Manufacturing Context Builder Views

The Manufacturing Context Builder user interface comprises a single panel that can be customized to display any PPR structure that you work on regularly.

The panel comprises:

  • A bookmark view, to list the PPR objects you are working on.
  • A spreadsheet view, that consists of a PPR tree and several customizable columns showing the attributes of PPR objects in the tree.
  • A 3D view, to display selected objects.

This page discusses:

Bookmark View

The bookmark view lets you manage content. You can create and author bookmarks and add data such as objects and documents under the folders. You can also reuse existing bookmarks in this view.

You can create bookmarks and bookmark folders in the bookmark view. A bookmark can only have bookmarks as children. A bookmark folder can have bookmark folders, references, representations, and documents as children.

Bookmark Creation

There are two commands for adding bookmarks to the Bookmark view:

  • Insert New Bookmark to create a bookmark or a bookmark folder. See Insert a New Bookmark.
  • Insert New Bookmark From to search for an existing bookmark and insert it in the view either as a bookmark or a bookmark folder. See Insert an Existing Bookmark.

Bookmark Authoring

Bookmark authoring is done using the commands of a context menu. See Bookmark View Commands - Bookmark Authoring.

Bookmark Elements Authoring

Bookmark elements authoring is done using the commands of a context menu. See Bookmark View Commands - Bookmark Object Authoring.

Drag References from the Bookmark View to the Spreadsheet View

You can drag references from the Bookmark view to the Spreadsheet view using a panel that proposes three drop options:

  • Insert to insert the selected reference directly in the Spreadsheet view.
  • Insert with user defined context to insert the selected reference in the Spreadsheet view and complete the PPR structure according to user-defined criteria. See About User-Defined Completion.
  • Insert with context to insert the selected reference in the Spreadsheet view. and complete the PPR structure according to the links that are found on the reference. See About PPR Smart Completion.
Important: You can only insert one favorite object in the Spreadsheet view at a time. Each favorite object you drag from the Bookmark view appears in the Spreadsheet view in a different Manufacturing Context Builder tab.
Tip: You can select multiple objects from the Bookmark view and drag them to the Spreadsheet view:
  • Use Shift + click to select consecutive objects.
  • Use Ctrl + click to select nonconsecutive objects.

Spreadsheet View

The spreadsheet view consists of a PPR tree and several customizable columns showing the attributes of PPR objects in the tree.



The spreadsheet comprises the following elements:

  • A Display Name column, showing the PPR tree. Each object in the tree is stored under a fake node, that partitions and acts as the root object for the corresponding categories:
    • Product for products and parts
    • Item for manufactured items and service items
    • Process for systems and resources
    • Resource for resources

    For more information, see About PPR Contexts.

  • A column for each attribute, according to the Show / Hide options in the Attributes Manager .
    Tip: You can hide a column by right-clicking the header and clicking Hide Column . Hiding columns that you do not need can help improve performance.
  • A command menu:
    Add to Favorites

    Saves the content of the spreadsheet as favorite.

    For more information, see Capturing a Manufacturing Context in a Favorite.

    Attributes Manager

    Hides/shows, reorders, and edits attributes.

    For more information, see Manage Attributes.

    Groups Manager

    Creates nodes to group PPR objects, based on their attribute values.

    For more information, see Group PPR Objects.

    Presets Manager

    Saves the configuration of the current spreadsheet or applies an existing one.

    For more information, see Manage Presets.

The spreadsheet view also includes a context menu with commands for exploring objects, completing PPR content, and so on. For more information, see Spreadsheet View Commands.

3D View

The 3D view lets you visualize the products, resources, and implemented products of items. The 3D column of the spreadsheet view includes a Show / Hide command to control the visibility of these objects in the 3D viewer.

When the visibility of an entity is modified, the visibility of the associated parents and children is modified based on the following rules:

  • Show mode on parent: Switch to Show mode for all children.
  • Hide mode on parent: Switch to Hide mode for all children.
  • Show mode on child: If parents are in Hide mode, then switch parents to Show mode.
  • Hide mode on child: If all siblings are in Hide mode, then switch parents to Hide mode.

Tip: You can select several objects to hide or show them simultaneously:
  • To select a continuous list of objects: Hold the SHIFT key and click the objects.
  • To select a noncontinuous list of objects: Hold the CTRL key and click the objects.

Then, click Hide or Show next to one of the selected objects to apply it to the entire list.

Selecting a product or resource that is in Show mode in the spreadsheet view highlights it in the 3D view and vice versa.

If you select a representation in the 3D view, the corresponding node in the tree is highlighted. However, if the corresponding node is not visible in the tree (due to the parent nodes being collapsed, the first visible parent node is highlighted).

Selecting an item that is in Show mode in the spreadsheet view highlights the product implemented by the item in the 3D view.

Changing the Hide/Show mode of a product does not impact the Hide/Show mode of the implementing item. Similarly, changing the Hide/Show mode of an item does not impact the Hide/Show mode of the implemented product.

The following interactions are available in the 3D view: Zoom, Pan, and Center Tree.

The following commands are available in the 3D view:

  • Clean View: Clears the 3D viewer.
  • Reframe On: Reframes the representation in the 3D viewer.
  • Reframe Off: Does not reframe the representation in the 3D viewer.

Other commands are available in a context menu. See 3D View Commands.

The 3D view is refreshed whenever there is a change in the PPR structure due to actions such as Keep, Remove, and Filter.

Important: In cloud environment, 3D View Show and Hide commands are available only if 3D Indexing is enabled.