Member Sections and Materials

In the Member Sections Materials option, you can specify the member material, eg, steel, concrete or timber and then choose the section sizes and other related attributes.

The above selections and attributes can also be edited in the Member Property Editor.

Initially all members have no section property applied to them, therefore it is necessary to apply some section properties before analysing.

The most important point to note is that the Member Section Properties area can be used in three different modes, i.e. Member , Global  and Copy To  modes.

Member Mode

Member Mode is the default mode and perhaps the mode that you will use most frequently. In Member mode you can apply and edit section properties on a member-by-member basis.  To do this,

1.Select the member you want to apply or change the section properties on.  You can select a member by,

a)clicking on it in the main frame geometry area, or

b)if you know the member number you wish to edit then you enter the number in the

c)by selecting the member number from the

The selected member is highlighted in 3D member profile in the frame geometry window.  For this reason, it is recommended not to turn on the global 3D member profile  option from the top tool bar while working in this area.

2.Select a section type from the section editor area, i.e. Steel Sections, Concrete and Timber (Rectangular, Square, Tee and Circular Sections), Haunched I & Box Sections or UserSections.  See the Section Property Editing area below

3.Select or define the section you require from the chosen section type

While in member mode all changes made in the section properties editing area are automatically applied to the selected member.  There is no need to do anything further such as assigning these properties.  All changes made affect the current selected member only.

When you select a member in member mode, the current section properties of that member are displayed in the section properties editing area.  Therefore, member mode can be used to investigate the current section properties on members.

Global Mode

Global Mode is used only to change existing section definitions and cannot be used to apply section properties where none are defined.

Global Mode is used to change the section properties on a group of members that have the same section definition applied.  In other words, global mode can be used to change all occurrences of the same section property at once.

Global Mode groups members together that have the same section properties.  Beneath the global mode icon, the drop list indicates how many different member groups have been created, i.e. how many different section properties are currently applied in the frame.

To change section properties while in global mode,

1.Click on the  icon to switch to Global mode. 

2.Select the existing section property, i.e. member group you wish to change.  You can to this by:

a)Selecting a group from the drop list

b)The actual description in the drop list is the section reference text as interpreted by the program.  In this example ‘SEC +6131’ is the steel section reference number in the section database, ‘GR 43’ is the steel grade, while ‘b 0.000 h 0.000’ refers to concrete casing dimensions around the steel section.  When a group is selected the full section property information is displayed in the section property editing area

c)Clicking on a member in the frame geometry area will move to the member section property group associated with that member

All the members in a group are highlighted in red on the screen, i.e. the highlighted members all have the same section size.

3.Change the current section properties using the Section Properties Editing Area

As in Member Mode the changes are applied automatically, however, to all members in the currently selected group.  Once you are finished in Global Mode it is recommended that you return to the Member Mode.

Copy To Mode

This is one of the most powerful editing modes, which is used for copying a section property to a member or group of members in one operation.

The key concept in Copy To mode is that the Section Properties Editing Area becomes the template of information to be pasted onto the members you select.  In this sense the Copy To mode differs greatly from the Member and Global modes in that if you change information in the section properties editing area, you are not changing any existing section properties. 

To use the Copy To mode,

1.Click on the  icon to switch to Copy To mode

2.Set up the required section information in the section properties editing area (template). As you edit the section in the template, members that match the modified template are shown in red.  All other members are shown in black

3.Paste this information onto the frame by selecting member(s) in the frame geometry area.  You can select member(s) by,

a)Clicking on individual members 

b)Windowing a group of members

When you select members the section in the template is applied to the members in black and removed from members in red.  Hence the Copy To can be used to add and remove section properties.

Copy To mode can continue to be used by repeating steps 1 and 2.

Important Note: Bear in mind that when you are in Copy To mode that when you select a member you have changed the section property of that member.  It is vitally important to be aware which editing mode you are in, since haphazardly selecting members while in Copy To mode could disrupt your model.  Remember that in Member and Global modes, changes are made as you edit. In Copy mode changes are only made when you click or select members in the frame geometry area.

Tip! When you are finished using Copy To, move back to Member mode.  Member mode is safer in that when you select a member you are not changing the section property.

You can choose to use these editing modes in your own way and in whatever order you prefer.

Section Properties Editing Area

Steel Sections

The steel section type provides a comprehensive database of structural steel sections.  Select the required steel section type, section size from that type and steel grade from the three drop lists.

There are a number of options which can be applied to the standard steel sections.  There individual toolbars are activated by clicking on the respective icon.

Section Side Profile:  This specifies any specific side profile such as a haunch at each end. See below for further details on how the haunches are specified.

Double Member:  This will specify two of the selected sections to the selected model member.

Concrete Casing:  This will create a concrete casing of the steel section.  The height, width and cube strength of the casing should be specified.

Compound Section:   This option can specify a variety of items that can be added to the original section such as top/bottom plates and secondary sections. For a plate, specify a thickness and an overall width or alternatively a projection beyond the outside of the flange.

A secondary member can be added to the main section, eg, a channel added to the top flange (for example, a crane beam) or a UB or UC added into the web of the main member (for example, a wind portal column fixed perpendicular to a main column).

Cellular Design:  The basic dimensions of the cellular section can be specified such as cellular hole spacing, cellular hole diameter and distance from top of slab to top of opening.  Holes that are close to critical locations can also be filled in automatically.

Do is the diameter of the cell as a ratio of the overall beam depth and S is the cell spacing as a ratio of the cell diameter up to a maximum of 1.95 Do. Alternatively, both dimensions can be entered in millimetres.

