Steel Detailing | Precast Detailing | Estimation

Author: admin

  • QR code for Trimble Connect

    QR Code for Trimble Connect to be on Every GA drawing.

    Produce Steel only IFC Model, upload to trimble connect.

    Use the following link to download QR Code Generator

    Download QR Code

  • Why aren’t the user defined attributes being defined – in Tekla’s “Open” API

    Why aren’t the user defined attributes being defined – in Tekla’s “Open” API

    If you want to waste time on a poorly documented API (which doesn’t make any sense) I would highly recommend getting on Tekla. I’m documenting this so some poor soul doesn’t waste a day trying to debug this:

    // what’s wrong with this?

  Beam b = new Beam();

  b.SetUserProperty("USER_FIELD_1", "your data");

  b.Insert();

    Do you see the problem? First insert the beam, and then apply the UDA and it should work:

    // it only works AFTER you insert

  Beam b = new Beam();

  b.Insert();

  b.SetUserProperty("USER_FIELD_1", "your data");

    What glorious waste of time trying to work out why it failed!

    But the problem is not with you – the problem is with the API. It fails silently, and the documentation is poor. Hopefully this note saves someone a lot of headaches.

  • How to check if you have a legitimate Tekla Profile using the Tekla Open API

    Our use case?

    1. Detailers copy / paste profiles from structural drawings into a CSV file.
    2. This CSV file is then used to create a model.
    3. It is essential that the profiles are recognisable by Tekla.

    How can we check?

    • Through a data validation directly in Excel. Or
    • By validating the data directly in your code.
    using Tekla.Structures.Catalogs;
// download this dll from Nuget

                public bool CSVProfilesAreCorrect(List<CSVFieldsImplemented> dataRows)
        {
            HashSet<string> csvProfiles = dataRows.Select(row => row.Profile).ToHashSet<string>();
            HashSet<string> teklaProfiles = getAllTeklaProfiles().ToHashSet<string>();

            if (_areCSVProfilesCorrect())
            {
                return true;
            }
            else
            {
                throw new SystemException($"The CSV files have these profiles which don't exist in Tekla: {String.Join(", ", string.Join(", ", csvProfiles.Except(teklaProfiles)))}");
            }

            bool _areCSVProfilesCorrect()
            {   
                // all the csv profiles
                // must be contained in tekla profiles

                return csvProfiles.All(profile => teklaProfiles.Contains(profile));
            }
        }

// and we call it like so:
CSVValidator validator = new CSVValidator(db);

if (validator.CSVProfilesAreCorrect(extractor.CSVRecords))
{
    // do the modelling
}

    Voila! Now it’s hard to make a mistake.

    If you want to get all materials – it’s very similar to the above. Use the CatalogHandler.GetMaterialItems() method along with the materialItem.MaterialName property. The code to actually do that – I will leave as an exercise to the reader.

  • Precast Material Take Off

    Estimate precast concrete panels for your quotes

    Tek1 provides material take off for precast panels.

    Deliverables for Precast MTO

    • Marked up elevation and Plans
    • Panel break ups considering
      • minimization of mould sizes.
      • Transportation constraints
      • Lifting constraints at factory and site.
      • Buildability
    • Concrete volume
    • Painting requirements
    • Reckli requirements
    • Mould requirements
    • Reo Weights
    • Lifters
    • Cast in Plates
    • Grout tubes.
    • Mesh (Not sq m of Mesh, but based of how many sqm of Mesh to cover N panels)
    • Rebar schedule
      • Not every panel is estimated for rebar. Typical panels are calculated and applied across similar.
    • Quick turn around.

    Note

    We do not include ferrules in the take off.

  • CSB Standards / Checklist

    Full Checklist

    Background:

    1. ABC’s entirely production line and jigs are optimised for a specific workflow. DO NOT deviate from their requirements. There is a need to be pedantic because otherwise things won’t work – beams and steel will be wasted, delays will result, and we will be cursed to the high heavens.

    Rules:

    1. Do not edit model.
    2. Do not renumber anything.
    3. Do not rotate ANYTHING.
    4. Do not change the names of drawings. Name of the drawing should be the name of the truss.

    If there are any issues, msg client.

    Rotation and Flipping – check if rotation / flipping has happened

    • Check if any rotations happened. How?
    • (1) Everything with our client works: Left-to-Right. If something is not Left to right – then it may have been rotated. We need to alert our client to this.
    • (2) We have the PDFs. We must check the drawings against the pdfs and note where they are any discrepancies. If there are discrepancies – alert our client. Because Tekla may be rotating the drawing.
    • (3) After we do the drawings – then we should send the PDFs back to the client.

    Blue Angle Issue

    • When dimension beams, dimension just beams. Do not dimension to the end plates. Probably because they are cutting the beams and adding the end plates later. (i.e. their production facility is optimised for this workflow).

    Information

    1. Pink Notes: pink notes in the model which mostly has information like weld types and other information that are not necessary for a detailer.

