In Altium’s documented ECAD-MCAD workflow, ECAD defines harness wiring and topology, MCAD routes the harness in 3D, and CoDesigner returns physical length data to the ECAD Harness Layout Drawing. A routed harness can also appear in a multi-board assembly with PCB and enclosure geometry. The key limitation: the return sync does not create harness topology in ECAD, so define it in the Harness Layout Drawing before syncing back.
What harness co-design synchronizes
The workflow separates electrical definition from physical routing. Altium uses a Harness Wiring Diagram (*.WirDoc) for the initial schematic or wiring diagram. Its logical connectivity is transferred to a Harness Layout Drawing (*.LdrDoc), where the physical implementation—such as wires, cables, crimps and connectors—is defined. The ECAD layout editor does not define the harness’s three-dimensional geometry; that work happens in MCAD.
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CoDesigner transfers harness information to MCAD so the harness can be routed in 3D. In the forward direction, that payload includes connectors, splices, from-to connectivity and harness topology: the connection points and the wire or cable sets passing through them. On the return sync, physical lengths for wires, cables and harness segments are sent to the ECAD Harness Layout Drawing for documentation and bill-of-materials work. See Altium’s Synchronizing a Harness Design Project.
How the harness fits a multi-board assembly
A harness is not limited to a standalone routing exchange. Its routed 3D model can be synchronized as part of a multi-board assembly alongside mechanical enclosure parts. This lets the assembly workflow account for the harness together with board placements and surrounding mechanical geometry. Altium’s CoDesigner overview documents multi-board assembly synchronization for PTC Creo and SOLIDWORKS; that support statement should not be extended to every MCAD platform or every CoDesigner feature. See the Altium MCAD CoDesigner overview.
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Supported MCAD endpoints and prerequisites
| MCAD endpoint | Minimum CoDesigner version documented for harness sync | Additional requirement |
|---|---|---|
| PTC Creo | 3.5 or later | No additional companion software requirement is stated in the harness documentation. |
| SOLIDWORKS | 3.6 or later | Routing Electrical is required; Altium identifies it as included in SOLIDWORKS Premium. Microsoft Excel must also be installed to read harness connectivity information. |
These are the documented harness-support combinations in Altium’s current technical documentation, not a guarantee that every customer installation has the feature. Availability depends on the Altium solution and installation, so verify the specific ECAD client, CoDesigner add-in and MCAD versions against Altium’s current compatibility information before selecting an endpoint. Altium says other MCAD platforms may receive support in future updates, which is not a promise of present support.
Resolve the topology caveat before return sync
Do not assume that routing the harness in MCAD will construct the corresponding topology in ECAD. Altium states that CoDesigner does not build harness topology in the ECAD Harness Layout Drawing after synchronization back from MCAD. The topology therefore needs to be specified in that ECAD document before the return sync. This is the critical planning step if the goal is to bring routed physical lengths back into an ECAD harness project.
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Preflight checklist for a working handoff
- Confirm the ECAD side. Check the ECAD client and installed CoDesigner add-in version.
- Confirm the MCAD endpoint. Verify the application and version meet the documented minimum: Creo with CoDesigner 3.5 or later, or SOLIDWORKS with 3.6 or later for harness synchronization.
- Check entitlement and installation. Confirm the customer’s Altium solution includes the required capability and that the relevant feature is available in the actual installation.
- For SOLIDWORKS, verify prerequisites. Ensure Routing Electrical is available and Microsoft Excel is installed for reading harness connectivity information.
- Prepare the ECAD harness layout. Define the required topology in the Harness Layout Drawing before synchronizing back from MCAD.
- Set the intended scope. Decide whether the work needs only harness layout and length exchange, or a multi-board assembly containing board placements, enclosure geometry and the harness model.
Keep adjacent compatibility claims in scope
Altium’s component-linking documentation describes separate constraints for linking components between ECAD and MCAD, including supported Altium clients and workspaces and an exclusion for Autodesk Fusion from MCAD-to-ECAD component linking. That is a component-linking limitation, not evidence that Fusion is unsupported for all CoDesigner functions. Do not use it to infer harness or multi-board support. See Linking Components Between ECAD and MCAD.
Altium’s technical documentation establishes workflow details and stated prerequisites; it does not provide independent vendor comparisons or quantified claims about time savings, error rates or design outcomes. Treat compatibility as a current, product-specific statement and check the live documentation for the exact installation you plan to use.
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