Module design mode
Last updated: · By: the moducut team
Module design mode is a full-screen workspace where you take a single module out of the room and edit it from the inside with its own ribbon and tool rail. The carcass size, material, compartments, doors and drawers are set up here.
Short answer
Entering design mode
- Existing module. Double-click the module, or right-click › Edit.
- Empty module. Modules › Draw Module opens an empty module and switches to design mode; enter the dimensions in Module Options and press Draw Module.
- Corner module. L Corner and 45° Corner add a corner cabinet and open it directly in design mode.
Ribbon
The design mode ribbon is different from the room’s:
- File. Save saves the module as a .cab file (Ctrl + S); Load loads a module file in place of this module (Alt + O).
- Library. Saves the module to the Module Library with Add, Copy and Update.
- Project. Apply writes the changes to the cabinet and leaves design mode; for a new module, the button is called Export and adds the module to the project (Alt + S). Cancel undoes the changes and leaves, deleting a newly opened module (Alt + V).
- Edit. Undo, Redo and Delete, which deletes the selected part.
- Accessory. Hanging Rail and LED Groove.
- View and Hide. Dimensions, Tape Measure, X-Ray, Connectors, Explode and Doors; Door and Drawer, which hide the doors and drawers.
General Settings, CNC Settings and Price List under Settings in the menu also open in design mode.
Left tool rail
Options at the top of the rail opens the Module Options panel. The panel has four tabs: Dimensions (module name, width, height, depth), Material (carcass, door and back panel material and thickness), Carcass (content lock, corner joints and Connector Settings) and PVC (edge banding modes).
The tools below it build the inside of the carcass:
- Upright, Divider and Shelf. Split a compartment vertically or horizontally, or add shelves; details are on the Dividers and shelves page.
- Drawer and Door. Add a drawer or door to the compartment you choose.
- Filler. Adds a panel that closes a compartment fully or as a strip.
- Section Back Panel. Splits the back panel into sections.
- Notch. Opens the Notching Operations window.
The Plinth, Rail, Crown and Back Panel buttons at the bottom of the rail open the settings panel for those parts.
Applying a tool
- Choose the tool on the rail; the tool’s panel opens on the left.
- Click to select the compartment (space) to work on in the 3D view. For drawers, if you do not select a space, the whole carcass is used.
- Enter the count, size and layout settings in the panel.
- Press Apply. The change is written to the carcass right away and can be undone; the panel closes. The close button in the panel title closes it without applying.
Part Properties
When you click a part in design mode, Part Properties opens on the right: size, board, PVC banding and Extend / shorten edge by edge. The Don't send to cutting switch removes the part from the cut list. Right-clicking a part shows commands such as Surface Operations, Show 2D Drawing, Connector Operations and Send Only This Part to Nesting.
Frequently asked questions
When editing an existing module, the button is called Apply and writes the changes to that cabinet. For a module newly opened with Draw Module, L Corner or 45° Corner, it is called Export and adds the module to the project.
It lets you keep a single module independently of the project. When you open a module in design mode in another project and load the .cab file with File › Load, the carcass changes to the version in the file; the module’s position and rotation in the room are kept.
Besides Save (Ctrl + S), Undo (Ctrl + Z), Delete (Delete) and the view keys, there are keys specific to design mode: Alt + S Export or Apply, Alt + V Cancel, Alt + A Explode. The full list is on the Keyboard shortcuts page.
What’s next?
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