Are you looking to create a professional electrical plan for your building project? With cadvilla, you can easily integrate switches, lights, and sockets into your floor plan. In this tutorial, we will show you how to precisely position 2D electrical symbols, adjust their size, and highlight them in color. Whether you are working on a floor plan drawn in cadvilla or using an imported image as a basis, you will learn step-by-step how to master electrical planning.

Part 1: Electrical planning on a floor plan drawn by cadvilla

[00:50] Hide disturbing room labels

• Right-click in the 2D view and select Visibility.
• In the window, scroll down to the Labels section.
• Uncheck the box for Room labelling and confirm with OK.

[01:36] Create new layers for electrical planning

• In the project tree on the right, right-click on Ground floor and select New layer.
• Enter a name, e.g., “Sockets”, and confirm with OK.
• Repeat the process for another layer named “Lights and Switches”. This layer is now active (highlighted in red).

[02:46] Set guidelines for exact positioning

• Go to 2D Layout > 2D guidelines > Guideline > Horizontal guideline / Vertical guideline.
• Use the shortcut P (Numeric parallel guideline) to align lines to walls (enter distance 0).
• Use the shortcut G (Vertical guideline) in combination with right-click > Constructional support > Center point to draw a line exactly through the middle of a room.

[03:42] Insert electrical symbols from the catalog

• Open the Catalog on the right > 2D > Electricity.
• Drag a light symbol into the floor plan with the left mouse button held down and place it on the intersection of the guidelines. Press ESC.

[04:14] Change the size of the 2D symbols

• Select the inserted symbol, right-click and select Properties.
• Under Dimensions, change the values for Width and Height (e.g., to 0.30 m) and click OK.

[04:47] Copy symbols and place them with a distance

• Select the symbol and copy it with Ctrl + C. To paste the copied symbol, use the key combination Ctrl + V.
• Another possibility: Select the 2d-symbol and make a right-click.
  • Select Constructional support > Point with distance from and click on the first symbol as a reference.
  • Drag the mouse in the desired direction, enter the distance (e.g., 1.50) and press Enter.

[05:55] Various options for positioning 2D symbols

[06:48] Create a wall lamp from a 2D symbol

• Position the light symbol at the desired location.
• Create a 2D line under 2D Layout > Lines and arrows > Line over 2 points from the center of the symbol to the wall.
• Select the 2D line and the light symbol. Click on Group in the top menu.
• To position additional wall lamps, select the grouped symbol and copy it with Ctrl + C. To paste the copied symbol, use the key combination Ctrl + V.

[08:39] Place switches and assign light sources

• Drag a switch from the catalog into the plan.
• Go to 2D Layout > Text > Labelling and click next to the switch.
• Enter a number (e.g., “1”) and confirm with OK.
• Copy this number (Ctrl + C / Ctrl + V) and place it next to the lights that are to be operated by this switch.

[12:00] Adjust symbol colors (e.g., red)

• Select a symbol, right-click and select Properties.
• Check the box for Change line properties, click on the line color, select a red under Color and confirm all windows with OK.
• To transfer the color to all symbols: Right-click on the red symbol > Transfer properties.
• Select only Line properties, click Next, select On current layer and click Finish.

[13:35] Add sockets

Part 2: Electrical planning on an imported image

If you only have a floor plan in PDF format, you can convert it into a JPG, BMP, or PNG using the free PDF-XChange Editor, for example.

Important note: Please note that the resolution of the floor plan image to be inserted should be roughly the same as your screen resolution. A resolution that is too high is counterproductive and slows down the system.

If the floor plan is available as a 2D-DXF / DWG, the 2D-DXF or 2D-DWG file can be imported directly.

[17:21] Create a new layer for the image import

• In a new project, create a New layer under Ground floor with the name “Floor Plan Import”.
• Important: Deactivate the grid and the line width to be able to snap and orient yourself better.

[17:39] Insert image / floor plan

• Go to 2D Layout > Insert bitmap > Rectangle.
• Select your image file (JPG/PNG/BMP) on the PC and confirm with OK.
• Draw a rectangle with two clicks to roughly place the image. Press ESC.

[18:27] Scale the imported floor plan to scale

• Select the inserted image, right-click and select Adjust scaling.
• Find a known dimension in the plan (e.g., a dimensioned wall with 7.00 m).
• Click exactly on the start and end point of this distance in the image.
• In the Target length window, enter the actual value (e.g., 7.00) and confirm with OK. The plan is now correctly scaled.

[19:30] Start electrical planning on the image

• Now create a New layer again (e.g., “Lights and Switches”).
• Drag your electrical symbols from the catalog directly onto the scaled image floor plan as described in Part 1.

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Tutorial: Using the electrical planning assistant

Do you want to implement the electrical planning for your building project quickly and in compliance with standards? From version 13, cadvilla professional and professional plus offer an integrated electrical planning assistant that makes this work enormously easier for you. Based on your drawn 3D floor plan, the smart tool automatically places switches, sockets, and light sources to match the respective room type. Save valuable time when equipping your rooms and generate a complete parts list at the push of a button at the end. In this tutorial, we will show you the most important functions of the assistant in detail.

Important note in advance: The prerequisite for using the assistant is a 3D floor plan created with cadvilla with defined rooms. Pure floor plan images (JPG/PNG) cannot be used for this automatic assistant.

In the following step-by-step instructions, you will see the most important functions and the optimal workflow with the electrical planning assistant:

1. Start assistant and configure rooms

[00:05] Call up electrical planning assistant

• Switch to the Assistants tab in the upper menu.
• Start the electrical planning assistant. The tool now analyzes your floor plan and clearly lists all recognized rooms.

[00:30] Define room types and equipment

• Select a room on the left side of the dialog window (e.g., “Living”, “Cooking”, or “Hallway”).
• Define the exact Room type on the right side under the Planning equipment tab.
• Select the desired Equipment type (e.g., “Standard”) to determine how extensively the room should be equipped with connections.
• Adjust the installation heights if necessary. For example, enter the value 1.05 m for the Base height switch and the value 0.30 m for the Base height socket.

[01:02] Complete automatic placement

• Once you have configured all rooms according to your wishes, click the Finish button at the bottom right.
• Now you can revise the exact position of the electrical symbols (sockets, switches, light outlets) again and determine the exact positions.

2. Manual adjustments and parts list

[01:15] Edit symbols subsequently

• The symbols automatically placed by the assistant are not rigid, but can be individually adjusted by you at any time.
• Select any symbol in the floor plan.
• Use the functions from the menu or via a right-click, such as Move with reference point, Copy with reference point, or Rotate.
• This allows you to align switches exactly with door frames, move them, or add additional sockets at special positions.

[01:54] Generate and output parts list

• To get an exact overview of all installed elements for the order or the electrician, cadvilla offers an automatic evaluation.
• Click in the menu on the function for Export > Reports > Lists > Electrical planner.

[02:01] Save parts list as PDF and open

• In the dialog that appears, select the Save as... option.
• Assign a file name and save the list as a PDF document on your PC.
• The finished parts list then opens automatically in your standard PDF viewer (e.g., PDF-XChange Viewer) and lists all switches, sockets, and lights of your entire project in a detailed and clear manner.