markups List, you can make a custom filter by creating a new column in Revu. Follow the steps below to learn how:
Open the source PDF in Revu.
Go to Markups List and select Columns > Manage Columns.
Go to the Custom Columns tab and click Add.
From the Add Column dialog, type a name for your custom column. This will be the filter label in Excel.
Under Type, select the measurement type for your new column, then click OK to go back to the Manage Columns dialog.
Click OK. Your new column should appear in the Markups List.
Save (Ctrl+S) your changes to make them part of the source PDF.
Use the custom filter in Excel
After a custom column is created in Revu, follow these steps to use it as filter for Quantity Link:
Open the linked Excel file.
Right-click on a cell and go to Quantity Link > Create.
From the Create Link dialog, select a measurement Total.
In the next dropdown, select your custom filter and click OK. The measurement total will appear in the selected cell.
Editing filters
While the measurements can change in real-time for Excel, your filtering criteria need to be changed manually. To do this, right-click on a linked cell and select Quantity Link > Manage . Click to highlight a cell name and click Edit. Here, you’ll be able to change the filter for any linked cell, or remove the link altogether.
Other versions of this article
Revu 2017 and older
Quickly Add Measurement Totals with Quantity Link
The Quantity Link tool helps create accurate bid calculations and improve quantity takeoffs by transferring measurement totals from a local PDF to an Excel spreadsheet in real-time. Since a PDF may contain multiple types of measurement totals, you can use filters to transfer the totals you need and create detailed estimates much faster.
Set Custom Filters for Your Project
Revu’s default filters include Subject, Label, Color, Author, and Layer. But what happens if you want to use a filter that isn’t on the list? For example, say you’re creating a bid proposal for a concrete project, but PSI Strength isn’t a filter option. With Revu, you can create a column in the Markups List and then use it as a custom filter with Quantity Link.
Follow these steps to set up Quantity Link in Excel and add measurement totals:
Open the Excel file you want to link.
Right-click on a cell and go to Quantity Link > Create .
From the dialog, click Add to select the source PDF(s).
Click OK to add the file(s).
From the Create Link dialog, go to Total and select a measurement type (e.g. length, area, volume) from the dropdown. Use the subsequent dropdowns to add more filters for that Total.
Make a Custom Column in the Markups List
Since Quantity Link filters are based off existing columns in the Markups List, you can make a custom filter by creating a new column in Revu. Follow the steps below to learn how:
Open the source PDF in Revu .
Expand the Markups List and select the gear symbol next to Columns .
Go to the Custom Columns tab and click Add.
From the Add Column dialog, type a name for your custom column. This will be the filter label in Excel.
Under Type, select the measurement type for your new column, then click OK to go back to the Manage Columns dialog.
Click OK. Your new column should appear in the Markups List .
Save (Ctrl+S) your changes to make them part of the source PDF.
Use the Custom Filter in Excel
After a custom column is created in Revu, follow these steps to use it as filter for Quantity Link:
Open the linked Excel file.
Right-click on a cell and go to Quantity Link > Create .
From the Create Link dialog, select a measurement Total.
In the next dropdown, select your custom filter and click OK. The measurement total will appear in the selected cell.
Editing Filters
While the measurements can change in real-time for Excel, your filtering criteria need to be changed manually. To do this, right-click on a linked cell and select Quantity Link > Manage . Click to highlight a cell name and click Edit. Here, you’ll be able to change the filter for any linked cell, or remove the link altogether.
How-To
Revu 2017 & Below
Revu 2018
Revu 2019
Revu 20
Revu 21
Integrations & Plugins
The Quantity Link tool helps create accurate bid calculations and improve quantity takeoffs by transferring measurement totals from a local PDF to an Excel spreadsheet in real-time. Since a PDF may contain multiple types of measurement totals, you can use filters to transfer the totals you need and create detailed estimates much faster.
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