There can be a difference of opinion on Sheet Sets in AutoCAD. Those who use them generally can’t imagine their CAD life without them, and those who don’t feel that they bypass some extra steps, thus making them more efficient.
If you’re on the fence, or if you’re just looking for some compelling reasons to implement sheet sets into your workflow, perhaps my top ten reasons for using them will help make up your mind.
1. Standardized Output
Whether it’s printing, plotting, or electronic output, ensuring everyone is on the same page has been extremely important yet often difficult to achieve. With sheet sets, you can set up all of your project’s output parameters and ensure everyone uses them. Do you have multiple disciplines that need different parameters? No problem—the Sheet Set Manager in AutoCAD handles that, too.
2. Consistent Templates
Much like plotting, you want the entire team to use the correct template. You put a lot of work into a project’s template(s), so make sure the team always uses the correct one when new sheets are added.
3. Consistent Project Properties
A project’s Sheet Set has some built-in properties that are usually common to all projects. These are very top-level, such as the project name and number. Don’t risk human error or typos when entering this data. Set it within the sheet set and access it there when you need it.
4. Custom Properties
Admittedly, there aren’t a lot of built-in properties in a Sheet Set. But it does give you the ability to create your own. No doubt you’ll need to add a project location or its city and state. Anything you can think of that is part of the project can be added as a custom property.
5. Title Block Automation
The last two reasons were about a project’s properties. What can you do with these? How about never having to worry about filling in your title block information? Use Fields to automate this mundane task and never have to worry about that pesky human error (notice a theme here?). Here’s another scenario: the approval initials are always ABC throughout the project. Midway through, Mr. ABC leaves the company, and now the approval should read XYZ. With Sheet Set Manager, you can change it in one place, and the whole project is fixed.
6. Project Organization
I’ve mentioned multiple disciplines a few times already, but there could be any number of reasons to organize your Sheet Set into various subsets. Populating these subsets is as easy as dragging and dropping an existing sheet into it. A subset can have its own template, and it’s easy to publish or transmit just that subset.
7. Renaming and Renumbering
Everyone has their own method of naming and numbering the sheets in a project. Inevitably, that order will change, usually by either the necessary insertion of a new sheet or the deletion of one. With Sheet Set Manager, that task is eased with the tools it has to let you easily rename and renumber your sheets.
8. Consistent Callouts and Numbering
Have you ever had a user insert the wrong annotation block into a project file? Of course, you have; after all, you’re working with fault-prone humans. Take the choice out of their hands by defining the label and callout blocks for your project from the Sheet Set Manager. Here’s a helpful hint: use fields in your blocks to automate them even more!
9. Dynamic Drawing Index
Manually maintaining a sheet list index is a pain and a task nobody wants. Make it easy on yourself and your team by inserting a table generated by your Sheet Set. Not only will the sheet entries be hyperlinked to their associated drawing and layout, but the index table will be dynamically linked to the Sheet Set, so when you update the sheet list in the Sheet Set Manager, you can easily update the index table also.
10. Post Project Processes
Sometimes, a designer or drafter doesn’t realize a project lives on after it’s issued for construction (or whatever the final issuance is). That’s where a Sheet Set can become a CAD manager’s best friend. In addition to all of the features we’ve already seen, it’s easy to create transmittals for outside agencies, and when it really is all done, archiving the project is easy, too.
Summary: Sheet Set Manager in AutoCAD
If you didn’t notice the ongoing theme, it was that using the Sheet Set Manager can help minimize human error throughout the project’s life. Of course, it won’t eliminate it, but it goes a long way to improve things. Yes, it can be a little layer of extra work for the drafter, but in the overall picture of a project, it also makes it a lot more efficient.
If I’ve swayed you, that’s great, but here’s my final thought. I listed ten things, but there’s obviously more that it can do, but you don’t have to. I can count on one hand the companies I know of that use 100% of what it offers. Most implement it using only a feature or two. You can do the same. Did you see a feature and think: “Man, we could use some of that magic!” Use it just for that. It will be worth it.
But don’t forget about all the other goodies it offers. Implement them slowly if you want. You’ll find greater efficiency and accuracy with each feature you begin using.
More Tuesday Tips
Check out our whole Tuesday Tips series for ideas on how to make AutoCAD work for you.
