SOLIDWORKS PDM 2021 Displaying Derived Part References

InSOLIDWORKS PDM 2021, the way Derived Part References are displayed, has been improved. But before we look at the improvements, perhaps should first discuss what a Derived Part actually is.

What is a Derived Part?

In SOLIDWORKS, a Derived Part can be directly created by inserting an existing part into a part that is being edited. As long as the link is not broken, the Derived Part will reference the original part.

Insert Part

Derived Part in SOLIDWORKS PDM BOM

In previous releases of SOLIDWORKS PDM, there were no options to control the display of Derived Part references in a computed BOM. In SOLIDWORKS PDM 2021, the display of Derived Part References can be toggled by editing the BOM in PDM Administration and checking ‘Include derived part references’:

Enabling Derived Part References

With ‘Include derived part references‘ checked, the Derived Part References will display in the Computed BOM:

Computed BOM Showing Derived Part References

Derived Part in Contains and Where Used Tabs

Additionally, in the Contains and Where Used tab, all Derived Part References can be viewed, regardless of the selected configuration. In previous releases, Derived Part References were only displayed when the ‘Do not show configurations’ option was enabled for the selected configuration.

Do Not Show Configurations