Hi Jason.
Yikes. You have a problem I've dealt with--a little--, but you have it in
spades. Keep in mind that even for the outfits building 'widgets', part
numbering and inventory control is a challenge, and the solutions always
involve compromises. We haven't yet come up with a database that comes
close to accurately modeling the complexities of the real world flawlessly.
Basically, it sounds like you're doing one-ups. Each unit might be very
similar to a dozen others you've done recently, but every customer wants
something slightly unique, so...
One way to handle a situation like this is to encapsulate each project.
Last place I worked, we had a 5-digit project number that formed the prefix
of the part number for all the fabricated parts in that project. If the
next project was very similar, I did a Design-Assistant copy, changing the
prefix number for each part.
Of course, using this system you will end up with parts that are exactly the
same that have two or more part numbers, but for us this was acceptable.
The only occurrence of part #33412-0024 was in project 33412, and it didn't
really matter that the next project used a duplicate of that part, which got
tagged 33413-0005. Besides, in the second project, someone's liable to want
to drill a few extra holes in the thing, which means it's not exactly the
same part after all. Any parts that are established and stable between
projects are treated as library parts.
For custom type projects, this has a few advantages: As each project is
finished, that entire project directory can be archived to a CD. This means
that at any one time you will only be dealing with a fraction of your total
quantity of parts and part numbers. It also means that a project can easily
be retrieved long after it was put to bed, without worrying that a part had
been revised since then, and is now not suitable for it's original use.
Only your stable standard parts and your purchased and library components
are 'live' and persistent.
For the issue of what stock extrusion a part comes from, you could set up a
custom property field in the part template for the number of the original
extrusion. Send the length of the part to custom properties also, and you
can create a driven variable (length of stock extrusion/length of part) to
show how many parts one extruded piece could be expected to produce.
In my current position, I often work with weldments, where I need to detail
individual components on their own sheets, then do a weldment detail showing
the parts 'assembled'. On my individual component details, I use a
single-entry parts list to give certain information about the part that I
keep in the parameters (such as the number of the original extrusion, and
the material callout). This is where a parts list for a single-part drawing
becomes useful, although you can do the same thing with custom properties in
the title block, or in a sketched symbol. Then in the weldment drawing I
insert a parts list, and sync the item numbers up, which helps the shop in
identifying the components.
I'm curious why you can't dimension an assembly in an idw. I do it all the
time. Is it just the iso view? That's a major bummer, and shame on
Autodesk, but you can dim flat views.
I hope this helps. At least it's all grist for the mill.
Cheers,
Walt
"Jason M" wrote in message
news:0EAC462BB1AB03D061DB14EB9AF3FDE0@in.WebX.maYIadrTaRb...
> Hello All.
>
> Please bear with me. This message may be a bit long, but it is important.
>
> My company purchased four seats of IV about 9 months ago, and we have
> been learning how to use it but have come up against one severe hurdle
> that we can't seem to overcome. It has to do with part numbering.
>
> A little background: We build a custom trailers. Due to the nature of
> the business, we have approximately 200 aluminum, and 100 steel
> extrusions that we use on a regular basis, cutting them at any length
> imaginable for at least 200 different models of trailers. And, with
> about 15 designers working on custom variants of these models, we will
> generate an enormous quantity of parts (iParts or whatnot) for
> extrusions alone, then we must address sheet aluminum, sheet steel, wood
> products, etc, etc. Some preliminary calculations that I have done with
> our other engineers (and some help from AutoDesk) has revealed that we
> may need a few tera-bytes of server space to hit the "reusable" 80% mark
> of parts if we were to migrate from AutoCAD to IV. From that point on,
> we may generate maybe 20% of that value yearly in new custom parts. So
> we're literally addressing millions upon millions of individual part
> files.
>
> So, here are our issues:
>
> --How do we address the part numbering?
> We have had people suggest a "smart" part numbering system where the
> part number includes some sort of description about the geometry of the
> part (length, cut style, etc). This is undesirable for several reasons.
> It forces a different type of part number for purchased parts vs.
> in-house parts, it forces us to change part numbers when a design goes
> through a revision, and (most importantly!) it keeps us from being able
> to use IV's adaptability features. If I have to assign a part number
> that defines the cut length of my extrusion, I cannot adapt that length
> without also changing the part number of the extrusion.
>
> --How do we make a bill of materials on an *.idw?
> Right now if I make an ipt, then make an idw of that ipt, and put a
> parts list on it, I end up with a useless parts list. Let's say I make
> an ipt of a 2x2x1/4 wall aluminum extrusion with two angle cuts and some
> holes drilled into it. I'll save it as 1234.ipt then I'll make a
> drawing calling it 1234.idw. My parts list for that idw will simply
> call out the part number 1234. That's not useful. Instead, it should
> call out a part number of the 2x2x1/4 extrusion, since you must acquire
> a stick of the extrusion in order to make the cuts and drills to
> actually 'build' part number 1234. Okay. I've had people suggest that
> I should first make an ipt of the raw material, then make an assembly of
> the raw material, cutting and drilling it to get part 1234. That helps
> with my bill of materials, as for calling the right raw material, but
> leaves two other problems. One, I cannot dimension an assembly in an
> idw. And Two, maybe I can get a quantity of 10 of part 1234 out of the
> raw material stick, but according to my bill of materials, I'll always
> get one full stick each time I have to use 1234 in a higher level
assembly.
>
>
> Any help will be greatly appreciated. So far I think everyone that I
> have conversed with who uses IV, Solidworks, or ProE for their processes
> have all been with companies who either build widgets, or who build one
> at a time custom products. Our issue is that we have such an enormous
> number of parts that we'll have to deal with (thank goodness for iParts)
> but we need to share those parts across many, many custom and standard
> products. So, the part numbering becomes a real problem for us.
>
> Thank you for your patience. For my company, this issue is preventing
> IV from being anything but a nice toy for small projects. I would
> really appreciate any wisdom that can be offered. (My department
> director would really appreciate it too!)
>
> Thanks in advance,
> -Jason
>
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