It's Show Time!
Multiframe will be on display at the Australasian Structural Engineering Conference (ASEC) in Brisbane from 30th April to 2nd May 2001. Come and visit us at Stand #17 for a sneak preview of the new Multiframe Version 8.0 and its unique Automation technology.
ASEC is one of the premier events on the conference calendar for the structural engineering profession in Australia and New Zealand and features workshops and papers on all aspects of structural engineering.
Multiframe Automation Debuts
Every so often, something genuinely new comes along that really changes the way we work. It happened with the introduction of AutoCAD in the early 1980's and again with the introduction of graphical structural programs in the early 1990's. Since then, improvements in engineering design software have been incremental rather than revolutionary. We think, and hope that you will agree, that version 8 of Multiframe and it's new Automation technology, provides a new, dramatic improvement to the way we do structural design.
Multiframe Automation is a new open architecture approach to structural software that lets you prepare calculations and drawings in Excel, Word or AutoCAD, and dynamically access any and all of the design data you need directly from the 3D Multiframe model. In addition, we have upgraded the visualisation capabilities of Multiframe so that it now uses the latest OpenGL 3D rendering capability. This allows you to sort and slice your structural model and make transparent those portions of the model which are of less interest. This ÒX-RayÓ vision lets designers cut through the complex data to focus on key areas of interest.
VBA (Visual Basic for Applications)
The core technology behind this new advance is the Microsoft COM (Component Object Model) interface and its associated VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) macro scripting system. While the acronyms may be a bit cryptic, the scripting itself is simple and provides a familiar equation style that can be easily understood by engineers. Microsoft has adopted VBA as the standard method of automating repetitive tasks in Microsoft Office. AutoDesk have recently added VBA support to AutoCad 2000 and VBA is also being supported by numerous other programs used by engineers including Visio, MathCad and more.
What's in it for me?
The practical outcome of Automation technology in Multiframe is that engineers can now write design calcs and macros in Excel which directly access structural section properties, results from analysis, geometry information and any other data that can be viewed in Multiframe. In Microsoft Word, a user can prepare a design template document, and have it filled out automatically by data from a Multiframe model. It's even straightforward to have multiple documents generated from a range of Multiframe structural models. In AutoCad, a user can automatically generate a drawing from a Multiframe model, or alternatively, generate a Multiframe model dynamically, directly from drawing data in the AutoCad model.
Included with Multiframe version 8 are a range of sample files for Excel, Word, Access and AutoCAD. This lets you quickly get up to speed and provides a sample template which can be easily modified to suit your particular requirements. We expect that in future, both Formation Design Systems and other companies will be offering add-on design components which use the Multiframe Automation technology.
Read and Write Microstran and SpaceGass files
In keeping with our approach to make the Multiframe system as open as possible, Multiframe now reads and writes Microstran archive and SpaceGass text files. This means you can use Multiframe's Automation capabilities even on files created using those programs. If you choose to cross-grade from another program to Multiframe, we protect your existing investment in data and leave you the option of returning data to those systems should you require it. If you collaborate with others who use these programs, you can always export your models to their preferred format.
OpenGL Rendering
While it's useful to have automation tools, which are especially useful on larger and repetitive structures, it's also equally important to be able to quickly visualise if your model is correct and which parts of the model are critical from a design standpoint. The new support for OpenGL rendering in version 8 helps engineers do this by providing rendered 3D views complete with colour coded members, transparency and real time rotation - all operating at high speed, even on large models. This augments Multiframe's existing clipping and masking capabilities.
When combined with the Search and Selection functions included in Multiframe's Automation interface, this lets you find a group of members using any criteria, and immediately select them and make the rest of the model transparent around them. The result is a remarkably fast and easy way to manage your design data.
Multiframe Subscription Program
This substantial upgrade to Version 8 of Multiframe is being provided free of charge to all members of the Multiframe subscription program. This program delivers twice yearly updates to all of the programs in the Multiframe suite. Subscriptions renewals can be made by emailing info@formsys.com.
New Stadium Takes Shape With Multiframe
In the design office
of Dr Wayne Place at NC State University in Raleigh, North Carolina,
innovation in structural design takes pride of place. One recent
example of this has been his investigations into an optimal design for
a new multi-purpose arena at nearby Shaw University.
The 12,000-square-meter Wellness Center hosts all of the sports medicine, sports administration, gym classes, and intercollegiate sports activities for the University. At the heart of the center is a basketball and multipurpose arena covered by a roof spanning 70 meters. The roof is a steel network structure of an innovative geometry designed to admit highly controlled natural light for illuminating activities of the arena interior.
Multiframe was used to generate, visualize, and perform preliminary structural evaluation of a variety of alternative geometries for the structure and then was used to do a detailed, multistage, structural optimization of the final network geometry.
