Setting Up Bill of Materials Your Way!

One of the first questions we get from new SOLIDWORKS users is how to set up their Bill of Materials (BOM) to match company standards. We do this by first setting up a Bill of Materials, arranging it as needed, then saving it as a template for future use.

Start by adding the Custom Properties needed to your parts in your assemblies. Use the standard list of properties as a starting point:

Then create a BOM using a default template by using Insert, Tables, Bill of Materials:

You can add additional columns by right-clicking on the new BOM and selecting Column Right or Column Left:

Then, link the column to Custom Properties by clicking on the Column Header and selecting the property from the pull-down list (custom properties must be inserted into one of the assembly components to appear in the pull-down list, such as Cost, Vendor, etc.):

Adjust the font type and size by clicking anywhere on the BOM, and using the fly-out:

You can rearrange the columns by clicking on a column header top and dragging left to right:

You can move the title Table Header from Top to Bottom, and vice versa:

Resize the Bill of Materials by selecting it, then resizing by dragging on the handle on the lower right corner.

Resize individual columns by selecting the column and dragging the separator to the right or left.

Remember to save your work as a new template by right-clicking on the table and selecting Save As…

Bill of Materials template (.sldbomtbt). To find and set your default location – Tools, Options, System Options, File Locations, BOM Templates

One last tip – you can also start by creating your new Bill of Materials in the assembly FIRST (by selecting BOM from the Assembly toolbar):

Then inserting it into the drawing, linking to an existing Bill of Materials by clicking Bill of Materials on the Assembly toolbar:

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Unitec

Unitec, Inc. is a Technology/Engineering based sales and consulting organization that has been servicing the engineering community since 1988. Our goal is to use our extensive background with engineering software and bring that information to our prospects and customers. We pride ourselves on providing our customers with the best prices, support and training for all the products and services we offer.