solidworks folders…quick & simple uses

I have been accused in the past of being sort of any organizational freak.  I am one of those people that usually does not like stacks of papers on my desk and have more labeled hanging file folders than you can shake a dead squirrel at.  This is why I have become a huge fan of using folders in the FeatureTree to organize.  Folders can be quickly added inside your part and assembly files by RMB clicking multiple features, parts, or subassemblies and selecting “Add to New Folder”.  Why would you want to do this you might be asking?  Well, that is a perfectly legitimate question that I am hoping to answer for you in this post.

Why?

As I stated above the answer is simple, organize and clean.  When you are working on the 500+ feature part or that 750+ part assembly wouldn’t you want to keep your FeatureTree as short as possible so you can easily find features or parts as you go.  I am never a big fan of scrolling, then scrolling some more, then even scrolling some more to find that one feature that I needed to quickly modify.  By having folders you can shorten up that tree and eliminate all of that time wasting scrolling.

4 Quick & Simple Uses

Move Subassemblies – Move a solo or group of subassemblies inside your master assembly.  If you are like me and use subassemblies from time to time you might have noticed that it can be a pain to move that subassembly up or down your FeatureTree.  By adding it/them to a folder you can move the whole folder, then delete the folder and your FeatureTree will be organized like you are hoping for.  Tip – another way to accomplish this is by holding down ALT while dragging a subassembly to relocate.

Group Common Parts – Do you have a whole pile of nuts and bolts scattered in your FeatureTree or maybe a mole hill of springs and pins.  Well if you have more than 1 of the same component in your assembly FeatureTree I would highly suggest throwing all of the common items in a folder and label the folder whatever you please.  I usually create a folder with all the components I drag in from our Design Library because these are non editable, no drawing files that need to be in the design.

Group Common Features – Just like the common part use this is a nice and easy way to quickly group all of your chamfers, radii or even reference geometry into a folder so that you don’t have to stare at its boringness during your entire design process.

Move Multiple Features at the Same Time – You may have seen this warning before about dragging multiple features all at one time.

Well by dropping them all in a folder you can move all of these features at one time with out having to move each one individually.  Can you say…time saving!

Closing Remarks

This option gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling when I finished up a model because I know my FeatureTree is nice and orderly.  Well on second thought, maybe that feeling is the burrito I had for lunch.

So do you use folders and if you do how do you use them?  Please drop me a comment and share what your experiences are with folders.

UPDATE:  Thanks to Brian from CADFanatic for pointing out a misprint of mine.  To move a subassembly in the FeatureTree without dropping it into another subassembly you need to hold down ALT to drag NOT Ctrl.  Sorry for the mistake.