Tool palettes in Plant 3D save time every day. Frequently used assemblies are created once and can then be placed again and again with a click, instead of gathering the individual parts together every time. Anyone who regularly uses the same pump groups, skids or valve stations loses a lot of time to repetitive work without palettes, and that work can be avoided.
This article first explains why your own palettes are worth the effort, and then describes the procedure for saving an assembly as a block and placing it on a palette of your own. The effort involved is a one-off; the benefit accompanies every project that follows.
Why your own tool palettes are worth it
The biggest advantage is reusability. Components can be saved with all their placements, layers and connection and component properties, and inserted later in full with a single click. Unlike simple copying, the stored properties are retained, so an assembly built up cleanly once returns consistently in every project.
That noticeably increases the speed of daily design work, because complete assemblies are placed without gathering all the individual parts again. Standardisation matters just as much: if reviewed, approved assemblies are provided centrally on palettes, everyone works to the same standard, which reduces design errors and safeguards quality. Palettes structured by topic or by project additionally create clarity and make navigating an extensive catalogue easier.
If you want to go a step further, tool palettes can be combined with scripts, for example through Python, in order to parameterise assemblies automatically as they are placed or to add metadata to them. That turns a pure time saving into a continuous, partly automated workflow.
How to create your own tool palette
The starting point is an assembly you want to use more than once. First save your drawing and start the Block command from the command line. Give the assembly a meaningful name and use the option to select an insertion base point to define the point at which the assembly is to be inserted later. The base point determines how the assembly behaves at the cursor when it is placed, and should therefore be chosen deliberately.
Next, use the option to select objects to pick the components that belong to the assembly, make the selection with the cursor and confirm it with the right mouse button. The assembly is now defined as a block and ready to be filed.
To place it on a palette, right-click on the tool palette area and choose the option for a new palette. Give the palette a name that matches its content, sorted for example by discipline or by project. Now drag the assembly onto the new palette. After clicking and then right-clicking on the new entry, open the settings of the assembly through the properties option.
Set the insert parameter for exploding to Yes there and confirm with OK. Exploding ensures that the assembly is broken down into its individual parts again on insertion, so that the components can then be edited on like normal components. From this point on you can reuse the assembly at any time by dragging it from the tool palette into the model space.
Using palettes as a library
To keep the palettes useful in the long run, it is worth setting up a file of your own as a library that is always present in the project. Everyone involved then finds the same reviewed assemblies in one fixed place. A library spanning several projects is also possible; the DesignCenter can be used for that through the DesignCenter command, which transfers content between drawings and projects. In this way, individual palettes grow over time into a maintained, reusable catalogue of building blocks.
Support in your project
Are you just starting out with Plant 3D, or would you like to make better use of the tool? With our CAD optimisation we support you individually, from building standardised assemblies to automated workflows around the tool palettes.
