> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.openbrim.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.openbrim.org/templates/cadd/container-cadd.md).

# Container

A **Container** groups several CAD shapes together so they can be moved, rotated, scaled, and styled as a unit. Inside the container the shapes keep their individual properties; the container adds an outer layer of position, rotation, and visibility on top of all of them.

Use a Container when:

* You're drawing a repeated detail (a typical bearing pad assembly, a typical anchor bolt arrangement, a typical drainage pickup) and want to place several copies — you draw it once inside a Container, then place container instances at each location.
* You need a closed shape through arbitrary points that can't be expressed as a Rectangle, Circle, or other primitive — put the points inside a Container and set IsClosed = true.
* A logical group of shapes (everything that makes up "Pier 3 footprint", everything that makes up "Wingwall A elevation outline") should travel together as you re-layout the sheet.

## Geometry

**Name:** Identifier within the parent CAD document. Must be unique.

**Level:** Default level applied to shapes inside the container that don't override it. Setting a level on the container is a quick way to assign a whole detail to one layer without setting it on every child.

**Center X / Center Y:** Position of the container's local origin in the parent document's coordinate system. All children are drawn relative to this origin.

**Rotation:** Rotation applied to all children about the container's origin.

**Scale:** Uniform scale factor applied to all children.

**Is Closed:** When true, the container is treated as a closed region. Children that form a continuous polyline are connected end-to-end, allowing the region to be filled or hatched.

## Editing

**Move the group:** drag the container's origin handle to translate every child together.

**Rotate the group:** drag the rotation handle to rotate every child about the container origin.

**Edit a child shape:** double-click a child to enter the container and edit individual shapes inside; press Escape to return to the parent context.

**Add a shape to the container:** drop a new shape while inside the container's edit context. Shapes added at the parent level can also be moved into a container after the fact.

## Notes

Containers can nest — a Container can contain other Containers. Use sparingly; deeply nested containers can be hard to navigate when you need to edit a deeply nested shape.

When the parent CAD document is alignment-driven, every shape inside the container is bent by the alignment as if it were drawn directly in the parent. The container itself doesn't change the alignment behavior — it just lets you transform a group of shapes as one.

If you find yourself copying the same group of shapes across many CAD documents (a typical bearing detail, a typical drainage detail), consider promoting the group to a project-level reusable detail rather than recreating it as a Container each time.


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