Create assemblies
You can create a library of commonly used assemblies, or bid items, that you can use in all estimating jobs. Assemblies can contain multiple items with different shapes, dimensions, finishes and categories, as well as accessories and parametric assemblies. By adding an assembly to your estimating job, you are actually adding all these items at once.
- Click the Maintenance ribbon tab.
- On the menu, select Estimating > Labor Maintenance > Assemblies.
- In the Select Assembly dialog box, click Add.
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Type a name for the assembly, and click OK.
The Assembly Maintenance dialog box opens.
The summary on top of the dialog box shows the quantity, length, weight, surface area, and work time in man hours for each of the selected items, all of the selected items, all items visible in the job, and the entire job. The summary also displays the pounds per man hour and man hours per ton calculations for the selected items, all items visible in the job, and the entire job.
Use the Find button to find items of a specific shape, material grade, or material dimension, or a particular item in the assembly. For instructions, see Find estimating items.
Use the navigation tree on the left side of the dialog box to only view particular items. For instructions, see View only particular items or pages in the Esimating dialog box.
- Click New to add the first item to the assembly.
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Create a comment item as the
header line of the assembly:
- Set Shape to CO.
- Click the Dimensions field.
- Type a description for the assembly, and press Enter.
- Click Add
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To add more items:
- Click New.
- Define the quantity, shape, dimensions, and other properties for the item that you are adding.
- Click Add.
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To add additional labor and
clips to an item:
- Select the item in the item list.
- Expand the Additional Labor and Clips section.
- Click Edit.
- In the Assembly Item dialog box, click New under Additional Labor or Clips, depending on the type of item you are adding.
- Define the item properties.
- Click Add.
- To close the dialog box, click the Close button (X) in the upper-right corner.
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To add accessories or parametric
assemblies to the assembly:
To
Do this
Add an accessory
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Click the Assembly Maintenance ribbon tab.
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On the menu, select Add Accessory.
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In the Select Accessory dialog box, select the accessory that you want to add.
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Use the check boxes under the accessory list to select if you want to use the finish and category of the original item, or set the category as the accessory description.
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Click Add Selected.
The accessory is added to the assembly.
Add a parametric assembly
- Click the Assembly Maintenance ribbon tab.
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On the menu, select Add Parametric Assembly.
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Double-click the parametric assembly that you want to add.
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If necessary, in the Parametric Assembly - Variables dialog box, set values for the variables.
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Click Calculate Parametric Assembly.
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Click Add Parametric Assembly.
The parametric assembly is added to the assembly.
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- When the assembly is ready, click the Close button (X) in the upper-right corner.
The assembly is now available for all estimating jobs. You can also see the assembly in the Select Assembly dialog box.
You can also create job-specific assemblies. For more information, see Add an assembly.