A Welded member is an assembly consisting of parts and connection assemblies. Our Welded Member library feature is where we supply an extensive parametric library of welded:

• Beams with end connections
• Columns with various connections
• Frames with various connections
• Stairs complete with base connections, welded treads, folded plate treads
• Stair Stringers with a base connection and tread locations
• Handrailing - straight, stair sloped continuous or discontinuous
• Trusses - Horizontal and Sloped with end connections and purlin connections
• Rafters
• Ladders
• Conveyor Modules
• Conveyor Trestles
• Purlins, Girts, Floor Joists, Facias
• Bracing and Fly Bracing
• Concrete Panels

The philosophy of a library is when you choose an item from it, minimal changes are required. Changing 10% or less is faster than starting from scratch. With SOLIDWORKS parametric behavior, suppression, unsuppression and equations, we have automated a number of the welded members to automatically update. NOTE: All items in the library have detailed drawings behind them. So when the library item is inserted, so are all of its detailed drawings ready for a quick update and then fabrication.

Everything that is stored in the library can be viewed from the Library Manager. Add New items to the library manager, remove them, modify them and know what is in your library with smart library filters and model types.

When the delete key is selected in SOLIDWORKS, the assemblies and components that are selected are only removed from SOLIDWORKS. The files still remain, our feature removes the associated assembly’s, component files, drawing files and folders, backs them up and removes them from the project. It is always good to do a little house keeping when using SOLIDWORKS since we use a lot of files and insertion from a library tends to insert lots of completed files very fast.

The Copy Welded Member feature turns your project into a library. By selecting an existing welded Member item in a project, then select an Origin, Multiple Sketch Segments and or sketch, the copy feature will create new instances of the welded member to that location. NOTE: A new instance is a new completely automated file name throughout all of its components and drawings. A real bonus of this feature is that if you have a similar welded member in another project that was not put in your library for some reason, it can be copied simply by using SOLIDWORKS to insert the member into your current zone and Copy Welded Member. No need to move or rename any files. After the copy then just delete the assembly from your zone and continue.

The Duplicate Welded Member feature allows an existing welded Member to be placed similarly to Copy, but a second, third, fourth etc., instance is inserted. The benefit of this feature is that if one instance is changed the other welded member instances are as well.

When you have something that is not in your library and needs to be modelled and detailed from scratch, this feature inserts a new Welded Member assembly and sub component ready for modelling. Different new Welded Members can be created to form templates.

So you have this project and it is big, your library is ready to fill it and you want to work on something else. This feature gives you the flexibility to be in 2 places at once. It collects all of the sketch segments in a driving sketch ready for assignment of different types of welded members from the library. Once the assignment has been completed by the user (assignment of which welded member on which sketch segment), the feature will populate the project one member at a time and suppresses the item after insertion to speed up the process. Imagine being able to let it populate the project without you sitting in front of your PC. Then after it is complete, unsuppress and start updating and modifying... This feature is one of the most powerful in Steel Designer Pro. It is a set and forget process that can exponentially increase the speed of structural project creation.

We have placed a number of shortcuts which filter the library for you to speed up the search for particular welded member items in the library as you insert them into your project. Below is a sample of some of the items supplied by our library for you to use in your projects.

Our Automated filing system can be used for the marking of your Welded Member Drawings or alternatively, you can run your own marking system over the top of the filing system. This gives you flexibility to Mark your Welded Items the way you want.