Area

Common Functionality

Calculates the surface area for any part of the model.

Add Elements has the following drop-down menu options:


Current Element	Adds the current element.
Element Members	Adds all members of the current element individually.
Members with Tubing	Adds all members plus the tubing elements also.
Current Collection	Adds all elements as listed in Collections.
Graphical Pick	You are prompted to graphically pick elements in the 3D view.
Graphical Selection	Using the standard graphical select mechanism, this option adds all currently selected elements.
Within Area	Prompts you to graphically pick an area then adds all elements within that area to the Selection Grid.
Within Volume of CE	Everything enclosed within the specified/selected area/zone.

Named Element

A known element can be typed in the Named Element box and applied to the Selection grid by clicking Add.

Selected Elements

The Selected Elements grid is a multi select list of elements. Right-click on a selection to display a pop-up menu with the following options:


Remove Selected Element(s)	Removes all selected rows from the grid. Recalculation is necessary.
Remove All Elements	Remove everything from the grid.
Enhance in 3D View	Highlights in colour the selected element.
Unenhance in 3D View	Unhighlights the selected element.
Navigate to	It is a toggle, which when ON navigates to the selected element in the explorer, making it the new current element.
Export to Excel	Allows you to save the grid data in an excel file. The file is automatically named using the time and date with relevant text Volume/Surface/Weight. saved in the AVEVA_DESIGN_USER folder.
Print Preview	Allows you to preview and print the calculated data.

Settings

The lower part of the windows has options for specific Mass Property Settings. The main Settings determine if the calculations are to consider negatives (holes/cut-outs):

Negatives

The following options are available from the Negatives drop-down list:


Consider (Net)	Considers all holes when calculating the mass property.
Ignore (Gross)	Ignores all holes when calculating the mass property.
Ignore (Rough)	Ignores all holes when calculating the mass property. The specific meaning of ‘rough’ as opposed the ‘gross’ is that rough is a quicker calculation. It is sometimes useful for large amounts of data or components with complex shapes.

A good example of choosing to use Consider(Net) or Ignore(Gross) is a steel plate panel with a hole, where a ‘net’ calculation gives the finished weight; but a ‘gross’ calculation gives the weight of the panel before the hole is cut.

Surface of

Element Only verses Element plus members.

The Surface of is mainly to allow reporting of elements that may have geometry, and own other elements that also have geometry. A good example is a steel section (SCTN) that owns a fitting (FITT).