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How to Use or Create a Custom Equipment Callout

The equipment callout in Design Master Electrical can be customized to match your company's standards.

Setting the Callout​

To set the project default for all equipment connections, use the Options command. In the Equipment section, find the Equipment callout ▾ option and set the callout type you want to use.

To set the callout for a single equipment connection, use the Modify Equipment Callout command. The options are the same as those in the Options dialog box.

Callout Types​


  • Display callout, kVA, and HP The equipment callout contains two lines. The top line displays the callout. The bottom line displays the loads on the equipment and the voltage. Motor loads with a horsepower value set are displayed in horsepower. All other loads are displayed in kVA.


  • Display callout, amps, and HP The equipment callout contains two lines. The top line displays the callout. The bottom line displays the loads on the equipment and the voltage. Motor loads with a horsepower value set are displayed in horsepower. All other loads are displayed in amps.


  • Display callout and amps only The equipment callout contains two lines. The top line displays the callout. The bottom line displays the loads on the equipment and the voltage. All loads are displayed in amps.


  • Display callout only The equipment callout contains a single line that displays the callout.

  • No callout Equipment will be inserted on the drawing without a callout. Equipment callouts that are inserted manually contain a single line that displays the callout.

  • Select custom block Select this option to choose a custom block for your equipment callout. Once the block is selected, the block name will be displayed. Three different callout blocks are included with the standard customization files. You can modify them or create your own.

    The callout can display the callout, the equipment ID, or both. The equipment ID is an automatically assigned number based upon the alphabetical order of the equipment in the project.


    • dm_elec-equCallout-callout.dwg The callout is displayed in a hexagon. The hexagon is not very wide. This block is intended to be used with short callouts.


    • dm_elec-equCallout-id.dwg The equipment ID is displayed in a hexagon.


    • dm_elec-equCallout-idAndCallout.dwg The callout and ID are both displayed in a hexagon. The callout is displayed in the top and the ID is displayed in the bottom. The hexagon is not very wide. This block is intended to be used with short callouts.

Creating a Custom Equipment Callout​

To create a new custom equipment callout block, we recommend opening one of the existing callout blocks (if you have a callout already on the drawing, you can do this with the Open Block from Drawing command) and using the AutoCAD SAVEAS command to give it a new name.

You can then modify the graphics of the block to give it the appearance you want. There are four attributes that can be used in the block:

  • CALLOUT: The callout for the equipment.

    The style, justification, and size of this attribute will be used exactly as defined in the block. Adjust these values for the text appearance that you want.

  • ID: The automatically generated ID number for the equipment.

    The style, justification, and size of this attribute will be used exactly as defined in the block. Adjust these values for the text appearance that you want.

  • CONPOINT1/CONPOINT2: The points at which the leader will connect to the equipment callout. These attributes must be included in the block.

    The leader will snap to the lower left corner grip of the nearest CONPOINT attribute. Typically, these are placed at the left and right edges of the block.

Once the block looks correct, save it. You can then select the block for the Select custom block option.