Project Properties Autocad Electrical

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Willy Aucoin

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Aug 3, 2024, 6:11:49 PM8/3/24

to dragesonad

When creating a new project, set the "Copy Settings from Project File" field to a project that already has your preferred project properties set. I also recommend setting the preferred library selections in the wd.env file, if you feel comfortable editing this file. This allows any user to select the library and/or menu categories in the project properties dialog and click the Default button to automatically select the preferred libraries. BUt this isn't necessary when creating a new project, as long as you set the "Copy Settings from Project File" field to a project that already has your preferred project properties set.

Brad Coleman, Electrical Draftsman
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I also recommend setting the preferred library selections in the wd.env file, if you feel comfortable editing this file. This allows any user to select the library and/or menu categories in the project properties dialog and click the Default button to automatically select the preferred libraries.

I am struggling with a simple issue. I have created a template with all the settings as per my wish and saved it as a .dwt file. I want to use all my template set properties for every project.So, when I am creating a new project, there is an option of copy settings from project file.Here, I changed the extension from .wdp to .dwt and referenced my created template so that my project acquires all my template properties.But, when I checked my project properties , settings are different.Am I making mistake in referencing template properties to my project ? or is there any other proper way?

Secondly, I added new drawings for my newly created project referencing again my drawing template, my new drawing properties are same as template properties but I get prompted whether I want to apply Project Defaults to this drawing and If I go with yes, then the drawing properties are no longer same as template properties.How can I have my project settings and drawings settings to be same as template settings.?? Any help would be appreciated.

I think what you need to do is to start your project normally using the wdp file at the creation then set path for the new drawings templete to your dwt templete file for the dwg creation of each new sheet. Properties of the project are one thing and specification for the drawing, like dim style, snap, grid ect are set in the dwt not the wdp.

It occurred to me that I forgot to say the the 'project' settings and 'drawing' setting are two different things in case you did not know. If you open the project manager and right click on a project you can look through the properties, do the same thing with a drawing and you will see slightly different options for setting properties. The thing to remember is that 'drawing' properties will override 'project' properties. This is done to allow individual drawings to have variant setting if need be. Just something to be aware of if things seem to be changing up on your project.

In AutoCAD Electrical its important to to setup a Standard Template that you can use instead of continuously setting up a project and the title blocks. There are 2 pieces for the AutoCAD Electrical Templates, the first part is the Project, the second part is a Template Drawing. You need to configure the Drawing to work with the project, to have the best results.

I have just upgraded AutoCad Electrical from 2017 to 2018. When I create a new project and look at the properties the schematic library is still pointing to 2017. Is there a way to make the default the new 2018 library?

Right click on your active project. Select Properties. Set the path for all of the menus and libraries [screen shot is example for one library, you need to do them all] to what you want to use for schematics a panels.

Thanks for the reply. I did that for this project. Was wondering if there was a way to set the default so each time I create a new project it would already be there without me having do go through this each time.

There is probably a better way but I will typically start a example project with just the framework. Set text styles, load line types, load wire types, load layers I always use, set menu and library paths, snaps / grids yada yada yada. Essencially, take a couple of hours and setup a blank project with everything you might want to use in your drawing package and use the Copy Project tool to use that example as the base to start each of your projects. All of the settings will carry into the new project. NOTE!! this is using the Copy Project tool NOT the New Project tool. If you use the New Project tool you will have to go through the setup every time.

By the way, I should mention that you can do a lot of the pre-defined setup for font, line type, layers etc. in your schematic and panel templates as well. You can search this form for 'intelligent title block' topic.

Is there a way to edit the title block attributes that are normally edited in the Drawing Properties into a database to do the editing? I frequently copy a project and only a couple of items change from 1 drawing set to another. So I would like the data to be in a place where find and replace can change the data accross the whole set at 1 time. Then do a whole project title block update so the changes show in the drawing files. Is this possible? I use ACADE 2010 on XP.

No need for a database edit. The data is stored in the hidden WD_M block at coordinates 0,0 of each drawing. When you edit Drawing Properties you are editing the WD_M block. You can edit your copied project's Project Properties Defaults and Apply the Project Defaults to all drawings in the project. Just select all drawings using SHFT or CTRL, then right-click>Properties>Apply Project Defaults. This updates the WD_M block attributes with the values stored in the Project Properties, which are kept in the projectname.wdp file.

Hint: Use Settings Compare if you wish to match Project Properties with a particular drawing's Drawing Properties. Drawing Properties are always active, Project Properties are not. Think of Project Properties as a storage tank for properties that can be applied to all or certain drawings as desired. When you insert a New Drawing and you are prompted to Apply Project Defaults, you are being asked if you wish to over-ride the values of the drawing's hidden WD_M block with those from Project Properties.

Thanks Doug! It solved most of my issues. Also while playing with your solution, it also dawned on me that an attribute that is the same on every sheet can also be set up so it can be edited in descriptions and left blank in the drawing properties. Sometimes a hammer against the head helps! Thanks again!

Let's say that accross a project you wanted to change just one text entry in a title line. For example, you copy a project, then want to change all the instances of MCC-8000 to MCC-9000 on one line. The rest of the text for that line is unique to each drawing. Is it possible to do this type of global change using AE, without editing each drawing individually at the Drawing Properties level?

Going on the assumption that you have your title block set up properly for use with ACADE, you may get more milage changing the project descriptions and then doing a title block update for the project.

This is one of the main features of the project desciptions and title block updates. It allows you to do things like change title descriptions quickly and easily across all dwgs in the project with no problems IF the title block is set up correctly with no need to go to any external database or lisp functions.

You can even select which items you want to be updated. The only problem occurs when you utilise the individual drawing descriptions and other data in the title block. With those, you have to open each dwg and change the required information in the drawing properties tab before running the title block update.

If it's just the drawing description that needs changing, you could also just open the WDP file in a text editor (make sure ACADE has it closed first) and go to the end of the file. There you will find a list of dwgs that the project looks for and the dwg descriptions. You can edit these and then save the WDP file before opening the project in ACADE again. Check the drawing properties for one of the dwgs you just modified, and then do a title block update to transfer those changes to the dwgs themselves.

I agree with Brad as far as changing the .wdp file. I use that technique all the time when it comes to just changing the titleblock DESCX values across a bunch of drawings. I was going to suggest until I got to Brad's post...

I see you have changed your name? I have changed countries. We had a few conversations back a couple of years when I was in Tasmania. Now in Calgary and trying to get AE up and running with my new employer...

No, the drawing properties inside of your drawing. In your title block. Project manager>(maximize active project) right click on active project>properties>drawing properties. I found that if I type in ACED it will come up ACED being short for ACEDRAWINGPROPS.

Each project has properties associated with it called Project Properties. Project properties control settings and configurations as they relate to the project. These are the common configurations that every drawing in the project shares. As an example, the project has a name that relates to every drawing in the project. This project name, location, date, etc. may need to appear on every drawing.

Every drawing in the project has properties associated with it called Drawing Properties. Drawing properties are like project properties but are unique to each drawing. As an example, each drawing has its own unique description. Another example would be unique wiring details on the individual drawings, like PLC Addressing, but not every drawing in the project needs this. Drawing Properties are used when running update tools that come with AutoCAD Electrical. Best practices are to keep the project and drawing properties the same and only change the drawing properties that must change. There is also a tool that allows you to compare the project and drawing properties!