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PD416-1
Learn how to migrate your existing P&ID drawings into AutoCAD P&ID using your company standards. The class will
provide in-depth, step-by-step instructions to convert your existing P&ID drawings to intelligent AutoCAD P&ID. You will
improve your drawing accuracy, coordination, and overall productivity with the use of consistent methods to transfer and
read data from plain AutoCAD and from CADWorx P&ID's, giving you the ability to check the accuracy of your drawings
as you do the conversion. This class will benefit drafting professionals, CAD and IT managers, as well as the one-person
shop. Attendees should have general AutoCAD P&ID knowledge.
Kim.Hendrix@d3tech.net
Migrating Existing P&IDs into AutoCAD P&ID
We will discuss the conversion of CADWORX P&IDs as well, gathering the information from the
CADWORX database.
Objective
10 steps to quickly and completely covert standard AutoCAD drawings to AutoCAD P&ID
intelligent drawings
Steps
1. Setup new Project
2. Create a NEW drawing using your company standard templates
3. Insert your existing drawing as a BLOCK , explode, move all items to layer 0
4. Convert or Replace all equipment items
5. Trace all the Process & instrumentation lines (draw over in-line assets)
6. Tag your lines
7. Inline Assets
8. Instrumentation
9. Clean up, Annotation, Properties
10. Off page connectors, Validation
If we say these steps quickly it all sounds very easy. I assure it is not a difficult task, but
hopefully these steps will speed the process up and make it less tedious.
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Migrating Existing P&IDs into AutoCAD P&ID
Step 1 Project
If this is your first project in P&ID take the
time to properly set up a template project
based on all of your company standards.
Custom blocks, annotations, layers, title
blocks etc.
Step 3
Insert the existing drawing as a BLOCK in model space, explode, and then change everything to
Layer 0.
Create two layer states one with only Layer 0 showing, and
one with all layers available.
Importance of layer 0 if you have used AutoCAD for any length of time you know that layer 0
is special, and we should avoid drawing on it when possible. The reason I recommend moving
all items to layer 0 before converting is when you use the Convert to P&ID Object it creates
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Migrating Existing P&IDs into AutoCAD P&ID
a block and moves it to the appropriate layer, if the objects currently reside on layer 0 then all
colors / line types will take on the new layers attributes.
Alternately -
P&ID does not care whether you use the standard block or you convert from your existing
drawings, the intelligence is the same for either version.
Change your layer state to 0 and delete all the old lines and flow arrows.
Tip: Converting long line segments to P&ID doesnt work well. For every inline asset, corner, or
break P&ID assumes it is a different line, so they are not continuous splines. If you have a
small signal line, or a complicated pattern on a line, then go ahead and convert but be sure to
heal any breaks prior to doing that.
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Migrating Existing P&IDs into AutoCAD P&ID
Step 6 Tagging
Return to all layers, and tag as many of your lines as possible. That way has you begin to add
inline assets and fittings; the appropriate information is put in the annotations.
This is a good time to take a look at the Data Manager, make sure all lines are tagged, or at
least sized.
I have found that with most Inline Assets it is cleaner and more efficient to move the old valve
over slightly, insert a new one from the palette, and match the tagging then erase the old one.
While you can convert inline assets, you do lose attributed text, and will have to manually
annotate them.
If there are items that you will use often I recommend that you take the time to incorporate that
block into the project on a permanent basis, and then still do the replace.
Fun fact: if you do convert an inline asset that is currently residing on one of your new process
lines, P&ID will supply the break in the line.
Step 8 Instrumentation
By far the most difficult part of the conversion process.
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Migrating Existing P&IDs into AutoCAD P&ID
Switch to Paper Space, and check all the properties in your title block, you did use fields .. right?
If you have done several P&IDs you have undoubtedly ran into not being able to tag a line,
because it was already tagged in another drawing. Complete all your remaining off-page
connectors; make sure all the tagging flows properly from one drawing to the next.
Run Validation this needs to be run when all your drawings for
this project are complete, otherwise all of your off-page
connectors that are not connected with another drawing will not
error out.
Congratulations you have successfully converted plain drawings to AutoCAD P&ID intelligent
drawings.