diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/.env.dev_duckdb b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/.env.dev_duckdb
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ed6f363
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/.env.dev_duckdb
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+FF_DUCKDB_PATH=.local/incremental_demo.duckdb
+FF_DUCKDB_SCHEMA=inc_demo_schema
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/Makefile b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..256d69d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,112 @@
+# Makefile — DuckDB-only incremental demo (article version)
+#
+# Assumes:
+# - you are in the project root (where profiles.yml / project.yml live)
+# - seeds/ contains seed_events_v1.csv and seed_events_v2.csv
+# - fft CLI is installed and on PATH
+#
+# Usage examples:
+#   make init
+#   make run-v1
+#   make noop
+#   make run-v2
+#   make dag
+#   make test
+
+SHELL := /usr/bin/env bash
+
+# ---- Config (tweak as needed) ---------------------------------------------
+
+ENV            ?= dev_duckdb
+DB_PATH        ?= .local/incremental_demo.duckdb
+SEEDS_DIR      ?= .local/seeds
+ACTIVE_SEED    ?= $(SEEDS_DIR)/seed_events.csv
+
+# Exported env for fft / profiles.yml templating
+export FFT_ACTIVE_ENV := $(ENV)
+export FF_ENGINE      := duckdb
+export FF_DUCKDB_PATH := $(DB_PATH)
+
+# ---- Convenience ----------------------------------------------------------
+
+.PHONY: help
+help:
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Targets:"
+	@echo "  make init     - create local folders"
+	@echo "  make clean    - remove local DB + generated files"
+	@echo "  make seed-v1  - copy v1 seed into place"
+	@echo "  make seed-v2  - copy v2 seed into place"
+	@echo "  make seed     - fft seed using FFT_SEEDS_DIR"
+	@echo "  make run      - fft run (cached, rw)"
+	@echo "  make run-v1   - seed v1 + seed + run"
+	@echo "  make noop     - run again unchanged (should mostly skip)"
+	@echo "  make run-v2   - seed v2 + seed + run (incremental update+insert)"
+	@echo "  make dag      - generate HTML DAG"
+	@echo "  make test     - run tests (adjust selector as you like)"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Config (override like: make run DB_PATH=.local/foo.duckdb):"
+	@echo "  ENV=$(ENV)"
+	@echo "  DB_PATH=$(DB_PATH)"
+	@echo "  SEEDS_DIR=$(SEEDS_DIR)"
+	@echo ""
+
+.PHONY: init
+init:
+	@mkdir -p .local
+	@mkdir -p $(SEEDS_DIR)
+	@echo "Initialized .local/ and $(SEEDS_DIR)/"
+
+.PHONY: clean
+clean:
+	@rm -f $(DB_PATH)
+	@rm -rf site
+	@rm -rf .cache .ff_cache 2>/dev/null || true
+	@rm -f $(ACTIVE_SEED)
+	@echo "Cleaned local artifacts"
+
+# ---- Seed switching -------------------------------------------------------
+
+.PHONY: seed-v1
+seed-v1: init
+	@cp -f seeds/seed_events_v1.csv $(ACTIVE_SEED)
+	@echo "Activated seed v1 -> $(ACTIVE_SEED)"
+
+.PHONY: seed-v2
+seed-v2: init
+	@cp -f seeds/seed_events_v2.csv $(ACTIVE_SEED)
+	@echo "Activated seed v2 -> $(ACTIVE_SEED)"
+
+# ---- fft commands ---------------------------------------------------------
+
+.PHONY: seed
+seed: init
+	@echo "Seeding from FFT_SEEDS_DIR=$(SEEDS_DIR) into DuckDB=$(DB_PATH)"
+	@FFT_SEEDS_DIR=$(SEEDS_DIR) fft seed . --env $(ENV)
+
+.PHONY: run
+run: init
+	@echo "Running DAG (env=$(ENV), cache=rw, db=$(DB_PATH))"
+	@fft run . --env $(ENV) --cache=rw
+
+.PHONY: run-v1
+run-v1: seed-v1 seed run
+
+.PHONY: noop
+noop:
+	@echo "No-op run (should mostly skip if nothing changed)"
+	@fft run . --env $(ENV) --cache=rw
+
+.PHONY: run-v2
+run-v2: seed-v2 seed run
+
+.PHONY: dag
+dag: init
+	@echo "Generating HTML DAG..."
+	@fft dag . --env $(ENV) --html
+	@echo "Open: site/dag/index.html"
+
+.PHONY: test
+test:
+	@echo "Running tests (adjust selector to your project)..."
