Calculating parameters in a schedule

- [Instructor] As we can now see, we aren't stuck with the out of the box parameters. So it makes sense that, if we can add our own parameters we can also add our own formulas to them. What I'd like to do in this video is calculate tonnage of steel. Under projects, click open. Browse to where you're keeping your exercise files or open up a model that you want to calculate tonnage in. Click open. Let's go to the view tab.

Click the schedules drop down and click schedule quantities. Let's scroll down to structural framing and then click okay. Let's find family. Let's find type. We definitely need this next one, length. I like to throw account in there 'cause that's just the way I am.

Now the next two we got to make up. Remember last time we went to manage, then we went to project parameters. Well we could make a project parameter in this dialogue here and the good thing is it knows it's going to be a structural framing project parameter. So click on the new parameter button here. For the name let's call it weight. For the discipline, common. The type of parameter wants to be a number. I'd like to group the parameter under structural.

Let's make it a type parameter. Click okay. Now notice that when we made it we didn't have the allocate directory. So if we click the edit button, over here, here's how we can allocate it to a category. But it's already done for us because it knows it was in a structural framing schedule. Now click the add calculated parameter button. For the name let's call it total weight in tons.

Discipline we'll keep it a common. The type I want to keep it at number but for the formula if you click into here you can click the builder button, I want to grab length. Then hit okay. Shift+8 will throw in your little times asterisks. Click the builder button again. Length times weights. Now to convert it to tons, I'm going to space bar, forward slash space bar.

I'm going to type in 2000 feet. I'm going to click okay. Let's go to the sorting and grouping tab. Sort by type. Let's make sure we have grand totals and we don't need to itemize every instance. Let's head on over to the formatting tab this time. Select total weight in tons. And make sure instead of no calculation we calculate totals.

And I think we're good, let's hit okay. The problem is we don't have our weights filled in but we can do that now. For my weight I'm going to type in 10 and I'll show you where I'm gettin' these numbers from in a second. This change will be applied to all elements. Okay good, I want that, hit okay. Now for our 12 by 26, type in 26, hit okay. Our 14 by 30, guess what we're going to put in there, 30.

Hit okay, it's going to add 'em up. So, there you go, that's how you calculate total weight in tons. That's how you add a calculated parameter.