HVAC Component Builder

The Component Builder tool allows you to create custom HVAC components from existing cells that can be used in your drawings/projects.

Accessed from the Custom Tools gallery located in the HVAC ribbon.

With this option, you can open any cell library, create a cell model, draw any custom geometry and use the Component Builder tool to attach an ECClass and add ports to the geometry. You can then place the component in your model using the Place Component from Cell option with all the data and the relationship information intact.

The following dialog opens:

Setting	Description
Discipline	Currently on the HVAC discipline is supported.
Category	Select the category from the list. The category value is actually the Group ID value defined in the HVAC Custom Geometry attribute in the custom class that was created using the Class Editor.
ECClassName	Select one of the component class names from the list. The classes in this list are derived from the HVAC component classes which have the attribute "Hvac Custom geometry" defined in the class editor.
Connect Points	Click the Connect Points button to display the HVAC ConnectPoints dialog. In this dialog, you can define the connection points for the HVAC component.
Defined Connect Points	Displays the Connect Points defined for the component. To remove a point from this list, right-click on the point and select Remove.
Save	Save the changes made in the dialog and close.
Close	Closes the dialog.

Prerequisites

Before you can use the Component Builder function to create custom components, you must first add a new class for the component in the following schemas using the Class Editor application:

...\Configuration\Workspaces\WorkSpace\WorkSets\<Workset>l\Standards\Schemas\OpenPlant.01.08.exschema.xml
...\Configuration\Workspaces\WorkSpace\WorkSets\<Workset>\Standards\Schemas\OpenPlant_3D.01.08.exschema.xml
...\Configuration\Workspaces\WorkSpace\WorkSets\<Workset>\Standards\Schemas\OpenPlant_3D_Supplemental_Modeling.01.08.ecschema.xml

Note: Refer to the Class Editor help for complete details on how to add a class to a schema.

In the new class the following custom attribute must be added:

HVAC_CUSTOM_GEOMETRY

When the Component Builder option is selected, OpenPlant Modeler searches the schema for HVAC classes which have the "HVAC Custom Geometry" attribute defined in the Class Editor as shown below:

For all of the classes which have this attribute, OpenPlant Modeler uses the class name and the Group ID (as shown above) to populate the drop down lists for the ECClassName and Category fields in the Define Device Attributes section of the Component Builder dialog.