Comment afficher la longueur totale de chaque fil en fonction du style de ligne utilisé dans les rapports SOLIDWORKS Electrical

Displaying the total lengths of each wire style used in an electrical drawing is extremely valuable when preparing documentation for vendors, estimating material costs, or planning wire procurement. Instead of manually adding up the length of every wire segment, a process that can be time‑consuming and prone to error, SOLIDWORKS Electrical provides built‑in reporting tools that automate this task. One of the most effective tools for this purpose is the “List of wires by line style” report, which can be configured to calculate and display total wire lengths for each wire style used in your project.

In this blog, we’ll walk through how to generate this report, how to enable the length‑summation feature, and what to expect when reviewing the final output.

Why Wire Length Reporting Matters

In many electrical projects, especially those involving panel wiring or large assemblies, multiple wire styles are used with different gauges, insulation types, or color codes. Vendors often require precise quantities to prepare accurate quotes, and installers rely on these measurements to plan routing and material usage. Automating wire length calculations helps:

• Reduce manual calculation time
• Improve accuracy and consistency
• Ensure proper material planning
• Streamline communication with suppliers

SOLIDWORKS Electrical’s reporting tools make this process straightforward once properly configured.

Step 1: Open the Report Manager

Start by launching SOLIDWORKS Electrical and navigating to the reporting tools:

1. Go to Tools in the top menu.
2. Select Reports to open the Report Manager.

This window displays all available reports in your project and allows you to add, modify, or generate them.

Step 2: Add the “List of wires by line style” Report

If this report is not already part of your project, you’ll need to add it:

1. Click Add in the upper‑left corner of the Report Manager.
2. Search for the report description “List of wires by line style.”
3. Check the box next to the report.
4. Click OK to add it to your project’s report list.

This report organizes wires by their line style (wire style), making it ideal for calculating totals per style.

Step 3: Enable the Length Column

Next, you’ll configure the report to display wire lengths:

1. Select the “List of wires by line style” report.
2. Click Properties.
3. Go to the Columns tab.
4. Look for the Length column in the list.

If you don’t see it:

• Click the Column Management button (gear icon).
• Check the box for Length to add it to the available columns as seen below:

Step 4: Configure the Length Column to Sum Values

To calculate total wire lengths per wire style, you must enable summation:

1. 1. In the Columns tab, select the Length column.
   2. Click the Content section to open the column properties:
   3. Scroll to the bottom of the window.
   4. Check “Can sum the content of merged cells, then sum the rows.”This setting tells SOLIDWORKS Electrical to total the lengths of all wires grouped under each wire style.

      Click OK, then Apply to save your changes. See Image below for reference:

      

Step 5: Generate the Report

Although the preview pane in the Report Manager will not show the summed totals, the final output will.

1. Click Generate drawings to create the report.
2. Review the generated table.

You will now see:

• Wires grouped by line style
• Individual wire lengths
• A final row showing the total length for each wire style

This makes it easy to extract the exact quantities needed for purchasing or documentation.

Conclusion

Calculating total wire lengths manually can be tedious, especially in large projects with many wire styles. By using the “List of wires by line style” report and enabling length summation, SOLIDWORKS Electrical automates this process and ensures accurate, vendor‑ready data. Whether you’re preparing a bill of materials, estimating costs, or planning installation, this feature helps streamline your workflow and reduce the risk of errors.