Customize Construction Set

Grasshopper Plugin
1

Hi all,
Working with GH plugin, I am wondering how I can make a customized construction set for my model.

Thanks,
MaHa

2

Hi @mahagh,

@chriswmackey will publish a post on this topic soon. In short, you can save your custom resources to %appdata%\ladybug_tools\standards and they will be loaded to Rhino, Revit, and Grasshopper Pollination plugins.

3

Thanks @mostapha,

Here is what I did:
-Customized a construction set in Rhino plugin and exported it to %appdata%\ladybug_tools\standards\constructionsets

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-Reopened Rhino and GH.

-Then the construction set component is not working anymore with this error: “1. Solution exception:Expected ConstructionSet. Got ModelEnergyProperties.”

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Even I cannot open the constructionset manager in Rhino envi. anymore. It is forever loading and after deleting the exported file the issue solves!

Thanks,
MaHa

5

Hi @mahagh ,

Sorry for the confusion here. You should delete that file that you wrote there, which has essentially corrupted your user standards library. I would also just recommend never touching that directory unless you know what you are doing.

All that you need to do is go to the PO_ConstructionSetManager and click on Add.

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That will open up an interface where you can build a new construction set for your Model. As you can see, you can also Duplicate an existing ConstructionSet and then Edit it. This same workflow can be used for any resource that you want to build, whether it’s a custom material, construction, schedule, programtype or constructionset. You just have to have the appropriate manage for the resource open.

6

FYI, we also have a whole section of the user manual devoted to showing how to assign and edit a ConstructionSet:

8

Thank you @chriswmackey,

I want to run a parametric analysis based on different construction set of the building envelope. That is why I wanted to bring the customized construction sets in GH to run it parametrically.

I went with the Duplicate method and built my construction set; it was fine in Rhino plugin. But in GH I do not see it in the library list. I tried to export it but got the issue I brought in this topic.

Hope it is clear what I need for my simulation.

Best,
MaHa

9

Hi @mahagh ,

Thanks for clarifying and this is a very different case. If you are using Grasshopper to loop through ConstructionSets that you have already built in your Pollination Rhino model, you can use the PO ConstructionSet component to bring the ConstructionSet from the Rhino Model into Grasshopper like so:

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You just have to right-click on the component and select “Set Construction Set” and that will bring up a menu where you can select a ConstructionSet from your Model to bring into Grasshopper.

Then, for your parametric simulation, you can use the native LBT Grasshopper Apply ConstructionSet component to apply the ConstructionSet to your Honeybee Rooms before you bring them into a new HB Model that you can then simulate.

Hope that helps and let us know if you have any other questions.

10

Thank you @chriswmackey it worked.
Another question I have is about a specific material/construction to import for simulation purpose. I have a glazing specification that wanted to use it for windows but am not sure how to assign it there.

11

Hi @mahagh ,

The same place where you get the PO ConstructionSet component also has similar components for Materials and Constructions (and Schedules and ProgramTypes for that matter):

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That should give you what you need.

12

So, the thing is that I did not find the material/construction in the Rhino library to import it to GH, I thought maybe to add the numbers (SHGC, VT, …) by myself like what we used to do it in Honeybee or build my window construction in Window maybe and add it to the library. Does it make sense?

Thanks,
MaHa

13

Hey @mahagh ,

I’m not sure that I understand what you are asking. Did you create the material or construction in the Pollination Rhino Interface? If so, you should be able to use those Pollination Parameter components to bring it in.

Are you asking about how you can just assign the construction using the identifier of the construction without needing to bring the whole construction into Grasshopper using the Pollination Parameter components? If so, I’m working on a set of tutorial videos now, which will show you the recommended workflow for adding objects to your personal user standards library so that you can use the constructions across multiple models and assign the construction in Grasshopper using the construction ID.

14

Hi @chriswmackey,

Got you. I am working with Pollination Rhino to making the materials and constructions now, however I look forward to watching your videos as I think it would be easier for me to go with identifiers.

Thanks,
MaHa