Managing Electronic CAD Drawings
and Technical Documentation
Not all electronic documents are the same. Remember that
skit from Sesame Street called “which one of these
things is not like the other”? Well, engineering documents
are the pink apple and they stand out from all other electronic
files. CAD files cannot be properly managed by a standard
document management system that handles office files, pdf’s,
tiff’s, etc.
Companies who let their IT or “non-engineering” departments
select an enterprise wide EDMS (Electronic Document Management
System) often find that out the hard way. When the project
implementation gets to the CAD department all hell breaks
loose.
CAD managers start to ask questions like: Where did my x-Refs
go? Why can’t I customize my drawing number and file
name? You want my revision number to be 1,2,3..?
Most standard EDMS systems are designed for banking, real-estate,
accounting, and similar industries which handle one version
of a file that can be stored as a tiff. These files often
never have to be “checked-out” or modified, just
stored, copied, or distributed. Systems like these do not
recognize reference files, they don’t allow you to
view and mark-up CAD files, and they often exaggerate the
size of your database because they use database blobs.
The majority of CAD files in existence today are DWG (AutoCAD)
and DGN (Microstation). A few companies also use 3-D modeling
files which require very specialized applications for file
management. Usually PDM (Product Line Management) tools are
required to manage 3-D files and all of their associated
sub-files. PDM applications usually do not have the versatility
to manage anything other than that one specific file type.
Applications that will manage DWG’s, DGN’s,
and often associated office files include AutoEDMS, Synergis
Adept, and Dv TDM. Office Document Management systems like
Documentum, Laserfiche, and Filenet can only manage CAD files
on a limited basis and require a 3 rd party plug-in which
can be very expensive.
In Summary, whatever EDMS system you choose for handling
CAD files should store your electronic files in their native
format, recognize xRef’s, and allow you to modify simple
processes like check-in, check out, document numbering, and
document naming. Most CAD departments have their own nomenclature
for document revision numbering and file naming. Why should
you have to have a new revision created every time you check
in a document? Why should you have to name your document
1, 2, 3….. Keep in mind that whatever system you are
using may not be around forever so you want to make sure
you can always find your files the old fashioned way just
in case you have to!
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