ExportToDXF

A SolidWorks VBA macro for batch-exporting sheet metal parts to DXF — built for production use.

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Table of Contents

• Overview
• Features
• Requirements
• Repository Contents
• Setup
• Usage
• Output
• Processing Logic
• Validation & Decision Rules
• Log Reference
• Troubleshooting
• Extending the Macro
• Changelog
• License

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Overview

ExportToDXF.bas is a SolidWorks VBA macro that scans a source folder for .sldprt part files, analyzes each one, and batch-exports valid sheet metal models to DXF format in a specified destination folder.

It is designed to be reliable and practical for real production environments — handling large file sets, applying rigorous validation before each export, and producing a structured log file with timing data and a full summary.

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Features

Capability	Details
Batch processing	Processes all .sldprt files in a folder in one run
Sheet metal detection	Automatically identifies and skips non-sheet-metal parts
Flat-pattern handling	Detects bend features and unsuppresses the Flat-Pattern feature before export
Rollback correction	Detects and auto-corrects parts with a rolled-back feature tree
Feature validation	Checks for feature errors after flattening before attempting export
Silent operation	Opens and processes files without interrupting the SolidWorks UI
Structured logging	Writes a timestamped log grouped by failures, skips, and successes
Per-file timing	Records elapsed time for every part and reports average and total run time
Clean document tracking	Tracks documents opened during processing and closes extras automatically

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Requirements

• SolidWorks — Any version compatible with the SolidWorks VBA API (SldWorks, ModelDoc2, PartDoc, ExportToDWG2)
• Macro execution enabled — Macro security must permit running unsigned macros in your SolidWorks installation
• Pre-existing folders — Both the source and destination folders must already exist before running the macro
• Read access to the source part folder
• Write access to the destination folder

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Repository Contents

ExportToDXF/
├── ExportToDXF.bas      # Main SolidWorks VBA macro (entry point: main)
├── ExportToDXF.swp      # SolidWorks macro project file
└── README.md            # This file

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Setup

1. Open SolidWorks.
2. Navigate to Tools → Macro → New (or Edit to load an existing file).
3. Import ExportToDXF.bas into the macro editor, or open ExportToDXF.swp directly.
4. Confirm that SolidWorks object library references are available in the VBA IDE (Tools → References).
5. Save the macro to your standard macro library location for easy access.

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Usage

1. Launch the macro by running the main subroutine.
2. When prompted, enter the source folder path containing the .sldprt files to process.
3. When prompted, enter the destination folder path where exported .dxf files will be saved.
4. The macro will process each part silently. Wait for the completion dialog to appear.
5. Review the summary in the dialog, then open the generated log file for full details:

<destination folder>\DXF_Export_Log.txt

Note: The macro processes only the top-level files in the source folder. Subfolders are not traversed. Both the source and destination folders must exist before running.

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Output

DXF Files

• One .dxf file is created per successfully exported part.
• The output file name matches the source part's base name (without extension).
• Files are written directly to the destination folder.

Log File

A structured plain-text log is written to <destination>\DXF_Export_Log.txt after all parts are processed.

Log structure:

DXF EXPORT LOG
Started: <timestamp>
Source Folder: <path>
Destination Folder: <path>
======================================================================

ERRORS / FAILURES FIRST
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FILE: part_a.sldprt
  FAIL - No Flat-Pattern feature found.
  Elapsed: 00:00:03

SKIPS / WARNINGS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FILE: assembly_bracket.sldprt
  SKIP - Not a sheet metal part.
  Elapsed: 00:00:01

SUCCESSFUL EXPORTS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
FILE: panel_left.sldprt
  INFO - Rebuild succeeded.
  INFO - Rollback bar already at end.
  INFO - Flattening: Flat-Pattern1
  INFO - Flat pattern validation passed.
  OK - Exported to: C:\DXF\panel_left.dxf
  Elapsed: 00:00:05

SUMMARY
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Processed:            12
Exported:             9
Failed:               2
Skipped:              1
Average Time / Part:  00:00:04
Total Time:           00:00:48
======================================================================

