Alibre Design

Chapter 9 - Working with Parts9.10.1 Setting Up Excel to Drive DesignsBefore you can drive a design with a spreadsheet of parameters, you must first installthe Alibre Design Add-In to Microsoft Excel.‣ To set up Excel:1. Launch Alibre Design.2. Launch Microsoft Excel.3. From the Tools menu in Excel, select Add-Ins. The Add-Ins dialog box appears.4. Click Browse. The Browse dialog box appears.5. Browse to Program Files > Alibre Design on your PC's local C:/ drive and locatethe file named “Alibre Design Add-In.xla.” (This is the default location for AlibreDesign files at installation.)6. Click the file name.7. Click OK. The Alibre Design Add-In appears in the Add-Ins dialog box with acheckmark next to it.8. Click OK. In Excel, a new item appears in the Tools menu: Alibre Design Add-In >Control Parameters.9.10.2 Driving Designs by SpreadsheetYou can use Microsoft Excel spreadsheets to store and manage design information foruse in driving one or more designs in Alibre Design. You may either set up thespreadsheet first, or design the part first.TIP: You must go through the steps in section 9.11.1 to set up Excel before you candrive a design.‣ To drive a design by spreadsheet:1. Launch Alibre Design.2. Open the desired part.3. Launch Microsoft Excel.238