Organizing Jobs and Libraries

[Dan Senkiewicz]

I was wondering how the more experienced pros of eCabinet Systems went about organizaing their libraries. After two weeks I've got way too many iterations of cabinets. On top of that I've got my desktop and laptop that I need to find a better way to synchronize between. Your thoughts appreciated.

...>Dan

[Michael S Murray]

Hi Dan,
Its a ongoing process and it is very easy to get a whole bunch of different librarys.
I always name a directory starting with the material type, basically for me,residential is .730 vcp 2side clearcote, commercial is melamine, p-lam on particleboard with white-plam backer or 2 sided p-lam on particleboard. I then add, wc for wall cabinet,bc for base cabinet, or tc for tall cabinets or pantrys.
So far I would have directories called,
.730 vcp 2 side clearcote wc
.730 vcp 2 side clearcote bc
.730 vcp 2 side clearcote tc
so forth and so on,
then I have directories for library wall units, ent. centers, specialty commercial,specialty residential and a probably a few others.

I then try to name each cabinet within each directory such as .730 vcp wc lsh 2shelf,this would be a cabinet built with vcp, it would have two shelves and hinged from the left side. I know this cabinet could be resized from 24 high to 36 high and I would not have to change shelf holes. I then create a rsh for the same cabinet, and a double door for the same cabinet.
I then create a 3 shelf cabinet that is at 36 and can go to 42 h without changing shelf holes. I have employees doing the assembly, so I try to name each cabinet simple and descriptive. I also do not use any dim.# when naming my cabinets because I might take a cabinet, change the height and width before putting it into a layout,or I might pull it out and change it, or resize it in room. If you put say 30" wall cab in your description, it might confuse the assembly or install if the cabinet ended up at 32"h, of course they could check the cut list, but I try to keep it as hassle free as possible. That is why I use the 2 or 3 shelf description, it tells me what range in height I can use that cabinet for without having to edit shelf holes, and avoids calling it a 30"h. cabinet.
Obviously I am not the smartest guy on this forum and I am sure there are many other ways to do it and many different situations, but this works for me and hope it helps you get started with yours. Its an ongoing thing and you will find yourself cleaning them up and reorganizing on occasion. Good Luck

[Dan Senkiewicz]

Thank You for the response Michael. I'll be working on laying out a folder system before I draft too many items.

As an aside, I found a great little program that can synchronize directories between PCs. It's call GoodSync and is made by Siber Systems. I've used that company's program RoboForm for years to assist with password archiving and consolidation. Both are solid programs and you can get them both for around $20. Saving me a lot of time since my new system is Vista 64-bit which will not run eCabinet Systems but does run all my other business software, a Vista laptop for the road that runs eCabinet Systems way too slow but is needed for client jobs and my old XP system which I've had to repurpose for running eCabinet Systems properly. Now all my files are synched on all three systems.