Units and document properties setup in Solidworks - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

👤 Your Role: You are a product design analyst working with engineering teams.

📋 Request: Your manager wants you to prepare a report showing how unit settings and document properties affect design consistency and measurement accuracy across projects.

📊 Data: You have data from multiple SolidWorks project files showing unit settings (e.g., millimeters, inches), document properties like precision and drafting standards, and resulting measurement outputs for key parts.

🎯 Deliverable: Create a dashboard that compares unit settings and document properties across projects, highlights inconsistencies, and shows their impact on measurement results.

Sample Data

Project	Unit System	Length Unit	Precision (Decimal Places)	Drafting Standard	Measured Length (mm)
Project A	Metric	Millimeters	2	ISO	150.25
Project B	Imperial	Inches	3	ANSI	5.91
Project C	Metric	Centimeters	1	ISO	15.0
Project D	Imperial	Feet	2	ANSI	0.5
Project E	Metric	Millimeters	3	ISO	150.253
Project F	Imperial	Inches	2	ANSI	5.90
Project G	Metric	Millimeters	2	ISO	149.99
Project H	Imperial	Inches	3	ANSI	6.00

1

Step 1: Create a table showing each project's unit system, length unit, and precision.

Use the sample data table as is to list Project, Unit System, Length Unit, and Precision columns.

Expected Result

A clear table listing all projects with their unit settings and precision.

2

Step 2: Add a calculated column to convert all measured lengths to millimeters for comparison.

Create a calculated measure: Converted Length (mm) = IF(Length Unit = 'Millimeters', Measured Length, IF(Length Unit = 'Centimeters', Measured Length * 10, IF(Length Unit = 'Inches', Measured Length * 25.4, IF(Length Unit = 'Feet', Measured Length * 304.8, BLANK()))))

Expected Result

All measured lengths are converted to millimeters for consistent comparison.

3

Step 3: Create a bar chart comparing Converted Length (mm) by Project.

Configure bar chart: X-axis = Project, Y-axis = Converted Length (mm).

Expected Result

Bar chart showing length measurements in millimeters for each project.

4

Step 4: Create a table showing precision differences by project.

Display Project and Precision columns side by side.

Expected Result

Table highlighting decimal precision used in each project.

5

Step 5: Create a filter or slicer to select projects by Unit System (Metric or Imperial).

Add slicer control on Unit System column.

Expected Result

User can filter dashboard to see only Metric or Imperial projects.

6

Step 6: Add a card visual showing average precision across all projects.

Average Precision = AVERAGE(Precision)

Expected Result

Card displays average decimal precision used in the dataset.

7

Step 7: Create a table showing drafting standards used per project.

Display Project and Drafting Standard columns.

Expected Result

Table listing drafting standards (ISO or ANSI) for each project.

8

Step 8: Add a visual to highlight projects where unit settings and drafting standards differ from the majority.

Create a calculated column: Is_Standard = IF(Drafting Standard = 'ISO' AND Unit System = 'Metric', 'Standard', IF(Drafting Standard = 'ANSI' AND Unit System = 'Imperial', 'Standard', 'Non-Standard'))

Expected Result

Visual highlights projects with non-standard combinations of units and drafting standards.

Final Result

Bar Chart: Converted Length (mm) by Project

↓

Table: Drafting Standards by Project

↓

Card: Average Precision = 2.25 decimal places

↓

Filter: Unit System (Metric / Imperial)

↓

Highlight: Non-Standard Unit and Drafting Standard Projects

✓Most Metric projects use ISO drafting standard; most Imperial projects use ANSI.

✓Some projects have non-standard combinations, which may cause inconsistencies.

✓Precision varies from 1 to 3 decimal places, affecting measurement accuracy.

✓Converted lengths show close values but differences in units and precision can impact design consistency.

Bonus Challenge

Create a report page that automatically flags projects where measurement differences exceed 0.5 mm after conversion.

Show Hint

Use a calculated measure to find the difference between each project's converted length and the average converted length, then filter where difference > 0.5.