Working with Composite Drawings - Intergraph Smart Electrical - Help - Hexagon

Drawing various shapes using the free sketch commands

After opening a composite drawing, the software provides a range of toolbars with free sketch commands that allow you to draw various shapes and forms to create auxiliary graphics. You can undo one or several actions and redo actions performed with auxiliary graphics. For more information about undoing and redoing actions, see Undo and Redo Actions in Composite Drawings.

Placing plant items

You can place a plant item on an open drawing by dragging a plant item to the drawing from the Electrical Index or Electrical Engineer. If the plant item is associated with a custom symbol, the plant item will be designated in the drawing by that symbol. If no custom symbol has been associated with that plant item, the software uses the default symbol. For more details, see Place a Plant Item on a Composite Drawing.

Finding a plant item in an active drawing

You can find a plant item in an active open drawing by right-clicking the plant item in the Electrical Index or Electrical Engineer. The software highlights the plant item in the active drawing and zooms in on the item. For details, see Find a Plant Item in an Active Composite Drawing.

Copying and pasting graphical elements

You can paste a graphical element that you have copied from another drawing (an external drawing or any other drawing created in Smart Electrical.) Use the CTRL+C and CTRL+V commands to copy and paste graphical elements. For more details, see Copy and Paste Graphical Elements in a Composite Drawing.

Pasting graphical elements associated with plant items

You can use the Paste Special shortcut command to retain the association with a plant item if you have copied a graphical element that has been associated with a plant item. For details, see Retain Plant Item Associations of Graphical Elements while Pasting.

Copying the formatting of graphical elements.

You can use the Format Painter on the Change toolbar to copy the formatting of a selected graphical element and apply it to other graphical elements as they are selected. The two graphical elements have to belong to the same type. For details, see Copy the Formatting of a Graphical Element.

Removing graphical elements from the drawing

To remove a graphical element from an open drawing, right-click the graphical element and then select Remove on the shortcut menu. Alternatively, after selecting the graphical element, select Edit > Remove.

Moving graphical elements on the drawing

Select an item to select it and then drag it to another place in the drawing. Save the drawing to keep the items you moved in their new places. Note that this does not affect the data in your database.

Grouping and ungrouping auxiliary graphics and other graphical elements

You can group graphical elements in a drawing so that they behave as a single set. For details, see Grouping Graphical Elements in a Composite Drawing.

Associating auxiliary graphics with electrical items in your plant

Right-click an auxiliary graphic in the composite drawing and then on the shortcut menu, select Associate with Electrical item. For more details, see Associate an Auxiliary Graphic with a Plant Item.

Showing existing associations of plant items placed on a drawing

To help you identify the plant items that you need to associate with auxiliary graphics in an open drawing, right-click a plant item placed on a drawing and then on the shortcut menu, select Show in Association Assistant. For more details, see Association Assistant.

Marking unassociated graphical elements in a drawing

The software enables you to mark all the graphical elements in the drawing that have not been associated with plant items. This way you can easily distinguish the associated graphical elements (auxiliary graphics and symbols) from the unassociated ones. For details, see Mark Unassociated Graphical Elements.

Refreshing the data in an open drawing

Press F5 or select View > Refresh on the main menu bar to refresh the data in an open drawing.

Generating a Composite Drawing Index report

You can generate a report that shows all the item tags and the composite drawings in which they appear. For details, see Create a Composite Drawing Index Report

Resolving out-of-date issues

There are a number of ways that you can resolve out-of-date issues in composite drawings. One of these ways is to generate an Out-of-Date Summary report. For more information, see Resolving Out-of-Date Issues in Composite Drawings and Generate an Out-of-Date Summary Report.

Dissociating auxiliary graphics from electrical items in your plant

Right-click an auxiliary graphic in the composite drawing and then on the shortcut menu, select Dissociate from Electrical item. For more details, see Dissociate Graphical Elements from a Plant Item.

Locating an associated plant item in the Electrical Index and Electrical Engineer

To find the plant item associated with a graphical element, right-click the graphical element and then select Find in Electrical Index or Find in Electrical Engineer.

Viewing and modifying the properties of a plant item associated with an auxiliary graphic

After you select an auxiliary graphic associated with a plant item, the properties of that plant item are displayed in the Properties window. You can view and modify them as you require.

Also, you can right-click an auxiliary graphic associated with a plant item and then select Common Properties. The software opens the Common Properties of the associated plant item and you can view and modify them as needed.

Placing symbols on a drawing

You can place a symbol on a drawing by dragging it from Catalog Explorer to an open drawing. You can place the same symbol on the drawing multiple times.

Associating symbols with electrical items in your plant

Right-click a symbol in an open composite drawing and then on the shortcut menu, select Associate with Electrical item. For more details, see Associate a Symbol with a Plant Item.

Dissociating a symbol from an electrical item in your plant

Right-click an auxiliary graphic in the composite drawing and then on the shortcut menu, select Dissociate from Electrical item. For more details, see Dissociate a Symbol from a Plant Item.

Attaching labels to graphical elements

You can attach a label to any graphical element whether an associated or unassociated auxiliary graphic, a smart symbol, or a plant item that has been placed on a drawing. For more details, see Attach a Label to a Graphical Element (a Graphic or Symbol).

Showing the item type of a label

You can hover over a label that has been associated with an auxiliary graphic to show the item type of the label in a ToolTip.

Changing the line type, line color and line width of a connector

Select a connector and then select the appropriate icon on the Drawing ribbon to change the line type, line width, or line color for the selected connector. Note that if you associate a connector with a plant item, the Merge and Split commands become unavailable.

Indicating the flow direction on a connector or bus

You can indicate the flow direction on a terminator or a bus by placing a line with an arrow. For details, see Show the Flow Direction on a Bus or Connector.

Inserting annotations and redlining

Add text labels, symbols, or watermarks to your drawing as annotations. Add text, linked symbols, circles, rectangles, and lines to your drawing as redlining. For more information, seeAnnotations and Redlining.

Renaming a document and entering revisions

Open your drawing and select Edit > Document Properties.

Printing out a drawing

You can print a single drawing or multiple composite drawings. For details, see Printing Composite Drawings.

Automatic saving of open drawings

The software automatically saves an open drawing when a change has been made in the drawing. This happens, for example, when making any type of association, placing a plant item on the drawing, grouping or ungrouping graphical elements, and so forth. For full details, see Automatic Saving of Composite Drawings.

Saving drawings as external files

You can save one or more drawings as external files, that is, outside of the Smart Electrical system. You can select the drawings in the Electrical Index or EDE. For more information, see Save Drawings as External Files.