    Length of Purlins / Girt

    • CSB can handle purlin / girts up to 16m. So you don’t need to question anything under that length.

    Fly-Bracing

    Video Tutorials:

    1.Check diag color diff part marks to have diff colors color start at left

    2.Check degree on rhs end plate

    3.Check 2 diag dim

    4.Check truss depth on section CC

    5.Check section a on left section b on right

    6.Check outrigger on left

    7.Check outrigger plate dim

    8.Check plate edge dim on left and right

    9.Check angle on bottom chord plate when it is inclined

    10.Check all sections views are placed at the bottom

    11.Check no aligned views

    12.Check plate offset on sections from chord

    13.Check no dimension to holes

    14.Dim cleat to first touch point to main part from left

    15.check end plates marked in main view & end plates marked in top view as well

    16.FCB (FLY BRACING CLEAT TO BE CALLED UP ON FRONT VIEW)

    17.When fly bracing (FBCT) is both sides, instead of2 labels slect 2 and label

    18.When cloning check whether same color diags are same part mark

    19.FCBT to be dimensioned from top chord scxxx dim line

    20.Col section scale 12.5

    21.Col section looking towards left always

    22.Col section dim to both sides if plate is bigger than shaft

    23.Don’t change name from shafts

    24.Don’t need to label any plates, just leave as plate

    25.Standard parts do not require drawings

  • Grain Chutes

    Grain Chutes

    Input information was an Inventor model and pdf drawings

    We have extracted the information from inventor, cross checked with pdf drawings, Checked constructurability, Resolved design details so that items can be fabricated at lowest cost.

    These chutes were submitted for approval, and was approved without any issues.

    Eventhough these chutes are for grain transfer, mining projects have similar requirements.

    CHUTES

  • Memo 47: Check the work of your juniors, you’re responsible

    I spoke to a TL re: something that was missed on an MTO. The reason given was that it was a junior who did the work, and that this work is not usually checked.

    • That is not a great answer.
    • Any work done by a junior must be checked until you are confident that you don’t need to check it anymore. And even then, you still need to check occasionally.
    • You are responsible for your junior.

    The Consequences of Bad Work?

    • You will lose the client, and all the work / bonuses which come from that client – whom you threw away before they never came into the door.
    • Bad workmanship is not a joke.

    How to avoid “missing things”?

    • Document it via a checklist: It is much harder to “miss” if you work through a checklist. For example, here is the checklist for Material Take Offs (MTOs): https://www.tek1.com.au/staff-memos/memo-44-formatting-required-for-mtos/

  • Memo 46 – If you don’t have a professional license, or are not an expert: don’t comment.

    Also: Should you charge for your opinion?

    Someone asks you for a professional opinion on an area that is not your area.

    1. Should you give an opinion?
    2. Should you give your opinion for free?
    3. Should you give an opinion and charge for it?

    Rule 1: If it is not your area of expertise: don’t give your opinion

    • Do not give an opinion on something that is not your area, or not your responsibility: if you give the correct advice, then you will not gain, but if you give the wrong advice, they will use this as an opportunity to charge you (or back charge you).
    • In this country, you need a license in order to give engineering advice. If you give engineering advice without a license:
      • (i) there are potential criminal issues
      • (ii) there are potential liability issues (huge costs and penalties for the firm).

    Rule 2: If it is your expertise: make sure you charge for it

    • We charge for our expertise.
    • And we don’t charge by the hour.
    • I have made available a “design review” fee. Put in your number and that’s what the client will get.

    Case Study:

    [To be inserted]

  • Memo 45 – Insurance and Admission of Errors

    We have professional indemnity insurance at Tek1.

    As part of our policy – on anything which may give rise to a claim you are not allowed to admit liability or mistakes. In fact, people will try to get you to admit – to make you the person at fault – when it could be the system at fault, or themselves:

    1. Suppose there are 120 emails exchanges and conversations with engineers + architects over 3 weeks. Phone conversations, markups, various revisions.
    2. You miss one email.
    3. Then an engineer will say: “Aha! It’s your fault” when there is an error.
    4. Is it really your fault? Or is it the fault of the engineer / architect / builder to have designs so bad, that they necessitate umpteen emails going back and forth: and revisions on top of revisions. Perhaps it may be your fault, but it becomes an argument.

    If you admit to mistakes then you lose insurance coverage. You will be violating your own insurance contract.

    Let the insurers debate the matter.

    Insurance: Court Cases

    Leave it to the insurers to decide or argue this. They are looking for an “easy admission”. Judges are not welders or fabricators. They don’t know how builders can send you a million emails / revisions due to their bad designs – that does not matter if you “admit” something. You’re probably wrong anyways.

    Let the insurance company handle it.

    • It’s very easy to miss mails and emails.
    • Fighting things out in court is super expensive.
    • If you miss an email / letter – then in a few months, the courts could “garnish” your bank account. This means they take money out of your account while you are asleep at night. Almost like a theif.