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Markup

Markup tools let you annotate the map with measured distances and buffer zones that are not part of the analysis but are useful as reference. Markups appear on drawings unless you turn them off explicitly, and they live on the project, not on the analysis — meaning they survive re-runs unchanged.

Learning objectives

By the end of this lesson you should be able to:

  • Place a distance markup between two points
  • Place a buffer markup around a feature or location
  • Decide whether a markup should appear on the deliverable drawing

Distances​

A distance markup is a line annotation that calls out the measured distance between two map points. Use it for:

  • Calling out a specific separation that doesn't have a corresponding analysis dimension line
  • Showing distances to non-QD-relevant landmarks (a fence, a creek, a road centerline)
  • Annotating proposed siting alternatives during a discussion

Click the + next to Distances and pick a method: Digitize Simple Line (click two points), Digitize Polyline (click along a multi-point path, then double-click to finish), or Place Vector (enter values instead of drawing). The markup is labeled with the measured distance.

Buffers​

A buffer markup is a circular zone drawn around a facility at a specified radius. Use it for:

  • Visualizing clear zones that the criteria do not produce automatically
  • Showing exclusion areas (no-build zones, security perimeters)
  • Sanity-checking how close other features sit to a manually-defined boundary

Click the + next to Buffers, set the radius (it defaults to 100 ft), then click the facility to anchor it. A buffer is always tied to a facility — there is no free-floating buffer.

Buffers are not analyzed by the engine — they are reference geometry only. A feature inside a buffer markup does not produce a violation; the buffer is purely visual.

On drawings​

By default, markups appear on drawings derived from the project (or a result set that captured them). When generating a drawing for an external authority, decide whether each markup belongs:

  • Keep if the markup is a deliverable annotation (called-out distance, official clear zone)
  • Remove or hide if the markup is a working note that should not ship

The Show on Map toggle at the top of the Markup sidebar turns all markup on or off at once. For controlling what appears on a generated deliverable, see the Drawings guide.

Distinguishing markups from analysis output​

Markups and analysis output coexist on the map but mean different things:

  • Markup — user-authored, persists across re-runs, never affects analysis
  • Dimension line on a result set — analysis-derived, captures a specific result-set distance, can be customized
  • Arc — analysis-derived, draws the required distance for a PES

Custom markup is a manual annotation tool; dimension lines and arcs are analysis byproducts.

Try it​

In a project:

  1. Place a distance markup between two facilities and confirm the auto-label
  2. Place a buffer around a PES at a radius outside its IBD arc
  3. Run analysis and confirm the buffer does not affect the result — features inside the buffer are not flagged
  4. Generate a drawing and verify both markups appear by default