In D-Tools System Integrator (SI), there are two ways to configure wire, finish, and bulk. There are a few differences between the two and what options are available to each in the program. Today I’ll go over how to make a wire product, how to set it as finish or bulk, and how bulk wire differs, plus the other options available to it in SI.
In order to label a product as “wire” within SI, it must have a wire category. By default, there is a Wire and Cable category already setup in SI; however, you can also create your own category by following these steps:
- Open the Product Explorer and click “Settings.”
- Click “Category” then click “New” to set up a new category.
- Name it and set its type to Wire. Save and close.
Once the category is set up, create a new product, and assign it the wire category just created or the desired category.
When viewing the product in the catalog or in a project, it will have a black wire symbol beside it. This means you have access to wire specifications within the product.
Example wire symbol.
By default, all wire items are set to finish and must be manually switched to bulk, if desired.
Simply go to the item’s specification tab and check the box marked “Bulk” to switch format.
With this box checked, the item’s price will be calculated based on price per foot or meter, instead of a fixed price. Click the Price tab and enter in the cost & price and how many hours of labor is required per unit of wire.
In my example here, 1 foot of wire costs 13 cents and requires .007 hours of labor.
It is not required to enter a specific length of wire until you add the item to a project or a package. For now, make sure the base values are correct, and Save and Close.
Once you’ve added the bulk wire to your project, double-click the item, and select the specifications tab, and you’ll see a new field has been added labeled “Wire Length.”
Enter in how much wire you need for this item within this project, and the price will recalculate to show the total for the entire length.
Additionally, there are options in the Project Settings to enable prompts that will remind you to add bulk wire lengths. These can be found by clicking on the Settings tab in either a project or the Project Explorer and selecting “Project Settings.” Choose “Prompts” on the left side of the window and change the options shown below.
Another way to save time with bulk wire is by adding the total amount of wire required for a project then use the Split Bulk Wire tool to divide it up to multiple locations and systems.
More information about the Split Bulk Wire tool here: https://support.d-tools.com/000_SI_Documentation/User_Guide/04_Projects/02_Project_Editor/02_Tools_Tab/02_Split_Bulk_Wire
Should you need any further assistance, please contact us at supporthelp@d-tools.com, or start a live chat (blue icon in the lower right corner) or open a support ticket at https://www.d-tools.com/support-ticket
