Bringing Textiles into the Digital Design Process: Our Fabrics Are Now Available in SketchUp

A New Way to Explore Materials in Your Design Workflow

Every project begins with an idea.
An atmosphere. A palette. A material that defines the character of a space.

For architects and interior designers, tools like SketchUp have become essential to transforming those ideas into clear and compelling visualizations. From early concept development to detailed presentations, SketchUp allows professionals to quickly model spaces and experiment with materials, lighting, and textures in three dimensions.

Today, we’re excited to introduce a new way to integrate our textiles directly into that creative process.

Our fabrics are now available in SketchUp through the Lightbeans® plugin, allowing designers and architects to explore and apply our materials directly inside their 3D models. 

Why Materials Matter in 3D Design

In architectural visualization, materials play a critical role. Textures and finishes bring depth, realism, and atmosphere to digital environments, helping designers communicate their vision more clearly to clients and collaborators.

When materials are integrated early in the design process, they can influence everything from spatial perception to lighting and mood.

With digital visualization tools evolving rapidly, designers are increasingly looking for accurate, ready-to-use material libraries that reflect real products.

That’s where this new integration comes in.

Our Textiles, Now Available in SketchUp

Through the Lightbeans® SketchUp extension, our textile collections can now be accessed directly within the software architects and designers already use every day.

The plugin provides a library of high-quality 3D textures representing real manufacturer materials, allowing users to browse, preview, and apply them instantly within their models.

Instead of searching across multiple websites for textures, designers can explore materials and apply them directly inside SketchUp in just a few clicks.

This integration makes it easier to:

• Visualize textiles within architectural or interior design concepts
• Test different materials and palettes quickly
• Create more realistic presentations and renderings
• Align design concepts with real, specified products

In short, it connects digital design exploration with real-world materials.

Adding our fabrics to your design workflow is simple.

1. Install the Lightbeans Plugin

   Download the Lightbeans extension from the SketchUp Extension Warehouse and install it in your SketchUp environment.

2. Open the Material Library

   Access the Lightbeans library directly from SketchUp using the plugin interface.

3. Browse and Select Textiles

   Search and explore available materials, including our textile collections.

4. Apply the Texture to Your Model

   With a few clicks, import the material and apply it to surfaces within your 3D model.

The textures are optimized for SketchUp and compatible with rendering tools such as V-Ray and Enscape, helping create realistic visualizations of your design concepts.

Designing with Materials from the Start

Interior design and architecture are evolving alongside digital tools. Increasingly, designers want to evaluate materials earlier in the process—before specifications, before mockups, and often before final concepts are even defined.

By making our textiles available directly within SketchUp, we aim to support a more integrated and exploratory design workflow.

Architects and designers can now imagine how our fabrics interact with light, surfaces, and spatial composition from the earliest stages of design.

Explore the Possibilities

Whether you're designing workplaces, hospitality environments, or public spaces, our textiles are now part of the digital toolkit you already use.

Start exploring our materials directly in SketchUp and see how textiles can help shape the atmosphere of your next project.

→ Explore our textile collections

→  Start designing with our textiles in SketchUp 

About Duvaltex

Duvaltex is North America's largest office furniture textile manufacturer and a leading supplier of protective textiles. While enhancing people's well-being and safety, Duvaltex specializes in the design and production of advanced textile solutions and sustainable textile materials. Duvaltex is committed to changing the way products are made, used and reused, creating value for future generations. For more information, visit duvaltex.com.