need to get owner-provided CAD drawings on our sheets

[patricks]

I have a project where the owner has their own interior designers, and has provided us with AutoCAD files with interior layouts, numerous interior details, etc. The catch is that these drawings are on their own title blocks, and the sheet size is 36x48 :shock:

I can't just import the CAD file because it's a single floor plan with multiple elements on multiple layers, with various layers turned on or off on each of the sheet layout tabs.

I tried to print one of the layouts to a PDF (using the pick window in AutoCAD to print only the elements on the sheet and not the titleblock itself), then save the PDF as a JPEG, then drop that onto one of our sheets, which are 30x42. But when it printed out it looked terrible.

Any other solutions?

It would be great if there were a way to export or save a viewport in AutoCAD as a separate file, but containing only the layers that are visible in that particular viewport.

[Scott D Davis]

Not possible yet, but I think this will be the future of DWF when we can "link" DWF's into Revit projects.

[DanielleAnderson]

I have a project where the owner has their own interior designers, and has provided us with AutoCAD files with interior layouts, numerous interior details, etc. The catch is that these drawings are on their own title blocks, and the sheet size is 36x48 :shock:

I can't just import the CAD file because it's a single floor plan with multiple elements on multiple layers, with various layers turned on or off on each of the sheet layout tabs.

I tried to print one of the layouts to a PDF (using the pick window in AutoCAD to print only the elements on the sheet and not the titleblock itself), then save the PDF as a JPEG, then drop that onto one of our sheets, which are 30x42. But when it printed out it looked terrible.

Any other solutions?

It would be great if there were a way to export or save a viewport in AutoCAD as a separate file, but containing only the layers that are visible in that particular viewport.

Will you have to do a lot of updating of links with their files or are they finalized? If they are finalized, I think I would just break up the autocad drawing into several drawings, myself (or tell them your situation and have them do it), and import one at a time. Definitely tedious, but way better than trying to dump a jpg in there...

[patricks]

yeah that's the problem. The AutoCAD file has about 10 sheet layouts. Each layout has a floor plan with various layers turned on, and one or more schedules next to it. Over on the model tab, all the layers for all the floor plans on all the sheets are on one single floor plan, and the schedules are scattered all over the place around the floor plan. Trying to get all those separated out into separate files would take a very long time, I think.

I think I may actually just replicate their details in Revit (create the families for the custom casework and such).

[aggockel50321]

It would be great if there were a way to export or save a viewport in AutoCAD as a separate file, but containing only the layers that are visible in that particular viewport.Try this:

Go to the viewport in Autocad, select everything (visible) in the viewport, & wblock it out as a separate file.

Then import (link) the wblocked file it into Revit.

You'll have to re-wblock if changes are made, but if you overwrite the former file, it'll update in Revit on a reload.

[ron.sanpedro]

What level of compression did you use on the JPGs? High or even medium compression JPGs look like doo doo when the image is linework and such. JPG was designed for photos, not this kind of stuff.
Anyway, if you are converting the PDG to JPG in Photoshop, try turning the compression down as low as you can get it. I had the same problem with our logo, and once I got the compression eliminated, it looks decent, while being large. With a 30X42 image and minimal comression you may find your machine grinds to a halt, but it is worth a try perhaps.
I wonder if it might be worth worksetting those sheets so you only load them for printing?

Best,
Gordon

[Anthony.d]

Try this:

Go to the viewport in Autocad, select everything (visible) in the viewport, & wblock it out as a separate file.

Then import (link) the wblocked file it into Revit.

You'll have to re-wblock if changes are made, but if you overwrite the former file, it'll update in Revit on a reload.

This assumes everyone has AutoCAD. I had it for 20 years and am desperately trying not to use it. I guess Autodesk wants us to own Both.

[aggockel50321]

I feel your pain...

Upgrade to Revit Series.
If your dealing with others that use mostly acad, it makes life a lot easier.

[Brian Myers]

This assumes everyone has AutoCAD. I had it for 20 years and am desperately trying not to use it. I guess Autodesk wants us to own Both.

I understand wanting to do something in just one program, yet if you have a program that can produce the solution you desire then there's no reason to not use it. That doesn't mean Autodesk wants you to use both, its simply a drafting/design solution that might be the best or only solution to the problem currently.

I don't disagree finding a solution in your prefered program would be better, yet if another solution can work (or work better) then there's no reason to not use it. I find it funny that we often look at these programs and say "I use THIS program now" instead of "I use the best process with the tools I have available to complete the project with the most efficient results I can for my client and myself".

[patricks]

Try this:

Go to the viewport in Autocad, select everything (visible) in the viewport, & wblock it out as a separate file.

Then import (link) the wblocked file it into Revit.

You'll have to re-wblock if changes are made, but if you overwrite the former file, it'll update in Revit on a reload.

Well that sort of works, but for some reason it didn't get everything visible in the drawing, like the structural grids. And I'm guessing also it only works for one viewport at a time.

I just wish there was some way to get everything visible on a whole sheet layout into a separate DWG file.

[Joef]

You might try making a plot file of your drawing then use a program that converts HPGL to DWG. Haven't tried it myself, but there are a few HPGL to DWG converters out there.

Joe

[SCShell]

Hey there,

I had the same problem a while back, and I don't have nor use ACAD. I just used the imported DWG fie and utilized the crop region to select the one detail or view that I needed for that particular drafting view. (I usually set up a new drafting view for every ACAD detail or elevation/section that I imported. That way, I could reference them and place them on sheets making the "set" of drawings truly parapemetric, eventhought they were imported CAD drawings)

The other way I did it (when appropriate) was to open a temporary working Revit project, import the CAD file and then "partially" explode it so that I could delete everything else that I did not want.

Good Luck
Steve

[patricks]

alright another issue, the CAD file has an OLE object of an Excel spreadsheet. When I import the CAD file into Revit, the spreadsheet is not there. How do I get that into Revit? I opened the spreadsheet in Excel, copied the text in all the cells, then pasted it as a text object in Revit, but of course there was no formatting. I saw in one thread bringing it into a Legend view but I don't know how that works.

Another thread mentioned pasting an Excel spreadsheet into AutoCAD and bringing that into Revit, but for some reason it didn't show up when I imported the file?

[patricks]

Another update... now I'm trying to bring in the details, but since drafting views don't have a crop region available, I've resorted to creating and duplicating floor plan views that show only the CAD import, and cropping down around each detail I need.

I would rather make each detail a separate DWG and bring them into drafting views (to be able to key them correctly), but when I use the WBLOCK command in AutoCAD, the resulting file size for only one detail is half of the entire original AutoCAD file. The original file has about 30 details and is about 4.75 MB. When I select a single detail and do the WBLOCK command and save it as a new file, the new file is 2.8 MB by itself! There are no Xrefs or images in the file, so I can't figure out why the file is so big for such a small drawing. I have already run the PURGE command and it's still that large.