Weldments - File Location for Custom Profiles

The default location for weldment profiles is <install_dir>\data\weldment profiles. The sub-folder structure within the weldment profiles folder determines the selections that appear in the Structural Member PropertyManager. The Selections box from the PropertyManager and the corresponding Windows Explorer folder and file structure are set up as follows:

• <home> folder. Contains one or more <standard> folders. In the example below, weldment profiles is the <home> folder, and contains two <standard> folders (ansi inch and iso). In the PropertyManager, the name of each <standard> folder appears as a selection in Standard.

• <standard> folders. Contain one or more <type> folders, for example angle iron, c channel, pipe, and so on. In the PropertyManager, after a Standard is selected, the names of each of its <type> sub-folders appear in Type.

• <type> folders. Contain one or more library feature parts. In the PropertyManager, after a Type is selected, the names of the library feature parts appear in Size.

You can file your custom profile in the folder structure that SolidWorks provides, or you can create a separate folder structure.

To store custom profiles in the existing folder structure:

Do one of the following:

• Add a new profile part to any of the <type> folders. For example, you can store a custom profile part in the square tube folder, which is a sub-folder of the iso folder.
  
  In the PropertyManager, when you select iso in Standard and square tube in Type, the name of your custom profile part appears as one of the selections in Size.

• Add a new <type> folder in an existing <standard> folder, and store your custom profile part in the new <type> folder. For example, in the iso folder, create a folder named specials. Then store your custom profile parts in specials.
  
  In the PropertyManager, when you select iso in Standard, specials appears as one of the selections in Type. When you select specials in Type, the names of your custom profile parts appear in Size.

• Add a new <standard> folder in the weldment profiles folder, create a <type> folder in the <standard> folder, and store your custom profile part in the <type> folder. For example, in the weldment profiles folder, create a folder named My specials. In the My specials folder, create folders named My pipe and My square tube. Then store your custom profile parts in My pipe and My square tube.
  
  In the PropertyManager, My specials appears as one of the selections in Standard. When you select My specials, My pipe and My square tube appear in Type. When you select My pipe or My square tube, the names of your custom profile parts appear in Size.

If you want to store your profiles in a separate location, you can create a separate folder structure, and then specify it as a weldment profile file location.

To store custom profiles in a separate location:

1. In Windows Explorer, create a custom folder structure for your weldment profiles. Create a <home> folder, one or more <standard> folders, and one or more <type> folders, as described previously.

You can create the <home> folder anywhere you want. For example, you can create it in <install_dir>\data (where the default weldment profiles folder is located), or in other locations on your hard drive, on different disk drives on your system, or on different computers on a network.

2. In SolidWorks, click Tools, Options, System Options, File Locations. Select Weldment Profiles in Show folders for.
   
   The current directory path for weldment profiles appears under Folders.

3. Click Add and browse to the <home> folder you just created.

4. Click OK.
   
   The directory path to <home> is added to the Folders list.

5. Do one of the following with the previous directory path, which is still listed in Folders:

• Leave the previous directory path as is, and click OK.
  
  Files from both the previous directory path and the new directory path appear as selections in the PropertyManager.
  
  - or -

• Click the previous directory path, click Delete, then click OK.
  
  The previous directory path is deleted from the Folders box, and files from the previous directory path do not appear as selections in the PropertyManager.

The next time you create a weldment structural member, your custom profiles appear as selections in the Structural Member PropertyManager.