feadude,
A format file is not any special type of file, only one in which the drawing format resides. This can be saved as pattern data, which cannot be edited once imported into a drawing file, ensuring that the user can not modify company standard formats. It also takes up much less file space in your drawing file.
We are limited in our licensing bundles where I work, so programming to automate our drawings is limited. I have created seed files which contain the format patterns and editable text which can be updated using part attributes.