Managing File Sizes of Imported Geometry

[dgschaefer]

Creo 2 M230

I've got an imported assy that I need to work with and the file sizes are killing me.  I don't need a clean import, the files have a lot of missing surfaces and missing geometry but it's adequate for space claim purposes. The problem is the file sizes are enormous on a few and performance suffers. 

I tried to clean up a couple of files (delete rogue surfaces and put planes on layers) and they got dramatically larger.  One file went from 69 MB to 435 MB and all I did was put 4 planes on a layer. 

What can I do to improve performance and reduce the file sizes?

[dcokin]

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@dgschaefer wrote:
What can I do to improve performance and reduce the file sizes?

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If you're working on a part file, drop it into a temporary assembly prior to next step, or you won't get all the options.  (Dropping in a temp assembly also gives you an opportunity to change the origin coordinate system to something more convenient if you desire.)

Then:  File / Save As / Save a Copy, and change "type" to "shrinkwrap".  (Note that the options here are a bit different than if you create a shrinkwrap feature in a model.)

My favorite shrinkwrap type is "Merged Solid".  But, that won't work for you if you got a bad import to start with, and don't have solids.  Try "Surface Subset" in that case.  Play around with the options, you can have it fill holes, ignore small surfaces, and can adjust the overall quality.  I tend to start at quality 10, and if output is still to big, I'd reduce by 1, and try again.  If it fails, again, try reducing quality by 1 for next attempt.

[dgschaefer]

This is an imported assy of a Ford Mustang V8 engine.  It has major surfaces and whole components missing, but is sufficient for space claim purposes.  I did not import it, I was supplied with a Creo assy (actually, imported into WF4, I believe).  I have the STEP file as well, but Creo 2 chokes trying to import it.  It works for a loooong time and then fails.

Anyway, a quality 10 shrinkwrap looks pretty good and reduces a 3.5 GB assy to 60 MB.  We'll see if the graphics load is still too great or not.