+	@fft test . --env $(ENV)
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/README.md b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..87959ef
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+# FastFlowTransform project scaffold
+
+This project was created with `fft init`.
+
+What lives here:
+- models/: SQL (`*.ff.sql`) and Python (`*.ff.py`) models.
+  - models/macros/: Jinja SQL macros loaded automatically.
+  - models/macros_py/: Python helpers exposed as Jinja globals/filters.
+- seeds/: CSV/Parquet inputs for reproducible seeds (see docs/Quickstart.md).
+- sources.yml: External tables for source('group','table').
+- profiles.yml: Engine connections; defaults come from docs/Profiles.md.
+- packages.yml: Optional shared models/macros (docs/Packages.md).
+- tests/unit/: YAML specs for `fft utest` (docs/Unit_Tests.md).
+- tests/dq/: Custom data-quality tests for `fft test` (docs/Data_Quality_Tests.md).
+- hooks/: SQL or Python hooks referenced from project.yml (docs/Hooks.md).
+- docs/: Notes plus generated DAG site when using `fft dag --html`.
+
+Next steps:
+1. Update `profiles.yml` with real connection details (docs/Profiles.md).
+2. Add sources in `sources.yml` and author models under `models/`    (docs/Config_and_Macros.md).
+3. Wire packages (optional) in `packages.yml` if you reuse shared    models/macros (docs/Packages.md).
+4. Seed sample data with `fft seed` and execute models    with `fft run` (docs/Quickstart.md).
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/events_base.ff.sql b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/events_base.ff.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a12effe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/events_base.ff.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+{{ config(materialized='table') }}
+
+select
+  event_id,
+  cast(updated_at as timestamp) as updated_at,
+  value
+from {{ source('raw', 'events') }};
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_inline.ff.sql b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_inline.ff.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07e0a0a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_inline.ff.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+{{ config(
+    materialized='incremental',
+    unique_key='event_id',
+    incremental={ 'updated_at_column': 'updated_at' },
+) }}
+
+with base as (
+  select *
+  from {{ ref('events_base.ff') }}
+)
+select
+  event_id,
+  updated_at,
+  now() as written_at,
+  value
+from base
+{% if is_incremental() %}
+where updated_at > (
+  select coalesce(max(updated_at), timestamp '1970-01-01 00:00:00')
+  from {{ this }}
+)
+{% endif %};
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_yaml.ff.sql b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_yaml.ff.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8f9c156
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_events_sql_yaml.ff.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+{{ config(materialized='incremental') }}
+
+with base as (
+  select *
+  from {{ ref('events_base.ff') }}
+)
+select
+  event_id,
+  updated_at,
+  value
+from base;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_eventy_py_incremental.ff.py b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_eventy_py_incremental.ff.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ce04291
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/models/fct_eventy_py_incremental.ff.py
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+from fastflowtransform import engine_model
+import pandas as pd
+
+
+@engine_model(
+    only="duckdb",
+    name="fct_events_py_incremental",
+    deps=["events_base.ff"],
+)
+def build(events_df: pd.DataFrame) -> pd.DataFrame:
+    df = events_df.copy()
+    df["value_x10"] = df["value"] * 10
+    return df[["event_id", "updated_at", "value", "value_x10"]]
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/packages.yml b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/packages.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3046424
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/packages.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+# Packages bring in external models and macros. See docs/Packages.md.
+packages:
+  # - name: shared_macros
+  #   path: "../shared_macros"
+  #   models_dir: "models"
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/profiles.yml b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/profiles.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b2bf65c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/profiles.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+dev_duckdb:
+  engine: duckdb
+  duckdb:
+    path: "{{ env('FF_DUCKDB_PATH', '.local/incremental_demo.duckdb') }}"
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/project.yml b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/project.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b52c58b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/project.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+# Project configuration generated by `fft init`.
+# Read docs/Project_Config.md for the complete reference.
+name: local_incremental_pipeline
+version: "0.1"
+models_dir: models
+
+docs:
+  # Adjust `dag_dir` to change where `fft dag --html` writes documentation (docs/Technical_Overview.md#auto-docs-and-lineage).
+  dag_dir: site/dag
+
+# Project-level variables accessible via {{ var('key') }} inside models.
+# Example:
+#   vars:
+#     run_date: "2024-01-01"
+vars: {}
+
+# Optional project-wide hooks that run before/after the pipeline or per model.
+# See docs/Hooks.md for examples (SQL + Python) and selector usage.
+hooks:
+  on_run_start: []
+  on_run_end: []
+  before_model: []
+  after_model: []
+
+# Optional storage & incremental defaults applied per model name.
