Before we begin with the procedure of importing elements in IMPACT, we will quickly go through some of the main settings in TBT, their meaning and how to quickly activate/deactivate a few of them to ensure that our saving process.

Note: In the settings, we will use the term UDA which means User Defined Attribute in Tekla. This is the way of adding custom information/properties on an element in the Tekla Model and therefore we can use those UDA in order to transfer the information directly into IMPACT.

• Press the Command to open the Settings

• The following Window will pop out

General

As you can see above the general settings are the first window that comes up when pressing the command Settings.

The general settings are the most important part of the settings as it is the one that decides how the element's main dimensions and properties will be transferred to IMPACT.

For a beginner, the following general settings are proposed. It has been proven that they work properly 95% of the time.

Now, let us explain why those settings are the correct starting point for a TBT user.

Profile Source: This is the way TBT will translate the name of the Tekla Profile. Adding a Numbering prefix before the main dimensions usually helps in understanding the element type. If you use a UDA or another way of naming your profiles in Tekla , then select one of the following options:

Mass and dimensions: When using the recommended settings,we ensure that IMPACT will not make any calculation itself and take the model properties of the tekla elements directly in IMPACT. Those dimension properties work 95% of the time. In a more advanced model and later in your journey with TBT you can experiment with some of the following options:

There are some dimension swaps that might be used for specific element types, but for now keep the recommended settings.

Geometrical Representation: This field has 2 options, the Obj and the IMPACT. When selecting the Obj geometrical representation, we ensure that the picture of an element from the Tekla model will be the same in the IMPACT Project Manager Model View. It is a visual feature that will help you identify the correct elements and give you 99% correct 3D visual of your Tekla model in IMPACT.

Rest of the settings: They are not relevant for this training. During the exercise and after your first mapping option, feel free to play around with some of those and activate, for example taking the Tekla Grid in IMPACT. However, always keep the following 2 unmarked as they have been developed for a specific customer, and are not useful for the general users

Cast-In Materials

In the next tab regarding CIM (Cast-in Materials), you can activate the first box that will ensure that all the embedded items will be transferred along in IMPACT.

IMPORTANT Note: The name of the CIM transferred from Tekla to IMPACT is very important. One of the most difficult tasks is to keep a consistent name of your CIM and RC in your Tekla model (especially when having many different Tekla consultants providing you with different models). If you use the option UDA then you can ensure that the name, description and reference of your CIM will be transferred properly. This is a step you need to discuss further with your Tekla detailers.

For the sake of this training keep the Name source to object and the rest of the fields unmarked.

Reinforcement

Please activate the Reinforcement tab and change the properties as shown in the following picture.

For transferring reinforcement, the procedure is much simpler, as the Country Codes define a unified naming for all RC. The settings above will work for most of the companies. Make sure you review the rest of the options and if you identify that your Tekla reinforcement naming matches one of the other options, select that instead!

Drawings

For the sake of this example, we will not transfer any drawings as there are many unique factors from Tekla that define a successful transfer, but it is worth mentioning it as an option. Keep your boxes unmarked though.

The procedure for transferring drawings is simple.

• Create your pdf drawing files in Tekla
• Place them in a folder in the Tekla model folder
• Fix the following settings to match your Tekla drawing name

You can review your options but for now, keep the Transfer Drawings Box Unmarked.

Other Info

This is a tab that will be very important in your future model mapping in IMPACT. Through this tab you will be able to use any type of UDA from an element and transfer specific properties in the IMPACT field you decide.

Make sure you activate the UDA mapping box as sown below.

For now, you can leave the rest of the table empty, as shown in the picture above. However, it is good to know that any tekla UDA can be mapped to the following IMPACT Fields.

This data can be very useful when using our Project and Production Planning tools.

Other Settings

The rest of the settings tabs will not be explained in this training material as they are either developed for a specific customer or are used for a more advanced procedure. 

Feel free to review them but it is highly recommended that you do not activate any of the functions under the rest of the settings (at least for now).

When your settings are the same as the recommended ones, then please press Save.

Now we can move on to the actual procedure of transferring the elements from Tekla in IMPACT.

Next: Element Transfer Procedure