Using the Materials Editor

Open the Materials Editor by clicking the Materials Editor button on the INSUL toolbar.

It can also be opened from the main menu by selecting: Tools > Materials Editor.

Closing the Materials Editor

The Materials Editor may be closed either by clicking the OK or Cancel buttons or the exit button at the top right-hand corner of the form.

Selecting the OK button will save any changes made to the Material Files and will reset the INSUL model so that the changes appear immediately for modelling. Because of this it is suggested to save a model before opening the Materials Editor.

Selecting Cancel or Exit will close the Editor without saving any changes. The existing INSUL materials files will not be updated.

Toolbar

The tool bar offers quick access to the most common functions used with the Materials Editor.

	Item	Notes
	Undo/Redo	Undo or Redo an action
	Change region	Changes which materials and products are displayed in INSUL based on the regions list. This can also be done using the settings menu
	Add	Creates a new blank item to the user list of the currently selected material type (e.g., Material, Glazing, Absorption etc)
	Copy to Custom list	Duplicates an existing item. Select an existing item then click the copy button. A new item will be added to the user list of the same material type. Items from both the INSUL and User lists can be duplicated
	Delete	Deletes the selected item
	Import/Export	Import or export a user material
	Print	Creates a printout of all the items currently shown in the list on the left including all the information shown on the right

Tabs

The tabs along the top of the Material Editor window are to select the various item categories for materials.

Type	Use
Material	Materials can be used as Panel Layers in an INSUL model
Profile	Profile allows custom geometry for non-flat materials such as corrugated metal composite steel floor trays
Glazing	Allows various glazing panes to be created either as float glass or laminated glass
Floor Cover	This can be added to floors and ceilings
Absorption	Insulating materials used in cavities such as fibre glass or mineral wool
Core	Used for composite materials such as insulated panels with a polystyrene core between two sheets of thin steel
Stud	Allows for custom stud dimensions to be quickly recalled when modelling

Items list

The list on the left of the Materials Editor window shows all the items on both the INSUL and User lists for each item category. The list can be toggled between the INSUL and User lists by clicking on the relevant tab above the list.

The up and down arrows at the base of the list on the left-hand side will adjust the position of the selected item in the list. The order of the materials in the Materials Editor is the same as in INSUL

Active regions

The list of countries at the bottom of the window indicates the regions that the item is visible on.