+# See docs/Project_Config.md#models for field meanings.
+models:
+  storage: {}
+  incremental:
+    fct_events_sql_yaml.ff:
+      unique_key: "event_id"
+      incremental:
+        enabled: true
+        updated_at_column: "updated_at"
+
+# Optional seed storage overrides (e.g., external locations per seed).
+# See docs/Project_Config.md#seeds for supported keys.
+seeds:
+  storage: {}
+
+# Declare project-wide data quality checks under `tests`. See docs/Data_Quality_Tests.md.
+tests: []
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v1.csv b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v1.csv
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3d7ac58
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v1.csv
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+event_id,updated_at,value
+1,2024-01-01 00:00:00,10
+2,2024-01-02 00:00:00,20
+3,2024-01-03 00:00:00,30
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v2.csv b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v2.csv
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3bc3b4f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/seeds/seed_events_v2.csv
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+event_id,updated_at,value
+1,2024-01-01 00:00:00,10
+2,2024-01-05 00:00:00,999
+3,2024-01-03 00:00:00,30
+4,2024-01-06 00:00:00,40
diff --git a/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/sources.yml b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/sources.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fc75b3e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples_article/local_incremental_pipeline/sources.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+# Source declarations describe external tables.
+version: 1
+
+sources:
+  - name: raw
+    tables:
+      - name: events
+        identifier: seed_events
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 276da9c..ab5d2e1 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "hatchling.build"
 
 [project]
 name = "fastflowtransform"
-version = "0.6.14"
+version = "0.6.18"
 description = "Python framework for SQL & Python data transformation, ETL pipelines, and dbt-style data modeling"
 readme = "README.md"
 license = { text = "Apache-2.0" }
diff --git a/src/fastflowtransform/executors/duckdb.py b/src/fastflowtransform/executors/duckdb.py
index 9b35b1c..7588621 100644
--- a/src/fastflowtransform/executors/duckdb.py
+++ b/src/fastflowtransform/executors/duckdb.py
@@ -41,12 +41,19 @@ def __init__(
         self.con = duckdb.connect(db_path)
         self.schema = schema.strip() if isinstance(schema, str) and schema.strip() else None
         catalog_override = catalog.strip() if isinstance(catalog, str) and catalog.strip() else None
-        self.catalog = self._detect_catalog()
-        if catalog_override:
-            if self._apply_catalog_override(catalog_override):
+
+        # If a catalog override is provided, connect in-memory and attach the file once
+        # under the requested alias to avoid DuckDB's auto-attached filename catalog.
+        self.catalog: str | None = None
+        if catalog_override and db_path != ":memory:" and "://" not in db_path:
+            connected = self._connect_with_catalog_override(catalog_override)
+            if connected:
                 self.catalog = catalog_override
             else:
                 self.catalog = self._detect_catalog()
+        else:
+            self.catalog = self._detect_catalog()
+
         self.runtime_query_stats = DuckQueryStatsRuntime(self)
         self.runtime_budget = DuckBudgetRuntime(self)
         self.runtime_contracts = DuckRuntimeContracts(self)
@@ -128,6 +135,27 @@ def _rows(result: Any) -> int | None:
             rowcount_extractor=_rows,
         )
 
+    def _connect_with_catalog_override(self, alias: str) -> bool:
+        """
+        Recreate the connection in-memory and attach the target DB under the
+        requested catalog alias, so DuckDB does not auto-name it after the file.
+        """
+        try:
+            resolved = str(Path(self.db_path).resolve())
+            # New in-memory connection, then attach the file once under the alias.
+            self.con = duckdb.connect()
+            self._execute_basic(
+                f"attach database '{resolved}' as {_q_ident(alias)} (READ_ONLY FALSE)"
+            )
+            self._execute_basic(f"set catalog '{alias}'")
+            return True
+        except Exception:
+            # Leave the existing connection in place; caller will fall back.
+            with suppress(Exception):
+                self.con.close()
+            self.con = duckdb.connect(self.db_path)
+            return False
+
     def _detect_catalog(self) -> str | None:
         rows = self._execute_basic("PRAGMA database_list").fetchall()
         if rows:
diff --git a/uv.lock b/uv.lock
index b2c7c77..43cfecf 100644
--- a/uv.lock
+++ b/uv.lock
@@ -733,7 +733,7 @@ wheels = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "fastflowtransform"
-version = "0.6.14"
+version = "0.6.18"
 source = { editable = "." }
 dependencies = [
     { name = "duckdb" },