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Processing Logic

The macro applies the following sequence to each .sldprt file:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  Open part silently (OpenDoc6)              │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Initial rebuild (ForceRebuild3)            │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Analyze feature tree:                      │
│    • Sheet metal present?  → No  → SKIP    │
│    • Flat-Pattern feature?  → No  → FAIL   │
│    • Bend features present?                 │
│    • Rollback bar at end?                   │
│    • Multiple configurations?               │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Correct rollback (if detected)             │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Unsuppress Flat-Pattern (if bends exist)   │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Rebuild + validate feature error state     │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Export DXF via ExportToDWG2               │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Log result + elapsed time                  │
│  ↓                                          │
│  Close document + clean up extras           │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Outcome classification:

Result	Meaning
Exported	DXF written successfully
Failed	A required step failed (open, rebuild, flatten, validate, or export)
Skipped	Part is not a sheet metal part

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Validation & Decision Rules

• Non-sheet-metal parts — Detected by absence of a SheetMetal feature; classified as Skipped.
• Missing Flat-Pattern feature — Sheet metal part with no FlatPattern feature in the tree; classified as Failed.
• Rollback bar not at end — Macro detects rolled-back features, moves the rollback bar to end, and rebuilds before continuing.
• Multiple non-flat configurations — Logged as a warning but processing continues.
• Feature error after flattening — A non-warning error code on the Flat-Pattern feature after unsuppression is treated as Failed.
• Flatten fallback — If Select2 fails, the macro falls back to SetSuppression2 on the active configuration.

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Log Reference

Message	Meaning
FAIL - Could not open file	OpenDoc6 returned Nothing; part could not be opened
FAIL - Initial rebuild failed	ForceRebuild3 raised an exception on first rebuild
SKIP - Not a sheet metal part	No SheetMetal feature found in the part's feature tree
FAIL - No Flat-Pattern feature found	Sheet metal part is missing a FlatPattern feature
WARN - Rollback state detected	One or more features are rolled back; macro attempted roll-forward
FAIL - Could not flatten part	EditUnsuppress2 and SetSuppression2 both failed
FAIL - Rebuild failed after flatten	ForceRebuild3 raised an exception after flattening
FAIL - Feature tree error(s) after flatten	Flat-Pattern feature reports a non-warning error code
FAIL - ExportToDWG2 returned False	The export API call completed but reported failure
OK - Exported to: <path>	DXF was written successfully

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Troubleshooting

Many parts failing to open

• Verify the source folder path is correct and accessible from the machine running SolidWorks.
• Confirm macro security settings allow execution (Tools → Options → System Options → General).

Parts failing at flatten or validate

• Open the part manually in SolidWorks and inspect the Flat-Pattern feature for existing errors.
• Ensure the part does not have a suppressed or missing Flat-Pattern feature.

Export returning False

• Check that the destination folder exists and the macro has write permission.
• Verify the part opens and flattens cleanly when done manually.

Parts opening with unexpected documents

• The macro tracks all documents open before processing each part and closes extras after. If references load automatically, they will be closed unless they were already open before the run started.

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Extending the Macro

The following changes are safe starting points if you need to customize behavior:

• Recursive folder traversal — Replace the Dir(sourceFolder & "*.sldprt") loop with a recursive folder-walking approach.
• File name filtering — Add prefix/suffix checks to fileName before calling ProcessPart.
• Configurable export options — Replace the hardcoded smOptions = 71 constant with a user-configurable variable or INI file read.
• CSV or JSON output — Add a secondary output loop after the main processing loop to write structured data alongside DXF_Export_Log.txt.
• Continue on non-critical warnings — Adjust the CheckFeatureErrors function to ignore specific error codes rather than treating all non-warning codes as failures.

When modifying, preserve the prExported / prFailed / prSkipped result classification so that log grouping and summary counts remain consistent.

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Changelog

Initial Release

License

This macro is provided as-is for internal use. Add your organization's license terms here if distributing within your team or externally.