My question is a 3-part query, I have done research and those that have asked these questions before were either not answered or given answers that did not address my situation. I am using SW2015 premium.

1. Is there a simple and effective way to link notes in the drawing to "Item No." in the weldment cut list (or any auto-generated material list)? The method I am currently employing to do piece details starts at the part level; I am having to add a "PARTNUMBER" property to each item on the cut list (this can be incredibly time consuming). From there I add a note to the drawing view that references various cut-list properties (this is not the time consuming and tedious part).
2. Is there a way to include the leading zero for values less than 1" in the cut list? Our shop guys can get a little...ambitious and not readily see the difference between, say, 9' and 9" in a table sometimes, so I'd like the cut list to include that 0" in 9'-0".
3. Is there a way to add alternate cut length units to the cut list? Our shop's primary tool of measurement for fabrication is tape measurements to 1/16" accuracy, however often times we feed material through a programmable band saw that uses 3-place decimals instead of fractions. and I'd like to include these alternate units that they can just plug into the bandsaw.

Thanks for looking