jsr13
2007-11-02, 03:08 AM
We are finding a growing demand for electronic submittal of shop drawings - at least the detailers are sending them to us in PDF format. So we (and at least one architectural firm) are pushing to mark them up and send them on to the next reviewer electronically.
This will save $$ for a few reasons: 1) because there will be no cost of plotting out 6 (or more) sets of drawings, 2) no expenditure of time/resources to hand deliver the sets from one reviewing office to the next, 3) save $$ because all of those sets do not have to have marks transferred to multiple sets, 4) instant delivery (via email or FTP) to the next reviewer dramatically cuts down on the "round trip" of the drawings, and 5) eliminate mistakes because of marks being missed in the copying of marks from one set to the other 6 sets.
Everybody wins when the fabrication can proceed with less chance of mistakes and nobody puts out a ton of money for sets of drawings. Sounds great, right?
The problem with this whole thing is that we need to be able to safeguard our marks so that they cannot be changed by someone else - either accidentally or by someone pulling a fast one. Let's face it: the 0.1% that would purposely do something like that are the reason that it is a necessity.
We can do this with Acrobat (by password protecting the file) but the next reviewer is then not capable of adding their own marks/comments without having the password, thus compromising the integrity of our marks/comments.
DWF and Design Review: I am not very familiar with DWF and Design Review. I do know that there is a way to create DWF files from any Windows program (via a printer driver?). That would solve the ability for the detailers (and any others who submit shop drawings, truss drawings, concrete mixes, etc.) to create the DWF files. If I remember right, there is also a way to embed the DWF viewer into the file so that anyone can read the file even if they don't have programs installed. What I'm not sure of is the ability to safeguard those marks. Is there any way to conduct this whole process in a DWF fashion?
I figure that there has to be a way for me to (password) protect my marks, send it on, they protect their own marks, send it on, and so on, and so on.
Am I the first to come up with this concept?
If there is no way to do this with DWF, is there something that I have missed in Acrobat? I know that this is supposed to be only Autodesk software that we deal with in here, but...
Maybe this is a definite Wish List Item for the guys at Autodesk to consider if they want to broaden the horizons of the DWF format. Maybe they already have?
Has anyone else found a solution to this?
Thanks in advance for ANY help here!
:banghead:
This will save $$ for a few reasons: 1) because there will be no cost of plotting out 6 (or more) sets of drawings, 2) no expenditure of time/resources to hand deliver the sets from one reviewing office to the next, 3) save $$ because all of those sets do not have to have marks transferred to multiple sets, 4) instant delivery (via email or FTP) to the next reviewer dramatically cuts down on the "round trip" of the drawings, and 5) eliminate mistakes because of marks being missed in the copying of marks from one set to the other 6 sets.
Everybody wins when the fabrication can proceed with less chance of mistakes and nobody puts out a ton of money for sets of drawings. Sounds great, right?
The problem with this whole thing is that we need to be able to safeguard our marks so that they cannot be changed by someone else - either accidentally or by someone pulling a fast one. Let's face it: the 0.1% that would purposely do something like that are the reason that it is a necessity.
We can do this with Acrobat (by password protecting the file) but the next reviewer is then not capable of adding their own marks/comments without having the password, thus compromising the integrity of our marks/comments.
DWF and Design Review: I am not very familiar with DWF and Design Review. I do know that there is a way to create DWF files from any Windows program (via a printer driver?). That would solve the ability for the detailers (and any others who submit shop drawings, truss drawings, concrete mixes, etc.) to create the DWF files. If I remember right, there is also a way to embed the DWF viewer into the file so that anyone can read the file even if they don't have programs installed. What I'm not sure of is the ability to safeguard those marks. Is there any way to conduct this whole process in a DWF fashion?
I figure that there has to be a way for me to (password) protect my marks, send it on, they protect their own marks, send it on, and so on, and so on.
Am I the first to come up with this concept?
If there is no way to do this with DWF, is there something that I have missed in Acrobat? I know that this is supposed to be only Autodesk software that we deal with in here, but...
Maybe this is a definite Wish List Item for the guys at Autodesk to consider if they want to broaden the horizons of the DWF format. Maybe they already have?
Has anyone else found a solution to this?
Thanks in advance for ANY help here!
:banghead: