Best Practice Information

Domain and Role/Product

<a class="s6m-tag-link sm-link" data-predicate="ds6w:what" data-tag-value="SOLIDWORKS Design" data-type="internal" contenteditable="false">SOLIDWORKS Design</a> <a class="s6m-tag-link sm-link" data-predicate="ds6w:what" data-tag-value="Collaborative Designer for SOLIDWORKS" data-type="internal" contenteditable="false">Collaborative Designer for SOLIDWORKS</a> <a class="s6m-tag-link sm-link" data-predicate="ds6w:what" data-tag-value="SOLIDWORKS Design with Cloud Services" data-type="internal" contenteditable="false">SOLIDWORKS Design with Cloud Services</a> 

What's covered? Jump to each section using the Contents List in the top right!

• Prerequisite Learning

• What is Lifecycle & Maturity Driven Drawing Attribute Stamping?

• Preparing a SOLIDWORKS Drawing Template

• Use Case Examples

  • Drawing Stamping During Maturity Promotion

  • Multi-Level Approval Drawing Stamping

   

Revision History

<strong>Note</strong>
<i>All SolidPractices are written as guidelines. It is a strong recommendation to use these documents only after properly evaluating your requirements. Distribution of this document is limited to Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks employees, VARs, and customers who are on an active subscription. You may not post this document on blogs or any internal or external forums without prior written authorization from Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation.</i>
<i>This document was updated using version SOLIDWORKS 2026 SP03. If you have questions or need assistance in understanding the content, please contact your designated reseller.</i>

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1. Prerequisite Learning

Before reading this guide, you must be familiar with the following:

• Basic SOLIDWORKS drawing concepts including editing the sheet format, adding notes and annotations
• Storing SOLIDWORKS designs in a collaborative space on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform
• Saving to and Opening SOLIDWORKS Designs from the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform
• Working with Routes and Change Actions (Use Case 2 only)

2. Preface - What is Lifecycle & Maturity Driven Drawing Attribute Stamping?

Drawing release involves more than promoting a drawing to a new maturity state. Released drawings often require controlled title block information such as approver names, approval dates, revision values, and lifecycle status. In traditional workflows, this information is frequently maintained manually, which can lead to inconsistencies between the drawing and its actual PLM state in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

With SOLIDWORKS Design connected to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, drawing title blocks can reference PLM attributes such as revision, maturity state, approver names, and approval dates. These values automatically update as the drawing moves through the 3DEXPERIENCE approval workflow, making drawing stamping part of the governed release process rather than a manual drafting task.

This document explains how to prepare a SOLIDWORKS drawing template for PLM-based title block stamping, how the approval workflow updates the linked information, and how the stamped information is carried into associated PDF derived outputs.

3. Drawing Stamping Overview

Drawing stamping displays controlled lifecycle and approval information directly in a drawing title block. Instead of entering this information manually, title-block fields reference PLM attributes from the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

Common stamping attributes include:

• Revision
• Maturity state
• Approver name
• Approval date
• Role-based approval information

When the drawing is promoted, approved, or released, the linked fields reflect the updated PLM information. This is especially useful when drawings require approval from multiple stakeholders, such as engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams.

4. Preparing a Drawing Template

Before using drawing stamping, the drawing sheet format must contain notes linked to the required PLM attributes in the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. Configure these fields once and include the sheet format in the company drawing template to ensure consistent stamping across drawings.

Recommended fields include:

• Revision
• Maturity State
• Created By
• Creation Date
• Approver
• Approved On

To link a field:

1. Open the drawing in Edit Sheet Format mode.
2. Insert a note in the required title-block field.
3. Select Link to Property, then click File Properties.
4. Under Custom, select the required property from the PLM Attributes list.
    

5. Return to Link to Property, select the added property, and confirm the link.
    

6. Repeat for the remaining fields and save the updated sheet format.
    

[Link: Linking PLM Properties in a Title Block]
 

Best Practice: Create a company-standard sheet format containing the required PLM-linked fields. Designers should not recreate or manually edit these fields for every drawing.

5. Use Case 1 – Drawing Stamping During Maturity Promotion

Once the title-block fields are linked to the required PLM attributes, they reflect the current lifecycle information from the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. In this example, the drawing is initially In Work at revision A.1.

In the MySession task pane panel, right-click the drawing and select Maturity.

Lifecycle Promotion

The Maturity dialogue displays the drawing’s current state and available transitions. An authorized user selects To Release to promote the drawing from In Work to Released.
 

