Discipline layers in 2D

Group your drawing into six trades — building, electrical, sanitary, mechanical, roof, ground — and export a clean per-trade PDF in two clicks.

3 min read · Level: intermediate

Quick answer

Why discipline layers matter: a single drawing with everything on one layer is unreadable to a subcontractor. The electrician needs his wiring + the building outline as reference, not the heat-pump details. Discipline layers solve that.
Apply the NLCS template (NL standard, also fits ES/DE workflows): File → Templates → NLCS layers. Six layers appear: A (building), E (electrical), S (sanitary), M (mechanical/HVAC), D (roof), G (ground/foundation).
Assign existing components to layers: select a component, right-click → Assign to layer, pick the trade. Diaz remembers — placing a new outlet auto-goes to E, a new pipe auto-goes to S.
Toggle visibility from the Layer panel (shortcut L) to see one trade at a time. The building outline (A) usually stays on as reference under any other trade.
Run clash-detection between layers: Tools → Clash detect finds where electrical lines cross sanitary pipes or where HVAC ducts intersect structural members. Conflicts highlight in 3D with a zoom-to-location button.
Export per-discipline: File → Export → Per-discipline ZIP. Each subcontractor gets one DXF + one PDF in their package: their trade + the A-layer as reference. Sanitary contractor gets A + S. Electrician gets A + E.

Components on wrong layer: happens after importing an architect-DXF — the architect used their own layer-naming. Use Tools → Re-map layers to match incoming layer names to NLCS automatically.
Subcontractor receives empty drawing: means their trade-layer has no components yet — or you forgot to include the building reference (A-layer). Toggle A back on before export-per-discipline.

Diaz Editor is one-time €99 lifetime for the first 100 founding spots. See the beta page.