5 Ways AutoCAD specialized toolsets can optimize your design workflow

We’re all creatures of habit. Once we’ve done something a certain way several times over and over it becomes routine. And we all know routines are hard to break. Often times it takes a major breakthrough for you to change your routine. Let’s take putting furniture together for example. Most people will assemble furniture with the tools provided such as an Allen wrench that comes with the furniture. Once you get used to working with an Allen

wrench it becomes second nature. But if you learned that you could assemble the furniture in a fraction of the time by using an electric screwdriver you would, right? You’d break your routine and take the more efficient route. Keep that example in mind when reading the next several pages—the specialized toolsets included with AutoCAD® enable you to design more efficiently than ever before.

1.Objects, parts, symbols!

Maybe you are dealing with machinery that contains hundreds or thousands of parts. Or designing a hotel with hundreds of doors and windows or a house with hundreds of fuses, switches, and terminals. It could take days, or even weeks, to draw these projects from scratch in AutoCAD. Good news is that many of the toolsets contain industry-specific content such as objects, parts, and symbols that allow you to easily add in pre-designed elements into your drawings.

2.Standards based design

Whether you’re hoping to follow international drafting standards or establish standards in your drawings, the toolsets enable you to do just that. Multiply your productivity with tools that help you and your team deliver consistent, standards-based design documentation. Adhering to a standard environment improves team communication and helps drive consistent production results.

3.Managing layers

A very important part of designing in AutoCAD is the use of layers. They control the properties and visibility of your objects. In AutoCAD, you manually change layers based on the object type you are about to create. This also means that you must first create each layer setting, including its color, line type, and weight.

4.Automatic reports

Make the most of your time in AutoCAD by taking advantage of reports, schedules, Bills of Materials (BOMs), and more that can be generated automatically based on the information contained in your designs.

5.Where in the world

When you need to create maps or give your designs real-world context in a clear, effective way, the Map 3D toolset allows you to do just that. Work with more than 4,000 real-world coordinate systems or define your own custom coordinate system. Easily create stylized maps that highlight specific features, such as service areas; zoning districts; land usage; pipe and cable installation dates and diameters; and more. Then combine your CAD design information with geospatial vector data and satellite imagery or integrate your CAD data with your organization’s GIS. Your design data has real-world context, enabling you to quickly integrate data from a variety of sources to create accurate drawings, designs, and maps that can be used by field personnel, other departments, and other geospatial software applications.

BONUS TIP: Anytime, anywhere access

The specialized toolsets included with a subscription to AutoCAD aren’t the only ways that you can be more efficient with your time. When you subscribe to AutoCAD, you also get access to AutoCAD on mobile and web. No need to carry printed drawings with you. Cut down communication time and bring design teams together to review and edit CAD drawings in real time, whether you’re meeting with a client or at a job site. This allows you to use the core drafting tools and commands you’re accustomed to using so you can quickly get to work.