After promotion, the linked title-block fields update to show the Released maturity state and the associated approval information. The revision remains A.1 because changing the maturity state does not create a new revision.

No manual title-block editing is required after the lifecycle transition.

6. Use Case 2 – Multi-Level Approval Drawing Stamping

Some release processes require approval from more than one stakeholder. In this example, Engineering and Manufacturing approvals are completed sequentially through a route connected to a Change Action. The completed approvals populate the linked title-block fields and promote the drawing to Released.
 

Configure the Approval Route

In the Route Management app, create a route template and configure:

• Route Base Purpose: Approval
• Route Completion Action: Promote Connected Object
   

Under Tasks, add Engineering Approval as the first task and Manufacturing Approval as the second. Assign the appropriate reviewer to each task, apply the changes, and release the route template.
 

Best Practice: Create and release standard route templates for approval processes that will be reused across drawings.

Initiate the Drawing Approval

Set the drawing’s maturity state to Frozen before starting the approval process. This prevents changes while reviewers evaluate the drawing.

In the Change Execution app, create a New Change Action and add the released route template under Members > Approvers.

Under Proposed Changes, drag and drop the frozen drawing from SOLIDWORKS Design while holding the Alt key. Then move the Change Action to In Approval. If the Change Action was created in Draft, first move it to In Work.

Complete the Approvals

The engineering approver opens the assigned Change Action, reviews the drawing in 3DPlay, and completes the Engineering Approval task. Once completed, the Manufacturing Approval task becomes available to the next approver.

After the manufacturing approver completes the second task, the route finishes and promotes the drawing from Frozen to Released. The linked title-block fields are populated with the approver names and approval dates.

Automatic Approval Stamping

As each approval task is completed, the related PLM attributes are updated. Because the drawing title block references these attributes, the stamping information is updated automatically.

For example:

• When the engineering approver approves the task, the engineering approver name and approval date are reflected
   

• When the manufacturing approver approves the task, the manufacturing approver name and approval date are reflected.
   

• When the drawing is released, the title block reflects the released maturity state.

This eliminates the need for designers to manually update approval names, dates, and lifecycle status in the drawing.

Set Up Tips

• To display the name of the user who promoted the drawing to the Released maturity state and the date on which it was released, PLM attributes “Approver (1)” and “Approved on (1)” must be used.
• When the drawing release process involves several approvers, the list of approvers, the associated route task name, and the date of approval are also visible through the PLM Attributes.

  • The \\\$PLMPRP properties are suffixed with an index "1", "2", or "3" corresponding to the approval task order in the Route. 

    

  • The supported attributes are:

    • Approver (x) x represents the "x" (in time) approver of the drawing
    • Approved on (x) x represents the date when the "x" (in time) approval has been set on the drawing
    • Approval task (x): x represents the route task title used when the "x" (in time) approval has been set on the drawing

7. Viewing Stamped Drawings in 3DPlay

Stamped drawings can be viewed directly in 3DPlay without opening SOLIDWORKS Design. The title block displays the linked lifecycle and approval information, while the Attributes panel shows the corresponding revision and maturity state from the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

8. PDF Derived Output Propagation

When derived-output generation is configured, the 3DEXPERIENCE platform can generate formats such as PDF, DXF, and DWG from a SOLIDWORKS drawing. A PDF generated from the updated drawing can include the stamped title-block information for sharing with suppliers, manufacturers, or customers.

Typical workflow:

1. Release the drawing.
2. Open the drawing’s Information panel in Bookmark Editor.
3. Open the Derived Outputs tab and confirm that the required output is available.
4. Select the drawing and choose Export As.
5. Select the required drawing formats, such as PDF, DXF, or DWG.
6. After processing completes, open the notification and download the ZIP package.

Best Practice: Open the generated PDF before sharing it externally and confirm that its title block matches the released drawing. If the drawing changes, regenerate the derived output before sharing.

9. Recommended Practices

• Use a standard title block template with predefined PLM attribute fields.
• Keep approval fields role-based, such as Engineering Approval and Manufacturing Approval.
• Freeze drawings before sending them for approval.
• Use released route templates for repeatable approval workflows.
• Verify stamping in both 3DPlay and SOLIDWORKS Design.
• Confirm that PDF derived outputs reflect the stamped title block before sharing externally.
• Avoid manual editing of approval names, dates, revision, or maturity state once PLM stamping is configured.

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We would like to hear your feedback and suggestions for new topics. After reviewing this document, please take a few minutes to fill out a <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SolidPractices" rel="nofollow">brief survey</a>. Your feedback will help us create the content that directly addresses your challenges.