How to Add BIM Schedules Using BOM Templates in BricsCAD BIM

Last updated: July 20, 2026. Verified against Octave’s official V26 documentation.

Quick answer: The BOM Manager panel lets you view and edit Bills of Materials (BOMs) in the current BIM Project. An architectural BOM table lists every unique BIM element used in the model, placeable anywhere as a table entity, each row carrying a serial number (starting at 1), name, and occurrence count. This fully resolves the New BOM/Import BOM workflow and Schedules folder briefly covered on this hub’s Project Browser page.

The BOM Manager Panel

Ten elements make it up: the loaded BOM file’s name and type, the main menu, Place table, the Category selector, the Column selector, Add column, a search field, the table title, the table content, and a property grid at the bottom (showing the selected table or column’s properties under Bill of materials properties).

With it, you can add, remove, move, or rename columns (including formula columns); configure sorting, footer values, units, column width, and visibility; filter with an expression; group similar rows; change title and footer text; search the table; highlight and select entities in the drawing; and save or load a BOM configuration as a template, placing one or more instances in a drawing. BricsCAD Mechanical and Ultimate licenses offer its full functionality.

Creating a Door BOM Table from Scratch

Building a BOM template in a large BIM drawing can significantly slow things down; it’s best to build one in a small drawing first, then use it with large files.

1. Open the BIM Project Browser panel.
2. Click the Files tab.
3. Click Add and choose New BOM; the Save file dialog opens.
4. Name and save the new file; the BOM Manager opens with it loaded.
5. Click the Main menu button in the panel’s upper right corner.
6. Choose Set filter; the Filter Configurator dialog opens.
7. From the Category selector, choose BIM; the Column selector populates with every BIM property in the model.
8. From the Column selector, choose Type; it adds to the Conditions table.
9. Click the Type row’s Conditions cell and choose Equal to.
10. Click the Value cell and choose Door.
11. Click OK to save the filter.
12. Optionally repeat steps 5-11 for more filters (Story equal to Floor 1, for example, to list only first-floor doors).
13. Optionally rename the table (New door schedule, for example).
14. Add the columns you need (Story, Space, and Construction type, all under the BIM category, are common choices for a door schedule).
15. Click OK to save the table.

Importing a BOM Template

1. Open the BIM Project Browser panel.
2. Click the Files tab.
3. Click Add and choose Import BOM; the Select BOMs to import dialog opens.
4. Select the file(s) and click Open; they copy into the BIM Project’s folder and list under the Files tab’s Schedules folder.

Creating a Table from a Predefined BOM Table

1. Open the BIM Project Browser panel.
2. Click the Files tab.
3. Expand the Schedules folder.
4. Right-click a predefined template and choose Duplicate; a new file with a “- copy” suffix saves into the Schedules folder.
5. Optionally rename it.
6. Edit the table as needed.
7. Click OK to save.

Placing a BIM Schedule on a Sheet

Three table templates ship in a BIM Project’s Schedule folder: Door Schedule, Material List, and Window Schedule, each showing a minimum set of relevant columns by default.

1. Open the BIM Project Browser panel.
2. In the Sheets tab, open the sheet to place the schedule on.
3. In the Files tab, expand the Schedules folder.
4. Optionally drag and drop a table onto the sheet directly.
5. Double-click a predefined BOM file instead; the BOM Manager opens with it loaded, launching _BMBOMTEMPLATEEDIT.
6. Click Place table and choose the desired position(s) on the sheet.
7. Right-click, or press Enter or Esc, to finish; the BOM Manager closes too.

Operations on the BOM Table

Renaming a column: double-click the table in the Schedule folder to open it, click the column header, go to the property grid, type a new name in the Title field, and click OK.

Sorting: double-click the table to open it, right-click a column header, hover Sorting, choose a method, and click OK.

Moving a column: double-click the table to open it, drag its header to its new position, and click OK.

Highlighting table items in the drawing: click any row cell to highlight it in the drawing, or right-click it for Select (selects it in the drawing) or Zoom to (zooms the view to it).

Adding New Columns

Every entity property lists under a category in the Properties panel, select an entity with the property you want and check there to identify its category (a door’s FrameDepth property, for example, falls under Parameters).

1. From the Category selector, choose Parameters.
2. From the Column selector, choose FrameDepth.
3. Optionally select the column to insert it after (otherwise it adds after the last column).
4. Click Insert column after.
5. Click OK to save.

Adding a Thumbnails Column

1. Click the Main menu button.
2. Choose Insert thumbnails column; it adds with its View type property set to Top Back Right.
3. Optionally change the View type under Bill of materials properties in the property grid.
4. Click OK to save.

Changing the Unit of a Numeric Column

1. Click the column header to select it (the W column in a Door Schedule, for example).
2. Go to the Column properties node in the property grid.
3. Optionally set Unit placement to In additional column, adding a separate Units column next to it.
4. Set Units mode to User defined; a new Units property appears.
5. Reselect the column.
6. Choose the desired unit from the Units property dropdown.
7. Click OK to save.

Combining Columns

1. Select multiple columns by clicking their headers (hold Ctrl or Shift for more than one).
2. Right-click a header for the context menu.
3. Choose Add template column from selected; the Template column dialog opens.
4. Type a name in the Title field.
5. Optionally delete the original columns.
6. Click OK to save.

Adding a Formula Column to Calculate Weight

Calculate material weight by multiplying the Ply Net Volume property (Formula category) by the Density property (Physical Material category).

1. From the Category selector, choose <Evaluated columns>.
2. From the Column selector, choose <Formula column>.
3. Click Insert column after; the Formula column dialog opens.
4. Type a name in the Title field (Weight, for example).
5. Set the Unit field to Mass; the second field auto-completes to kg (change it if needed).
6. In the Formula column dialog’s own Category selector, choose Formula.
7. In its Column selector, choose Ply Net Volume; the formula field auto-completes to <Formula:Ply Net Volume>.
8. Type * right after that in the formula field.
9. Switch the Category selector to Physical Material.
10. Choose Density from the Column selector; the formula field completes to <Formula:Ply Net Volume>*<Density>.
11. Click OK to close the Formula column dialog and add the new column.
12. Click OK to save the table.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does creating a BOM template feel slow in a large drawing? Building templates in a large BIM drawing significantly slows the process, build it in a small drawing first, then use the finished template with your large files.

What are the three predefined BOM table templates that ship with a BIM Project? Door Schedule, Material List, and Window Schedule.

How do I calculate a material’s weight in a BOM table? Add a formula column multiplying its Ply Net Volume property (Formula category) by its Density property (Physical Material category).

Can I add a thumbnail image column to a BOM table? Yes, via Insert thumbnails column in the Main menu, defaulting to a Top Back Right view, changeable afterward.