The Factory Design Utilities Collaboration Functionality

The word Collaboration” has been widely used in the Autodesk AEC community. As design teams work in separate 2D/3D domains, connecting to each other’s data has been evolving over the years. 

In AutoCAD, you use reference files to share and convey information from different disciplines. This sometimes results in a populated drawing that sometimes causes issues with data integration as you may not always desire to see lots of colourful 2D lines to convey a simple message.

As you use Inventor as part of the PDM Collection, you are creating your individual parts and composing assemblies to convey design intent. You can insert AutoCAD Data into inventor, but again it has been seen that issues may arise with too much 2D/3D information all in one place.

How would you relay that 3D Model information back to the Design & Manufacturing Teams? Well, this is where the collaboration of various software is the key. Yes, you could send your Inventor drawings as AutoCAD Dwg’s to your contractors but sometimes information is Iost or corrupted in the data translation.

To enable software to perform best in its own domain, the Factory Design Utilities tools have been developed to enable the collaborative approach to work even smarter by allowing bidirectional workflow between 2D & 3D data and creating assets in inventor that would translate into 2D blocks in AutoCAD.

The collaborative approach can be further enhanced by making the individual afore mentioned software become less heavy. By using Navisworks as the collaboration tools, incorporating the 2D/3D workflow by appending your AutoCAD/Inventor and Revit Data into a Navisworks environment where Clash detections/Walkthroughs/Animations and 4D simulation, can be created.

Would you like to design & build factory layouts/incorporate Inventor Data and reference AutoCAD AEC buildings and check for clashes whilst “collaborating” and walkthrough the environment. This can all be achieved using the Factory Design Utilities tools in the Product Design & Manufacturing Collection’s Navisworks software functionality.

Remember, Factory Design Utilities isn’t just for Factory Design.

Would you like to work smarter? Would you like to know more?

If so, why not drop me a line or email using the details below.

Mobile: (+44) 7581012030
Email: qamar.naseem@symetri.com


How CQi Automates CAD Deployments and Reduces Risk

05 September 2025

In modern Architecture, engineering, construction and design environments, the pressure is on IT teams to deliver fast, consistent, and secure software setups. Whether you're supporting ten users or ten thousand, manual installation methods simply can’t keep up with the demands of large-scale CAD environments. That’s where CQi (Configuration Intelligence)steps in. At Symetri, we developed CQi to help organisations automate CAD deployment, reduce risk, and maintain standardisation—all without increasing the burden on IT departments. In this blog, we’ll explore how CQi works and why it’s becoming a go-to solution for smarter CAD management.

Security Gaps You Didn't Know You Had

26 August 2025

As cybersecurity threats continue to evolve, some of the biggest risks to your organisation might not be obvious. In this month’s IT Bulletin, we shine a light on three critical security concerns that are often underestimated or overlooked entirely. These issues can silently compromise systems, leak data, or be exploited without detection.