Office Layout Templates - SmartSketch - Help

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SmartSketch Version
8.1(2014R1)

You use these templates to produce Office Layout drawings.

  • Imperial Template - This template has imperial units in decimal inches, ANSI sheet sizes, ASA dimensioning, and Architectural text.

  • Metric Template - This template has metric units in millimeters, ISO sheet sizes, ISO dimensioning, and ISO text.

Office layout symbols are available in the Symbol Explorer for these templates. The Draw toolbar containing tools to create office layout drawings appears on the left of the drawing window.

Office Layout Workflow

  1. Set up the sheet.

    • Select an appropriate sheet size and scale that allow you to draw the design. The default scale is 1/4" = 1' for the Imperial template and 1:50 for the Metric template.

  2. Prepare to draw.

    • Set the drawing aids to your preferences using SmartSketch Settings, Grid Display, and Grid Snap.

    • For more grid options, click the View tab on the Options dialog box to set the grid style to either dynamic or static, and set the static grid to the preferred grid spacing.

      • These settings provide visual feedback to you to improve the workflow while you draw. To create clean diagrams, use Grid Snap with a static grid displayed.

      • Placing symbols and connectors on a static grid produces high quality results.

      • You can set grid display and snap by right clicking.

  3. Draw walls.

    • Click Place Doubleline on the Draw toolbar and set the thickness of the walls to be drawn in the ribbon.

    • Click the appropriate button on the ribbon to indicate whether you draw from the center of the wall or one of the edges (primary line buttons).

    • Draw the walls first.

  4. Next, use Trim, Trim Corner, and Extend to Next for any intersection cleanup.

    • If you press Alt while drawing, the alignment indicators are temporarily disabled.

    • When you draw the walls, you may want to select a neutral gray for the line color. After you draw the walls, you can avoid cleaning the intersections by color filling the walls with a solid fill of the same neutral gray color.

    • Use the door and window symbols to complete the floor plan. These symbols automatically align to the wall and can be mirrored, scaled and rotated after placement.

    • You can also use Place Doubleline for drawing office partitions, along-wall working surfaces, counter tops, work benches, stockroom shelves, custom bookcases, custom desks, and cat walks. If you press and hold Shift while drawing with Place Doubleline, the end caps do not automatically merge into another section of doubleline. This feature is useful for drawing partitions perpendicular to walls. You can use Fillet to round the corners of counter tops.

  5. Reference or open an existing floor plan.

    • Reference a floor plan by using Object on the Insert menu or by dragging the existing file into the drawing window. Or click the Open command on the File menu to open an existing floor plan file.

      You can reference or open any MicroStation, AutoCAD, dxf, or igr document.

    • Place office layout symbols.

    • Drag symbols from the Symbol Explorer. While dragging a symbol, use the left/right arrow keys to rotate the symbol dynamically before placement. Use the up/down arrow keys to select different drag points on the symbol before placement.

    • If you press Alt during symbol placement, the alignment indicators are temporarily disabled, allowing symbol placement with grid snap or visual alignment.

    • Office Layout symbols can be physically associated to walls or other symbols. When you move a symbol or a wall, all associated symbols follow.

    • To independently move an associated symbol, select the symbol and click the green lock to unlock the association. A symbol is not associated if a green lock is not displayed when the symbol is selected.

    • You can use two methods to place multiple copies of the same symbol:

      • Holding down the right mouse button, drag the symbol into the template. When you release the right mouse button to place the symbol, you are prompted with two options. Click Stamp Here, and use the left mouse button to place multiple copies of the symbol.

      • Press Ctrl as you drag in a symbol with the left mouse button. Place the first instance of the symbol while holding down Ctrl. Once you have placed the first symbol, you can release Ctrl and use the left mouse button to place multiple copies of the symbol.

  6. Annotate the drawing.

    • Use text and dimensioning commands to annotate the drawing. To label, double-click symbols, walls, or other drawn elements. The active text settings in the file are used for labels that you double-click.

    • To edit existing text properties, right-click text and select properties from the pop-up menu. To move text, click to select; then click the green lock to unlock.

    • Move by dragging the text to a new position. Note that text is entered in paper units regardless of the sheet scale.

  7. Finish the drawing.

    • Change the color of symbols to enhance furniture or identify existing and new equipment. You can also use connectors to enhance the drawing by adding communication and computer networking lines. The following symbol sets aid in creating office layout drawings.

Content

Description

[Product Folder]\Symbols\Diagramming\Office Layout

Office Layout symbols have special behaviors for enhanced placement and modification.

See Also

Drawing Basic Elements
Drawing Connectors
Create a Template