Existing cuts and fittings broke and transparent elements in model appeared

Question:
There seems to be a problem with a Tekla Structures model. Cuts seem “not to work”, although earlier everything was fine. Also many elements seem to be having representation errors – from one side they look fine, but when the element is rotated, it is “transparent” from the other side? How can I fix the model?

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Answer:
This is probably caused by some solid error that is caused by some cut or fitting. If the model is small, it is relatively easy to find the problem, but for a large model it could take some time and effort.

Here are some steps and things to do in order to repair the model:

1. Make a backup copy of the model for safety, if for some reason the model gets corrupted during the repair process.
2. Try to Diagnose & Repair the model from the Tools menu: Tools -> Diagnose & Repair -> Diagnose Model and Repair Model
3. Try to find if there are any distant objects in the model: Tools -> Diagnose & Repair -> Find Distant Objects. If any are found, try zooming, inquiring or deleting them by using mouse right-click on the item in the list and choosing the option.
4. Try to create a new basic view of the model and see if the problem exists. If you manage to find the "broken element", delete and recreate it.
5. Create a model dump and import it in a new model.
6. If the problem is still there, create a new model and copy all the phases from the damaged model to the new one. Go to Edit -> Copy Special -> From Another Model… and navigate to the damaged model. In the bottom line “Phase numbers”, enter the numbers of phases that have to be copied.

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Copying phases will cause the loss of drawings. No drawings will be copied to the new model.

7. Try to find and fix solid errors. For example the cut part should not share a boundary with the part to be cut. Cut should be slightly bigger to avoid solid errors. 

• Instructions for locating solid errors: View solid errors
• Instructions for fixing solid errors: Unfolding of polybeams - common problems

8. If none of this helped, contact your local support for some additional help.