Material - Whole Structure dialog box

Used to define, manage, and assign materials used in the STAAD.Pro input file. The Isotropic tab is used for defining isotropic materials and assigning them to members and elements. The Orthotropic 2D tab is used for defining materials with different properties in two dimensions and assigning them to members and elements.

Setting

Description

Material list

All materials that have been defined for the model are listed here. Select the Isotropic or Orthotropic 2D tab to display materials which exhibit those directional properties.

We may specify Materials in two ways. We may first create a material tag and then select the members or elements to which this tag is applied. Alternatively, we may first select the members or elements and then specify a material to be assigned to the selected items. In the second case, a new material specification is created along with a material tag.Please note that the Assign button becomes active if you have already selected the members or elements to which the material tag is to be applied.

Highlight Assigned Geometry

When this box is checked and we click on a material tag in the Material dialog box, members that have been assigned the material tag will appear highlighted in the structure window. For example in the previous figure, if we click on the STEEL material tag, all steel members will be highlighted.

Create

When the Isotropic tab is selected, clicking Create opens the Isotropic Material dialog, which is used to add a new isotropic material and properties to the STAAD.Pro input file. When the Orthotropic2D tab is selected, this button opens the 2D Orthotropic Material Property dialog, which is used.

Edit

Opens the Isotropic Material dialog or the 2D Orthotropic Material Property dialog, which can be used to edit the properties for the currently selected material (the name field is inactive when editing).

Delete

Deletes the currently selected material from the list.

Tip: If you accidentally delete one of the predefined materials, they can still be added using the Create button and selecting the predefined material name from the drop-down list.

Assignment Method

The options under the Assignment Method are used to assign material tags to members and elements.First select a material tag from the Materials dialog box.Use one of the following assignment methods to apply this material: Assign To Selected Beams, Assign To View, Use Cursor To Assign or Assign To Edit List.

Option	Description
Assign To Selected Beams	To assign a material to selected members or elements, first select the material tag from the Materials dialog box. The selected material is highlighted.Then select the members or elements to which this material is to be assigned.This is done by going to the Select menu, then choosing the appropriate cursor option.Select the desired members or elements using the cursor.When all desired geometry is selected, click the Assign To Selected Beams radio button, then click the Assign button. Note that the label for this button changes depending on whether members or elements are selected.
Assign To View	To assign a material to all members or elements in a view, first select the material tag from the Materials dialog box.The selected material is highlighted.Select the Assign To View radio button, then click the Assign button.All members or elements in the structure are assigned this material.
Use Cursor To Assign	To assign a material to members or elements using the cursor, first select the material tag from the Materials dialog box.The selected material is highlighted.Select the Use Cursor To Assign radio button, then click the Assign button. The button will appear depressed and the label will change to Assigning. Use the appropriate cursor (from the Select menu) to assign the selected material to the individual members or elements. Click on the Assign button again to finish.
Assign To Edit List	To assign a material using a typed list of member or element numbers, first select the material tag from the Materials dialog box.The selected material is highlighted.Select the Assign To Edit List radio button, then type the list of member or element numbers and click the Assign button.

Assign

Assigns the material per the selected assignment method.

Closes the dialog.