How to create custom Bill of Material Structure types

[graz95]

Our current workflow is to design components utilizing Purchased components, Standard components and newly created custom components.  I would like to create “ Standard “  & “ Manufacture “ BOM structure types.  The behavior of these new types would be the same as the “Normal” BOM type.  With these new categories, it will be possible to sort data for Purchasing, Stock Room and Production faster.

Is it possible to create new custom Bill of Material (BOM) Structure types?

[WCrihfield]

I don't believe so.  There is an established list of BOMStructure types here:

BOMStructureEnum Enumerator 

If you were able to add another item to the Enum or create your own Enum, I still don't think there is any documented way to define all the different aspects of a BOMStructure that would be recognized by Inventor.

And I have never seen a way to Add() another structure type by any means.

Also, the BOMViews object doesn't expose any way to Add another BOMView to the existing ones.

BOMViews Object

BOMViewTypeEnum Enumerator 

You can change the status of each document, within its Document Settings > Bill of Materials tab > Default BOM Structue drop-down list to be one of the other types. (Normal, Inseperable, Purchased, Phantom, Reference)

[WCrihfield]

You could likely just create a Custom iProperty within the documents when you create new documents (and use another method to insert this custom iProperty into existing documents).  Then you can set the value of this custom iProperty to one of the custom statuses you define.  Then later you can use code to loop through them, checking the value of that custom iProperty, to see which way to categorize them.  The BOM will allow you to add columns that represent custom iProperties.  Then you could order the list by that column.

[graz95 · Accepted solution]

Thanks for the replies.

Adding custom iProperties is not the route I want to take.  We use Levels of Detail to suppress everything but the newly created custom parts needed by Production.  And then, this LOD is copied over to a View Representation.  Within the IDW, a Base view is placed with the custom part Parts Only View Representation selected.  A Parts List is brought into the drawing based on this View Rep, and then exported to an excel template.  Further work is performed on the spreadsheet to create demand for Purchasing, the Stock Room and Production.  Convoluted, yes?  And time consuming.  With these 2 additional BOM structure types, iLogic could be used to create the lists that Purchasing, Production and the Stock Room need for us to manufacture the finished product.

[graz95]

Can iLogic be used to suppress all components WITHOUT this new custom iProperty, and then generate and name a Level of Detail and View Representation?  This would reduce "design" time, and would have minimal effect on the workflow.