Okay, so I started using AutoCAD MEP 2011 about 2 weeks ago for the project that we're working on. I've used MEP before (2008) but never used it for more than what I could do in plain ol' vanilla CAD. In this instance, I'm routing conduit in conduit rack and to equipment. I've managed to figure out quite a bit on my own, and from the little bit of guidance that the help files offer, but there are a few things that have me perplexed and was wondering if anyone would be able to shed some light on the subject for me. Also, it probably help to know that I have avoided working in 3D space for my entire career so it's entirely possible that some of what I'm trying to do is perfectly doable, MEP or not.
Sections - Okay, the section generating thinger is cute but it really doesn't give me any information other than a picture of what the conduit looks like in the rack. Each conduit has a name and a size, and it's important that I identify those things in section, but I've been unable to figure out how to go about doing that. Generating a 2D section gives me something to look at, but there is no intelligence in that 2D section telling me the conduit sizes or names (at least none that I can see).
Previously, in vanilla CAD, we did our sections (mostly) manually, tagging the conduit manually, and mistakes were made along the way. I wrote a routine for drawing sections where the drafter could pick the conduit size, it would insert a block for that conduit, pick the next size, it would insert the next conduit at the proper spacing, throw in dimensions, prompt for the next conduit, etc. After that was done the drafter would manually tag the list of conduits on each tier (I'm attaching a screenshot of a section as an example).
So I was banging my head against the wall this morning, trying to figure out how to retrieve the properties of a conduit that was drawn in MEP (such as the size and the name) for tagging the conduit in plan view (yes, I know MEP can do tags for me but those either suck or I haven't figure out the limits of those tags...). Anyway, I figured that bit out and I want to do a similar thing in section. I want to be able to list the conduit shown in section without the drafter having to type all of that information in. The 2D sections in MEP are pretty useless, as far as I can tell, so I'm trying to figure out how I can make my sections work. How can I make my sections look (at least somewhat) similar to the attached screenshot?
Let's start there and see if anyone bites.