Bruce Kieffer

@Boh and @Pat Stanford. I tested the =L formula and it works. That is interesting. Is there a reference list of worksheet formulas somewhere?

That is what I found too.

I find that the only way they show correctly in the VP is to be in Top/Plan view, otherwise, I am able to get them to show, but they show in layer plane (ISO) even though they are set to screen plane. I think yours and Tom's suggestion of placing an instance on the sheet layer is the simpler way to go. Thanks.

My worksheets that do appear on the design layer do not appear on the viewport. I have checked all layers and classes on in the viewport. Do worksheets normally show in viewports? I may have solved this. I placed the worksheets on to the sheet layer from the resource manager. Maybe that is how it is supposed to work?

I do not think there is a solution to this unless Vectorworks adds an option for the user to define the T, W, and L. I have no idea how that could be added, but I know that would be a solution. @jeff.kisko I've learned the hard way that it's best to wait until the design process is complete before converting components to symbols. It's too hard to get to the dimensions of an object that is a symbol, and that's because Vectorworks does not show the dimensions in the OIP even thought they are there when you drill into the symbol. That is frustrating.

This is the Vectorworks worksheet data for parts TxWxL. Here's my Apple Numbers spreadsheet cut list, which is correct. If you compare the two you see there's no way to rely on the worksheet data. It's a mess. And no matter how careful you are creating the objects, Vectorworks will change what you think is thickness and width to width or height. Add to this the fact that some objects will have a depth measurement, and Vectorworks seems to randomly assign that to height, width, or length. There is no worksheet function for depth.

@Bas VellekoopI think we are in agreement. It's the wooden parts that I want a TxWxL cut list for, and that cannot be done automatically using the data Vectorworks has.

I do agree there are some parts like screws and biscuits that are great as symbols, but not wooden parts, at least not until the design is completed. And I did try adding records to give me the info that Vectorworks is confused about. The problem with that is it's me entering the data, and if I make a change to the size of a part, then I need to also change the record. I use a worksheet to count objects, but I use Apple Numbers to make material cut lists.

I want to pass along my thoughts about this after giving it a try. It was suggested to me to use symbols for multiple wooden created components in my furniture designs. I see the value of this concept, but the reality is it is much harder to modify symbols than it is to modify objects. Note that the OIP does not show the dimension of an object that is a symbol, and that makes it very hard to work with a component. And when it comes time to drill holes, cut biscuit grooves, or round over edges, having to do this work inside a symbol is very hard because often a symbol is flipped and then no longer relative to surrounding objects. So my plan for future furniture designing is to explore and finalize all "machining" of wooden furniture components prior to converting them to symbols given I do convert them.

My desire to find a way to have Vectorworks create a material cutting list has taught me a lot. Most importantly; it cannot be done efficiently. In fact, all attempts took at least 10x more time than just composing a list manually. I do see the value of worksheets for counting objects and adding together things like lengths of pipe, but Vectorworks is confused by furniture component objects. It does not know which dimension is the thickness and which is the width. Those figures are based on object orientation in the Vectorworks drawing rather than the thickness of a purchased wood board, which is the real dimension. Length is always the extruded length.

@BohThat's what I figured. Thanks.

Is this possible? I know how to place a spreadsheet above a database, but I see no way to place them side-by-side.

File is attached. The T x W x L worksheet has a start of a spreadsheet trying to find the min, median, and max of the thickness, width, and length's of the parts. Need A Cutting List.vwx

This is related to my Material Cut List question. I posted a file there. I will update that file with the worksheet I am creating and then post it here.

I'm trying something like that, but I trying to use a formula to choose which is the median value. So far no luck with a formula.