Appearance
The coordinated 3D model
Everything you validate and commit flows into one place: the coordinated model — the 3D (and 2D) view of the whole structure, with the tools a detailer expects: orbit, section, measure, colour, a material takeoff, and export.
Open it from the Build panel's Coordinate model → button.
The World panel
Down the left is the World panel — the committed knowledge that drives the model. It shows the running fact counts — grid lines, bays, elevations and members — and warns you about anything the world can't yet place (a grid line with no bay path, or a member that isn't plottable yet), so you can see the model's completeness at a glance. From here you can refresh the world (re-read the committed facts), collapse the panel, and:
- Export IFC — download the coordinated model as an
.ifcfile to open in any BIM tool.
For what "committed knowledge" and "facts" mean, see Validation & the world model.
At the top you get the Coordinated model title, a 3D / 2D toggle, and a conflict count if anything still clashes. Below that is the ribbon of tools; a switch rail of category toggles; and dockable panels — the outliner (model tree) and properties.
The ribbon
The ribbon is grouped by function, icon over label.
View & display
| Icon | Tool | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Box | Solid | Solid shaded members. |
| Dashed square | Wire | A wireframe. |
| Scan | X-ray | See-through members, to look inside. |
| Axis | Iso | The standard isometric view (Home). |
| Projector | Persp / Ortho | Toggle a perspective or flat orthographic camera (Num 5). |
| Palette | Color by | Color members by Kind, Grade, Level or Profile. |
When you color by anything other than Kind, a color legend appears so you can read the coding.
Tools
| Icon | Tool | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Ruler | Measure | Measure a distance, an angle, or a gap. |
| Box-select | Section | A section box to isolate part of the model. |
| Slice | Clip | A horizontal clip plane. |
| Rotate | Spin | Auto-rotate the model. |
| Focus | Focus | Frame the current selection (F). |
| Bookmark | Saved views | Save the camera as a named view, or jump to one. |
Output & panes
| Icon | Tool | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | Shot | Save a PNG snapshot of the view. |
| Spreadsheet | Report | Open the material takeoff (see below). |
| Panel-left | Outliner | Toggle the model tree. |
| Panel-right | Properties | Toggle the properties dock. |
| Filter | Filter | Toggle the selection filter. |
| Maximize | Maximize | Hide the docks for a full-width viewport. |
| Fullscreen | Full | Go fullscreen. |
The switch rail
Down the side, category toggles turn whole layers on and off: Beams, Columns, Braces (each with a colored dot), then Grid, Levels, Marks, and Connections (base plates, bolts).
Selecting and inspecting
The model tree (Outliner)
A searchable browser of every object, grouped Kind → Level. Expand a branch, toggle any node's visibility (eye), Show all, or click a node to select it in the 3D view.
The properties dock
Select a member and its details appear: Mark, Type, Grade, Section, Level, Length, Orientation and the sheets it came from. From here you can:
- Isolate or Hide the member,
- select similar — Same profile, Same kind, Same level.
Select several members and you get totals and the centre of gravity. Select nothing and it shows a model summary with total weight.
Navigating in 3D
The viewer uses the standard detailer navigation:
| Input | Action |
|---|---|
| Left-drag | Orbit |
| Middle / right-drag | Pan |
| Scroll | Zoom |
| Click | Select |
| Shift + drag | Box-select |
| Num 1 / 3 / 7 | Front / Side / Top |
| Num 5 | Orthographic |
| Home | Isometric |
| F / Num . | Frame the selection |
| V | Set orbit centre under the cursor |
| H / I | Hide / Isolate |
| Esc | Deselect / exit tool |
A clickable axis gizmo in the corner snaps the camera to the X, Y or Z axis.
Editing in the model
The coordinated view isn't only for looking. With a member selected you can move (re-anchor) it — press M, pick a base grid intersection, then the target — or delete it with Del. When you're measuring, the mode chips (Dist, Angle, Gap) in the status bar let you switch what you're measuring on the fly.
The material takeoff
Click Report for the Material takeoff (ABM) — the advanced bill of materials for the whole model.
It's a table of Mark, Quantity, Profile, Grade, Length, weight per metre and total weight, with grand totals — and an Export CSV button to take it into your own tools. Close it with the × or Esc.
The status bar
Along the bottom: tool hints, the active measure mode and its result, the clash count, and the current selection with its tonnage — so the weight of what you've selected is always in view.
The 2D view
Flip the 2D toggle at the top to see the coordinated model as flat drawings — a plan pane alongside an automatically-derived elevation pane, side by side. It's handy for checking alignment, grids and heights without the perspective.
The selection filter
Open Filter to control what your clicks can pick. You can narrow selection by type (Beams, Columns, Braces — each with a live count), by level (tick the levels you care about, plus a row for members with no level), and by profile (type part of a section size). Reset clears it. It's how you isolate, say, only the columns on Level 2 before selecting.
That's the loop
From here you can go back to any scene, refine it, re-commit, and watch the coordinated model and takeoff update. For a full list of every icon, see the Icon glossary.