The webinar Productivity hacks for Diamonds can be watched on-demand
Key takeaways from the webinar
Geometry
- Use Design Types to classify the different elements in your model
- Elements belong to a Design Type can be easily selected with CTRL key
- Use CTRL + SHIFT to add or substract other Design Type elements to the selection
- If you have selected elements with different properties (e.g. different spring support value), a lock will appear in the dialog window to protect unwanted modifications:
- Parameters with common value can be modified as is
- For parameters with different values, you need to consciously open the lock to enter the new value and override existing values
- Easily select elements with similar or equal properties via
- menu ‘Select‘ (more general selection)
- select single element > right mouse button > menu to selected other elements with identical properties (granular selection)
- On a large selection of elements: before you releasing the selection (clicking anywhere in the background), wait and think. You have to ask yourself: what other useful things can I do with this selection?
- Use templates to store your preferred parameter values
- Going from 2D to 3D, can be done by either
- Drawing all walls, one by one
- Creating a smart selection of elements and using the Translation function
- When the model is upside down
- Click with right mouse button on the coordinate system XYZ in right bottom corner to return to the default 3D view
- If you have trouble zooming in
- View > Perspective > Orthogonal view
- [Good practice] Avoid narrow openings for the mesh to go through. It is better to split up plates in smaller plate elements by creating a closed contours.
- If larger plates do not split up correctly, use the projection function.
Loads
- [Good practice] Remove empty load groups – these are load groups without any loads on the structure. It will reduce memory consumption and lead to a faster transfer of results.
- If you experiencing trouble defining the surface loads on bars, in particular the recognition of the surface, e.g. wind on walls/roof: use the projection function.
- Use linked load groups to reduce the number of load combinations and therefore speed up the analysis
- If you make a mistake in defining the load value, most people try to adjust the loads via the data table:
- In 90% of cases the fastest way is to delete the load and add it again.
- 10% exception: use the scale function to modify the value.
Results
- You can temporarily hide the results by simply clicking on the result button itself (e.g. deformation dy)
- Section cut lines:
- Adjust singles section lines via right mouse button: divide/translation …
- Use Generate cut lines for model to cut whole model at one at certain X/Y/Z plane
- Create a custom window configuration to quickly get an idea of what rebar net would be suitable, without really adding any practical reinforcement.
- To add practical reinforcement in plates, use the practical reinforcement tool
- In the cracking calculation, you can choose between
- theoretical reinforcement,
- practical reinforcement,
- theoretical+practical reinforcement
