City of Bellevue, Washington's New Paperless Permitting Process with Bluebeam® PDF Revu® is Already Exceeding Expectations

PASADENA, Calif., Dec. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The City of Bellevue, Washington, is rolling out a digital permitting process that is paperless and is already exceeding the city's goals. The new system uses the website www.mybuildingpermit.com for application submissions and Bluebeam PDF Revu's intuitive markup capabilities to electronically review PDF copies of submitted plans.

In the first phase of the rollout, which began on October 17th, Bellevue's technicians have employed numerous Revu features to more quickly evaluate a higher-than-expected volume of PDF drawings submitted with mechanical, electrical and plumbing permit requests. The city eventually will use Bluebeam to electronically review all drawings for the estimated 13,000 applications it receives each year.

The digital permitting and plan review process not only reduces paper use, it increases efficiency and allows homeowners and construction professionals, such as architects and contractors, to submit permits to the city 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from anywhere in the world.

Bluebeam Software is the leading developer of smart, easy-to-use digital PDF solutions for the architecture, design, engineering and construction industries. Some of the Bluebeam PDF Revu features that Bellevue uses include:

• Industry-standard markups including text, pen marks, highlights, clouds, CAD symbols, measurements and text stamps. These tools replicate pen and paper and allow city reviewers to efficiently add comments to electronic plans and request revisions.
• Bluebeam's powerful Tool Chest, where each reviewer can create and save custom tool sets for specific needs.
• The automatic Compare Documents feature which instantly clouds the differences between drawing revisions.
• The integrated Markups list, which allows technicians to view and track comments during the permitting process and summarize them into a PDF report.

"Bluebeam's ease of use, industry-standard tools and customization options have made the transition from paper-based to digital plan reviews very smooth. Since mid-October, we've already used Revu to process 27 applications which exceeds what we had originally targeted for the remainder of the year using this new digital process," said Lionel Forde, Systems Specialist with the City of Bellevue. "Revu is greatly exceeding our expectations and is making plan review much easier and quicker for us."

In addition to mechanical, electrical, and plumbing permits, the city plans to phase in the remainder of the application types – building, fire suppression, right-of-way, and clearing & grading permits as well as land use actions and utility connections –during the first quarter of 2013.   

"Bluebeam's intuitive markup and editing tools and straightforward interface are meticulously designed to deliver results instantly," said Sasha Reed, Bluebeam Software Director of Account Services. "We are thrilled that Bellevue has proven this true by leveraging Revu to make such a positive impact on their permitting process in less than two months."

About Bluebeam Software, Inc.

Bluebeam Software invents, develops, and commercializes PDF software intelligently designed to meet the needs of design, engineering and business professionals. Bluebeam produces high-quality, easy-to-use products that allow professionals to improve communication and collaboration immediately with virtually no learning curve. For more information visit Bluebeam Software at www.bluebeam.com.

SOURCE Bluebeam Software, Inc.