Structure & elevations
Once the Studio knows what the building looks like in section, elevations stop being numbers you type. Heads track the deck, pipe drapes with the roof, and obstruction checks have something real to check against.
| What | Where you'll find it |
|---|---|
| Building tools | The BUILDING toolbar group |
| Beam / column / wall / roof / slab | Ctrl+Shift+B · Ctrl+Shift+C · Ctrl+Alt+W · Ctrl+Shift+R · Ctrl+Shift+F |
| Deck & ceiling heights, drawing modes | The gear button in the MODE toolbar group |
| Building defaults & materials | Side panel → Project → Building |
| Detect structure from linework | Tools → Detect Walls / Detect Columns… |
The six-step arc
There is a natural order to building the structure, and the tools are arranged for it:
- Columns — one click each, or Tools → Detect Columns from Walls Linework if the background has them.
- Beams and joists — two clicks each. Open-web bar joists and traced trusses are separate tools; a truss is traced as a section (click the vertices, Enter) and then given a run.
- Roof — trace a footprint, Enter to close, then set the slope. Generate Roof from selection builds one from what you have selected.
- Elevate — Elevate to Roof lifts beams to the roof planes in batches, so you are not doing them one at a time.
- Drape the piping to the roof so runs follow the deck instead of sitting level under it.
- Sprigs — the vertical legs up to the heads, once everything below them is at height.
Walls and slabs
- Ctrl+Alt+W draws a structural wall in two clicks.
- Right-click selected linework → Convert Selected Lines to Walls (measured width) turns the architect's double lines into real walls at their measured thickness.
- Ctrl+Shift+F places a floor slab from two corners. Tools → Show Finished Floor toggles it.
Declaring elevations once
The MODE group's gear button opens the drawing modes — elevation profiles — along with the job's deck and ceiling heights. A profile carries a rule per head orientation:
- uprights, for example, at 2" below deck, tracking a sloped roof plane above them;
- pendents at the ceiling height for that area;
- sidewalls on their own offset.
Pick a mode from the dropdown and every head you place lands at the right deflector height without you typing anything — flat or sloped. Any individual head can still be adjusted afterwards.
For piping run high (so hanger rods stay short), a profile can also carry a manual pipe offset — “run pipe N inches below deck”.
Obstructions
Columns carry obstruction zones; beams, joists, roof planes, ducts and high-bay lights all participate in the coverage and spray checks. View → Show Spray Patterns (Smart Obstruction Detection) draws what each head actually reaches once the structure is in the way, and the 3× and 18-inch rules are evaluated against these objects.
Materials
Building elements take materials and textures — defaults on the Project → Building tab and an override per object. It is cosmetic, but an isometric that reads properly is worth the two minutes on a coordination call.
Sections and elevation views
The section tool (Ctrl+Shift+S) cuts a section mark; Ctrl+3…Ctrl+6 give you front, back, left and right views, and Ctrl+2 an isometric. Elevation flags (AFF or below-deck, with an optional ± prefix) annotate heights on the plan — see Annotation & dimensions.