Failed to Flatten Large 3D Drawing

[Will_Nagelkirk]

Forgive me if I sound like I don't know what I'm doing; I learned SolidWorks in school but my workplace uses AutoCAD. 

I am trying to edit a .dwg floorplan of my workplace but the previous designer made it a 3D drawing and added accurate 3D models of all the machines we have. As a result, the file is over 750 Mb in size and difficult to load or edit. I am trying to convert it into 2D to make it easier to do both. 

I used the "flatten" command, which took over half an hour to complete. The program was then stuck in a loop of doing something to an /appdata/temp file and spitting out "No translatable objects". I let that run for an hour and when it still didn't change I hit Esc, which stopped the loop but undid the "flatten" command. 

I then tried to explode the drawing to edit the Z values in Properties, but "explode" took 10 minutes to tell me it could do it. It also doubled the RAM usage to 20 Gb. 

Before I try again and potentially waste a few hours, is there another method of flattening this large 3D drawing? Or if the "flatten" command is correct, is there something else I'm supposed to do if the program gets stuck in a loop?

I appreciate any help.

[paullimapa]

No dwg attached. You should use web browser to sign in to this forum and then you can attach the dwg. But since it’s so large in size you should zip the dwg before attaching 

[Will_Nagelkirk]

I would have attached the .dwg in a zip file, but seeing as it is the floorplan of our manufacturing plant, I don't think I have permission to share it on the internet. Is there any way I can get logs from AutoCAD to post instead?

[paullimapa]

This is just a forum for AutoCAD user input. Best way to get Autodesk involved would be to sign into your Autodesk account and submit a trouble ticket there. 

[pendean]

@Will_Nagelkirk Why not use FLATSHOT command instead of destroying your 3D generated original CAD file?

[TheCADnoob]

Did they xref stuff in? 

Is there a chance that there is a simpler version of the floor plan elsewhere?

Are you sure you want to do it in 2D? In my experience, most places love managing stuff like that in 2D and getting them to actaully adopt a 3D mindset is difficult; so the fact that they started in 3D leads me to believe there may be a purpose to it. HAve you verified to make sure you are working with the proper documents and that the documents you have are the controlled versions?

[avishek.chakrabortyCSXPN · Accepted solution]

Thank you for bringing this question to the forum. From your description, it sounds like you’re working with a fairly complex drawing, and the long processing time and looping behavior you experienced after using FLATTEN suggest there may be a large number of objects or geometry in the file.

You might want to try a few alternatives instead of using the FLATTEN command:

• Use FLATSHOT or SOLPROF to generate 2D views. (Note: FLATSHOT works only with surfaces or solids.)
• If you need to replace Z values for 3D objects in a layout viewport, try this:

1. Type OPTIONS on the command line.

2. Go to the Drafting tab.

3. Under Object Snap Options, check Replace Z value with current elevation.

Since you mentioned that FLATTEN takes a long time and sometimes causes AutoCAD to freeze, it may help to run it on smaller selections instead of the entire drawing at once.

Let us know if any of these suggestions work for you. If not, feel free to share more details about your drawing setup so the community can help you troubleshoot further.

[CGBenner]

@Will_Nagelkirk 

Hi, did the information provided by @avishek.chakrabortyCSXPN answer your question? If so, please use Accept Solution so that others may find this in the future. Thank you very much!

If you still need help please feel free to provide an update here so we as Community know how we can help you best moving forward.