Snaptrude, a browser-based architectural design and BIM software company, added multi-building modelling and more adaptable reusable layouts to its platform in May 2026, along with updates to its AI-assisted programming and copy-array tools.
The multi-building release removes the previous requirement that every structure in a project share a single storey setup. Smart Templates v2 changes how repeated room arrangements respond when applied to spaces with different geometries.
The features are part of Snaptrude 3.0, the company’s broader environment for architectural programming, modelling, presentation and BIM. Snaptrude began introducing the components of that workflow in 2025.
Multi-building projects get separate storey structures
Snaptrude projects previously used a single global storey configuration. Buildings within the same project can now have their own storey counts, heights, plans, 3D views, elevations, renders and base offsets.
You can add, rename, duplicate, or delete buildings. Duplication can be applied to the storey configuration alone or include geometry, an option intended for schemes with repeated building types.
Objects assigned to the wrong building can be transferred via the Object Properties Panel. Their vertical position aligns with the destination building’s storey heights, while horizontal repositioning remains manual.
Only one building can be active at a time. Other buildings appear by default as read-only underlays. Snaptrude identifies campuses, mixed-use developments and podium-and-tower projects as use cases for the feature.
An earlier update in April 2026 introduced Custom Program Sheets, allowing programme data to be organised by hierarchies such as building, storey, department and phase, while remaining connected to design data.
Smart Templates v2 adapts repeated room layouts
Smart Templates v2 allows you to apply an existing room configuration to spaces with different geometries.
Architects can select walls, furniture, doors and windows on the canvas and use the selection as the source layout for another space. Snaptrude then adapts the arrangement to the target geometry. Unlike the previous version, you no longer need to group the source elements first.
Interior walls now respond to the exterior walls to which they were anchored, rather than being positioned relative to the centre of the target space. They can re-anchor to the corresponding exterior wall and adjust their length.
Furniture follows similar placement rules. Pieces positioned against a wall remain against the corresponding wall in the target room, while grouped furniture towards the centre moves together.
Snaptrude lists repetitive residential units, hotel rooms and hospital bays as intended uses.
There are some limitations. Ungrouped furniture towards the centre of a room is handled separately; layouts without a corridor label may require manual rotation, and master layout editing is not supported.
Program Mode gets automatic AI agent selection
Snaptrude has also changed how users select AI agents in Program Mode, its spreadsheet-style environment for managing project requirements alongside the design model.
The agent selector now defaults to Auto. Users can submit a request in plain language without selecting an agent in advance. A classifier reads the prompt and the current programme sheet, then recommends which agent should handle it.
The recommendation requires confirmation before the agent runs. Users can reject it and choose manually.
Available options include Research, Interpret, Analyze Site, Generate, Edit Dimensions, Assign Stories and Query.
AI programme creation was already available before this release. Snaptrude introduced it in April 2025, enabling project briefs to be generated from prompts or PDFs and refined with additional instructions. The May 2026 update adds automatic routing between the agents available in Program Mode.
Copy Array retains controls for independent objects
The May releases also change how Snaptrude handles arrays of Unique copies.
Copy Array can create instances, where duplicate objects remain linked, or unique copies that can be edited independently. Previously, only instance arrays retained editable count and spacing controls after placement.
Those controls now apply to Unique arrays as well. Users can reselect an array and adjust its count or spacing without recreating it, even after editing individual objects. Snaptrude cites furniture layouts, façade modules, window bays, parking bays, seating rows and modular planning layouts as potential applications.
Images: Courtesy of Snaptrude