Discrete Web Openings:  See section in Member Property Editor.

Section Type:  Specify the type of section required for the member. i.e. UB, UC, RHS etc.

Grade:  Specify the grade of steel used for each member.

Section Dimensions:  This specifies the overall geometry of the chosen section shape.

Haunch Specification: The double haunch option allows you to specify haunch lengths (m) and haunch depths from either end of the member.  End 1 is always the lower node number of the member.  The haunch depths are specified by a H/D ratio, where H is the overall depth of the member (including the haunch) at the node point and D is the depth of the chosen section size.

The lengths of the haunches are measured along the local member axis, however by checking the Measure Haunch on Plan  box the haunches will be measured along the horizontal X-Z plane.  This will obviously only be of influence in non-horizontal members.

The mm  option allows the overall depth of the haunches to be specified in mm, as opposed to an H/D ratio.

The Swap Dim  button simply swaps the haunch length and depth information for the two ends.

The single haunch option differs from the double haunch in that you enter the uniform length of the member from end 1 and end 2.  The haunch depth is specified in the same way as for the double haunch member.

Adding Steel Sections into your database

Steel sections can be added and/or imported into the Steel Sections library by the user. This will permanently add the new steel sections to the steel sections library available on the local computer. This database can be shared with other users if required.

To Add a new steel section to the sections database, see the following technical note - Adding New standard rolled sections into the Sections Database.

To Import a series of new steel sections to the sections database, see the following technical note - Importing New sections into the Sections Database.

Concrete and Timber

This section type provides options to specify regular shaped sections with a particular E (elastic modulus) and G (shear modulus) value.  Although this option is most commonly used for modelling concrete and timber sections, it can also be used to model regular shaped sections of any other material by entering the appropriate E and G value.

To use this section type,

1.Choose one of the regular section types from the

2.Choose a material type from the Steel, Concrete, Sawn Timber, Planed Timber and Regular Timber options.  This has the effect of setting the appropriate E and G values in the text boxes. 

When a timber material is selected further parameters are available regarding timber grade, no. of pieces and service class.  Note that only the rectangular, square and circular section shapes are available in timber. A flitched timber beam can also be specified by giving the number of timber and steel plate members along with the plate grade and size.

3.Select or enter the section dimensions. 

General Haunched I and Box Sections

This section type allows you to model an I or box shaped single haunched member, which tapers from one user defined cross section dimension to another. For normal haunched rolled steel sections it is recommended to use the Steel Sections type as described above. These haunched I and box sections are used for analysis purposes only and not integrated design.

To use the haunched I and Box Sections,

1.Firstly, enter the two cross section dimensions in the Edit DimSet area.

a)Click on the Edit DimSet button

b)Select whether you want to view the input dimensions in an I or Box section format

c)Using the graphic at the bottom left of the screen as a guide, enter one of the cross-section dimensions in the B, H, b and h text boxes

d)Each cross section you enter needs to be saved to the DimSet library. Each cross section must have a unique DimSet Number between 1 and 30. Enter a number that is not current being used. You can use the drop list to view the existing items in the DimSet library.

e)Click on the Save to Library button. The items in the DimSet library are then available for use on any other member.

f)Repeat steps c to e for further cross sections

g)Click on Exit Edit

2.Choose the I-Section or Boxed Section option

3.Choose the cross section DimSet for end 1 and end 2

4.Enter the uniform length of the member from end 1 and end 2

5.Enter the Material E (elastic modulus) and G (shear modulus) values

User Sections

This section type is based purely on the user defined basic section properties of area, inertia, modulus etc. The main principle in successfully using user sections is that they can be saved to a library. Sections can be saved to an open library database in which case the saved user sections become available in all files. Alternatively, sections can be local to the current file only where that saved section can only be used in that file.

If you wish to add the user section so that it is available to all files click on the Edit Open Library User Sections button to open the database.

To add a user section to a library,

1.Enter the basic section properties in the Area, Ix, Iy, J, E and G text boxes

2.Each section in the either the open library must have unique reference number between 1 and 999.  The drop list shows the sections that are currently saved to the open library.  You can use this list to determine what section reference number remains available for use.  Enter an available section number.

3.Enter the name of the section as a descriptor that will appear in the list.

4.Click on ‘Save Data’ icon to save it in the Open Library database. You can add another section using the green + symbol or delete a section using the red X symbol.

5.You can also add the section modulus values Zx and Zy for the major and minor axes or Zx top and Zy top for an unsymmetrical section. These are used to calculate the member stresses. Shear areas and the plastic moment capacity can also be added.

To apply a saved user section to a member

1.Select the relevant member.

2.Select the ‘Open Library User Sections’.

3.Select the saved user section from the drop list.

Note that the ‘Open Library Sections Database’ is saved as a separate file ‘UserSec.SDF’ ('UserSec.DB' from 2022 onwards) in the C:\ProgramData\MasterSeries directory of the local machine. This file can be copied across to other users in the office should you need to share common sections.

User Sections can be saved locally with the file instead of saving them to the Open Library Sections Database, eg, if they are one off sections only being used in the current file. Select the 'Local User Sections' option instead. Follow points 1, 3 and 5 above to add the properties and give the section a name. Note - any section added in the ‘Local User Sections’ is automatically saved with the file without the need to press a ‘save’ button.

If you wish to use the same user section properties on another member within your frame, then use the 'edit and paste' option to copy the properties to the clipboard from a current user section and then paste them on to another member in the frame.