Changing Part Dimensions from Drawings

The process flow for SolidWorks usually starts with modeling a part / assembly and then afterwards creating a drawing from the model.  Usually changes are made to the model and they are reflected across all the drawings.  However it is possible to directly modify a part from the drawing. (Also Read: Drawing Zones in SolidWorks)

We have a simple part shown below (Related Read: Part Description Missing)

The part is detailed in the drawing shown below

In order to drive the dimensions in the model we go to the Annotations tab and select Model Items.

With Model Items selected, we want to select the drawing view and the dimensions to be driven as shown

Notice that the dimensions are black in color, not the usual grey.  By double clicking the black colored dimensions you’ll find you’re able to modify the dimensions. In this case we want to change the dimension to 200mm.

By accepting the changes, modification to the part is successfully applied to all drawing views.