To make a bill of materials in Advance Steel, number the model, open the BOM Templates palette (Home tab or Output tab > Documents panel), pick a category on the left, like Assembly Lists or Parts Lists, and click the list you want. The report opens in its own window. Save it, then click Export to get an Excel or PDF file you can send to anyone.
The steps are the same for every list. Below I go through them once with the assembly list, then show the shipping list, beam list and saw list, plus the problems you might run into.
Where are the BOM templates?
Home tab > Documents panel > BOM Templates palette:
Or Output tab > Documents panel > BOM Templates palette:
The palette has ready-made templates for assembly lists, beam lists, bolt lists, saw lists and more. It can look a little different if your Advance Steel is set up for a country other than the US.
How do I make an assembly list?
- Open the BOM Templates palette.
- Click Assembly Lists on the left. The templates show in the middle.
- Click Assembly List.
The list opens in a new window. The counter at the top shows how many pages the report has, and the green arrows page through it.
How do I save a BOM?
Click Save at the top left of the report window. By default the file goes in the BOM folder inside the project folder.
It’s saved as an .RDF file. Only Advance Steel can read RDF, so for anyone else you need to export it.
How do I export a BOM to Excel or PDF?
- Click the green Export button at the top left of the report window.
- Pick the format from the Export Format list, like Excel or PDF, and click OK.
- Choose a folder and file name and click Save.
- Repeat for any other formats, then close the report window.
How do I open a saved BOM again?
Open the Document Manager (Home tab > Documents panel) and expand Lists > Up to Date. Click the list to preview it.
Only lists saved as RDF show up here. If you only exported to Excel or PDF, the list won’t be in the Document Manager.
How do I make a shipping list?
The shipping list shows the total weight and center of gravity of each piece that ships. That’s what the yard and the erector want for loading and picks. It’s in the Assembly Lists category.
Click it, and the report opens the same way as the assembly list. Save and export it the same way.
For more on why center of gravity matters, see center of gravity in Advance Steel.
How do I make a beam list?
Go to Parts Lists > Beam List. It’s the list you’d send to a supplier to order material.
How do I make a saw list with pictures?
Go to Parts Lists > Saw List Pictures. It lists every member that needs to be sawed, with a picture of each cut.
What if my BOM is empty or wrong?
- The list is blank or parts are missing. The model isn’t numbered, or it changed after numbering. Run numbering again, then make the list.
- Parts are in the wrong list. Check their model role.
- The list isn’t in the Document Manager. It wasn’t saved as RDF. Make it again and click Save.
- Weights look off. Check the material and section of the parts in the Model Browser.
If you’re looking at hardware or software upgrades, my toolbox page lists the tools I use and any discounts I know of.
