This page is intended to give an introductory overview of ElectroPlan and also act as a quick reference for experienced users.
Also included are the answers to the popular questions asked in support emails.
Move the mouse over the images below to see more detail.
System Overview …
Start a Plan …
Helpful Hints and How-To’s …
ElectroPlan Quick Reference …
Topics …
* Working with Components on Plans – Tips and Tricks.
* Adding More Information to Plans …
* Connection Curves
* Lines, Rectangles, Labels, Memos
* Cable Paths and Plan Measurements
* Issues with extracting plan images from PDF files.
* Setting ElectroPlan up after first registration.
* Moving to a New Computer or Cloud Service
Working with Components on Plans
| Action … | Result … |
| Mouse down on Component |
Ready to drag the Component to a new location |
| Double-Click a Component |
Component Edit window opens…
Options … Component Options drop-down menu … |
| Control Key + Click Component |
Component is selected for further actions … * Add/Edit Component Label If more then one Component is Selected … |
| Alt Key + click Component |
Clone the Component and add to plan |
| Right mouse click |
Delete Component |
* Adding More Information to Plans …
* Connection Curves
* Lines, Rectangles, Labels, Memos
* Cable Paths and Plan Measurements
Look for the Component Category: PLAN LINES ETC in the Component Selector. (normally located at the left of the screen)
Quick actions based on clicking these buttons …
Note: For Cable Calculations and Plan Measurement features … First make sure Measurement Markers have been added to the plan … Link to Cable Path Calculations
Cable Calculation (Cable Path)
Click this button and fill in the configuration details of the Cable Path including the Cable Path ID.
Then click (or Ctrl + Click) the components along the cable path including the Cable Path Junction component (located in the Cable Calculation category) to indicate changes in height and direction. Finally in the Cable Specifications window, enter height changes to be added to the calculated horizontal cable path length.
A path through a series of components, or points where there are changes in direction or height.
Component Label … A piece of text with additional information about a selected component.
First select the component with Ctrl Key + Click then click this button or Double Click the component and select Add Component Label from the drop-down menu. Enter the text to show and select the other configuration options. The text is shown with an outline box and a line to the component,
Connection Curve … A curved line between components indicating that they are connected. ie Lights and their controlling switches. Power point on the same cable run.
Click this button and fill in the configuration details of the connecting curve. Then click (or Ctrl + Click) the components in the direction of the connecting cabling. Click the Connect with Lines button in the Selected Components window to draw the lines.
Direct Line … A straight line directly between two points or selected components. Click this button and set the line configuration details. Then either click the components to join with the line or click the location on the plan where you want the line to start. Then drag the line ends to suit.
Image on Plan … Click this button and set the line configuration details including browsing to locate the image file. Then click the location on the plan where you want the top left of the image to be. Then drag the other corner icon to set the size of the image.
Line Corners, Line Doglegs … See Direct Line above.
Memo on Plan … Click this button and set the line configuration details including entering the text for the memo. Then click the location on the plan where you want the top left of the memo to be. The memo is then drawn and its size is determined by the text and font size.
Plan Measurement … A straight line or rectangle between two points or diagonally opposite corners or selected components. Click this button and set the configuration details for appearance as well as distance, width, length, area etc. Then either click the location on the plan where you want the line or rectangle to start or the components to join with the measurement line. Then drag the line ends or corners to suit. This feature is used to indicate room areas for heat pumps etc or to show cable run distances or dimensions on the plan.
Rectangle and Text … Click this button and set the configuration details including entering the text. Then click the location on the plan where you want the top left of the rectangle to be. The rectangle is then drawn and its size is determined by dragging the rectangle corners. The text is shown at the centre of the rectangle. Use the ; character in the text to create two lines.
Viewing Components by Layer
Plan Layers are created as Components are added to a plan. Each Component Category is a new layer.
Click the View by Layer button at the top of the plan to select which Component Categories (Layers) are visible. This button changes to white on green to indicate that layers view is activated for a plan and so some components may not be visible.
Components are not deleted from the plan or altered in any way, just temporarily hidden to clarify the view of the Categories of interest.
This view is on-screen only – the Plan Export still includes all Components.
Using this selected view is a useful way to select and then move a set of components to another plan.
Issues with extracting plan images from PDF files.
Common issues and solutions …
* Image quality – If the image is not good enough try increasing the Resolution. 100-300 and possibly up to 500 gives the best results. Higher figures create larger image files and take longer to process.
* Password Protected Files – Sometimes the image extract utility will ask for a password. Most times this is not really needed but it halts the extract process. See below for a solution.
* Using the whole file as the plan image – This image bypasses the screen capture / selective clean-up stage and uses the whole file. If needed the image can be tidied up using the Edit Plan Image button in the Plan Details window which invokes a graphics editor to allow the plan image to be modified.
* Get Plan Image from another Application Window – An alternate way to obtain a plan image if any or all of the above do not work out. Read more …
Setting up ElectroPlan up after your first registration.
Step by step tasks to perform to customise ElectroPlan and get the most out of the system.
Read more …
Tools and Settings ..
Click the Tools and Settings toolbar button to access all the settings for ElectroPlan.
* Settings and Options – General settings in the system to set the way things work.
* Document Content – Project Notes, Terms and Conditions, Logos, etc.
* Registration Details – Enter and validate your ElectroPlan Registration.
* Contact Details – Your company details.
* Terms and Financial Details – to be shown on your quotes and estimates.
* File Locations – Locations of folders and files used by the system.
* Plan Title Design – Layout and logos for your exported plans.
* Legend Configuration and Component ID appearance.
* Grid Configuration – Plan overlay positioning guide.
Moving to a New Computer or Cloud Service
What to do to move your ElectroPlan installation to a new computer, a new location on a network or cloud service. This also gives valuable information on how ElectroPlan is installed and how to back up your system configurations and project data.
Read more …