Consultant w/AutoCAD

[RickS - Lab 8]

We are working with a consultant who uses AutoCAD. When we got his PDF files with our backgrounds, they were massive (7+MB per sheet). We talked to him about it, he said that when they import any of our CAD background (DWG's created from our VW Files), they are really slow and take forever to regenerate.

We normally create a DWG file using the Export Command. Tried to take off all the 3D options. But it still ends up with the same file type. When we view it with a DWG viewer, the plans show up with their "Z" Attributes.

Does anyone know a way to avoid this?

Is there anyway to just export a sheet file as lines, so none of the 3D attributes or item attributes are translated?

[mike mcneil]

Not knowing what your drawings look like, but the increased regeneration times may be due to fills and hatches. Older versions of Autocad don't really like fills that much, and the file sizes can explode if they are used extensively - especially if gradients are used. Obviously, it will complicate your visibility settings if you turn off the export fill option and you depend on fills to mask a lot of things.

With regard to 3d information, I am not sure how you export, but I have had the most success exporting each individual sheet as a separate .dwg file rather than the whole file at once. As VW seems to only export out the 2D information of all the hybrid objects. Any extrudes or 3D objects showing up on sheet layers through SLVP's will still be exported as a 3D object and show up as such in the DWG file. It can be rather time consuming though, but this has been the only way I have been able to get the closest representation between my VW sheet layers and AutoCAD's sheet layers. Come to think about it I have never checked the "Z" attributes in the AutoCAD .dwg to see if it correlated with VW's layer "Z" height.

Presently the most frustrating thing for me are the section views. Since these are only created in the sheet layers they are always scaled down to what ever scale you set them up to be and export as such. I would prefer them to be created in the design layers.

I switched over to a Mac and VW a little over a year ago, and I am still trying to get my drawings to export to AutoCAD the way I would like for them to. I am still having issues text not showing up correctly even though I am using Arial (which is present on a Windows and Mac) as the default text font.

[VincentCuclair]

A possibility could be symbols.....if you use a lot of symbols perhaps this is tough for ACAD? Try decomposing the 3D symbols when exporting.....however i must agree with Mike it's probably the fills, hatches and gradients.......it would be easiest to figure it out if the consultant uses a copy of the files to erase elements that could be causing the file to be so large and see if they become significantly smaller?!

[RickS - Lab 8]

The drawings we have a fairly simple. There may be some hatching in the walls that is part of their components, but it is minor. There is not anything really outrageous. (I've attached a JPEG of the drawing sheet).

Mainly, it is just a floor plan. Not too many symbols, not too many hatches or components.

The consultant mentioned he was having a similar issue with another firm who uses VW.

In my latest attempt, i exported as a really low version of AutoCAD (V10) to see if that would help. Previously, we were exporting as AutoCAD 2002.

I have not heard back yet from the consultant to see if that made a difference or not????

[VincentCuclair]

Can you attach the dwg i'll have a look.....i have VW, ArchiCAD and ADT here.

Edited April 8, 2009 by Vincent Cuclair

[RickS - Lab 8]

I have attached a copy of the V12 and V2000 versions of the DWG Files.

Thanks for looking into it!!

[VincentCuclair]

Well i've had a look, i can't see anything strange with it, it opens and regenerates as usual?!

I even created a pdf of your sheet from ADT (I have ADT 2007) and it came out at a little over 0.5 Mb?!

I don't know what version of AutoCAD they are using, or what they are doing but it seems to me the problem is at their end.....as it so often is ?! I hate and have always hated ACAD...if it's any consolation.

Sorry i can't be of anymore help.

[RickS - Lab 8]

Thanks for taking a shot.

I have just sent them a new copy of the DWG file. This one was made with VW 2009 (we are just in the process of shifting from '08 to '09), so the conversion seems a little different.

Hopefully, this may solve the problem....if I discover anything, i will post it.

Thanks.