Suspended Ceiling Design Software Tutorial
Suspended Ceiling Parts

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QUESTION

I often design commercial office spaces that have suspended ceilings. How can I model this kind of ceiling in Chief Architect?

ANSWER

Like other kinds of lowered or dropped ceilings, you can create a suspended ceiling with ceiling tiles by setting up a custom Ceiling Finish Definition.

A custom material can also be created to calculate the required number of suspension hangers and screws in the Materials List, and moldings can be created to represent the perimeter brackets and T-Channels.

To create a suspended ceiling hanger and screw material

Select 3D> Materials> Plan Materials from the menu, and in the Plan Materials dialog click the New button.
On the Pattern panel of the Define Material dialog:
- Type a short, descriptive Material Name. In this example, 'Ceiling Hangers & Screws' is used.
Also on the Pattern panel:
- Click the Pattern Type drop-down and select 'Grid' from the list.
- Specify the Height and Width as one half the size of the ceiling tiles you plan to use. In this example, square 24' ceiling tiles will be used, so 12' is used for the Height and Width.
Click OK to close the dialog and create the new material. When the Define Material dialog closes, you will return to the Plan Materials dialog and your new custom material will be selected in the list on the left side of the dialog box.
To add your new custom material to the library for future use in other plans with suspended ceilings, click the Add to Library button on the right.
- Your custom material will be added to the User Catalog, which you can organize to best suit your needs.
- In version X3, it will be added to My Library.
Click OK to close the Plan Materials dialog.

To create a suspended ceiling finish definition

In this example, we will set up the defaults to use a custom suspended ceiling finish and an appropriately high ceiling height. You could instead create these conditions for only one floor - or only one room - if that is what your project calls for.

Select Edit> Default Settings from the menu, and in the Default Settings dialog:
- Click the next to Floors and Rooms to expand this category,
- Click on Floor/Ceiling Platform to select it,
- Then click the Edit button.
On the Floor/Ceiling Platform Defaults dialog, click the Edit button to the right of the Ceiling Finish.
In the Ceiling Finish Definition dialog, which opens next:
- Change Layer 1 Material to our new Ceiling Hangers & Screws. If you have more than two layers, click Delete, on the layer 3 until only two layers remain.
- Increase the Thickness of Layer 1 so that it equals the desired length of the ceiling hangers. In this example, 24' is used.
- Specify the thickness of the ceiling tiles. In this example, 1/2' is used.
- Change the Material for Layer 2 to the ceiling material you want to use. In our example, 'Paris 1 Textile' is used.
- Click OK to close the dialog and apply your changes.
Click OK to close the Floor/Ceiling Platform Defaults dialog, as well.
Note:If you don't want to draw your own Wall Brackets and T-Channels you could use one of the Ceiling Tiles materials from the library here instead. Paris1 Textile is chosen here because its texture looks similar to a ceiling tile when we have manually drawn Wall Brackets and T-Channels.
In the Default Settings dialog, select floor 1 under Floor Levels and click the Edit button. On the Structure panel of the Floor 1 Defaults dialog:
- Increase the Ceiling height value to accommodate the Ceiling Finish. In this example, 144' (twelve feet) is used.
- Click OK to close the dialog and apply your change, then click the Done button to close the Default Settings dialog, as well.

To create perimeter bracket and T-Channel profiles

Both the perimeter brackets and T-Channels for a suspended ceiling can be represented using moldings.

Select CAD> CAD Detail Management from the menu, and in the CAD Detail Management dialog, click the New button.
- In the New CAD Detail dialog, type a short, descriptive name like 'Ceiling Bracket Profiles' and click OK.
- A CAD Detail window will open.
Select CAD> Boxes> Rectangular Polyline from the menu, then click and drag to draw a small rectangle.
Zoom in as necessary, and use Temporary Dimensions to resize the polyline precisely.
- In this example, a square with 1/2' sides is created.
  Note: If you do not see Temporary Dimensions indicating the polyline's size when you click on an edge, select View> Temporary Dimensions to toggle them on.
  In Prior versions temporary dimensions can be found by going to CAD> Dimensions> Display Temporary Dimensions
With the polyline selected, click the Break Line edit button, then click on the top edge to add a corner edit handle at the location where you clicked.
Use Temporary Dimensions or the polyline's edit handles to create an L shape.
- The long vertical edge will form the back of the suspended ceiling's wall bracket profile. When creating a molding profile, the back of the profile should always be drawn on the left side of the polyline.
Use Temporary Dimensions to resize this L shape so that its vertical and horizontal sections are the desired width.
- In this example, they both measure 1/8'.
When the wall bracket profile meets your needs, select it and click the Add to Library edit button.
- The profile will be added to the User Catalog in the library and will be named 'Molding'.
- Right-click on it and select Rename from the contextual menu, then type a short, descriptive name like 'Ceiling Wall Bracket'.
Repeat the above steps to produce a profile for the suspended ceiling's T-Channels. When the T-channel has been added to the library you can close out of the CAD detail window.
- A simple profile will be sufficient for creating a Materials List, but you can make the channel profile as simple or as detailed as you wish.
- If you want an edge to be curved, select that edge and click the Change Line/Arc edit button.
- After you select the Break Line edit tool, click the Sticky Mode tool to create multiple edit handles in a row without having to select the Break Line tool each time.

To add the wall bracket profile

Like the custom suspended Ceiling Finish Definition, you can specify the wall bracket molding profile using the defaults, or assign it to individual rooms in the Room Specification dialog.

Select Edit> Default Settings from the menu and in the Default Settings dialog, expand Floors and Rooms then expand Floor Levels, then select floor 1 and click the Edit button.

Suspended Ceiling Design Software