Getting Started With PDMS PDF

Getting Started
With PDMS
AVEVA Solutions Ltd
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First published September 2007
AVEVA Solutions Ltd, and its subsidiaries
AVEVA Solutions Ltd, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0HB, United Kingdom
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Getting Started With PDMS
Contents Page
Getting Started
Scope of this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
What it Includes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Who Should Use this Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
Assumptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:1
How the Manual is Organised . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:2
PDMS Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1

Using PDMS in the PlantDesign Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:2
PDMS Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:3
DESIGN Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:3
Drafting Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:4
Catalogue and Specification Management Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:6
Project Administration Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:7
PDMS Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1
Database Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1
Project .............................................................. 3:1
DESIGN Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
PADD Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
ISOD Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
CATALOGUE Database. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
DICTIONARY Database. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3
PROPERTIES Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3
i 12.0
SYSTEM Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3

COMMS Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3
MISC Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3
TRANSACTION Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4
How PDMS Data is Stored . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:1

DESIGN Database Element Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2
WORLD .............................................................. 4:2
SITE .............................................................. 4:2
ZONE .............................................................. 4:2
EQUIPMENT (EQUI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:2
SUB-EQUIPMENT (SUBE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:3
PRIMITIVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:4
STRUCTURES (STRU) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:4
FRAMEWORK (FRMW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:4
SUB-FRAMEWORK (SBFR) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5
STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:5
PIPE .............................................................. 4:5
BRANCH (BRAN). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:6
PIPING COMPONENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:6
Attributes in PDMS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:7
NAME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:8
TYPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:9
LOCK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:9
OWNER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:9
POSITION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:10
ORIENTATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:11
LEVEL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:11
OBSTRUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:11
HEIGHT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12
DIAMETER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12
UDAs (User Defined Attributes) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12
Pseudo-Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12
Attributes Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:12
Using PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1

Logging into PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1
Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1
Username . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:2
ii 12.0
Password . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:3
MDB .............................................................. 5:3
Module .............................................................. 5:4
Read Only . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:5
Restore Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:5
Exit out of PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:5
Internationalisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:6
Customisation Facilities; The Programmable Macro Language (PML). . . . . . . 5:7
Basic GUI Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1

Using the Mouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1
Using Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1
Text Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
Drop-down Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
Option Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
Check Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
Scrollable Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
Action Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Respond to Alert Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Dockable Forms, Toolbars and Menu Bars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Menu Bars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:6
Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:6
Using Commands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10
Why use Command Syntax? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10
Command Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10
Note on Filenames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:11
Basic Operations in PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:1

Querying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:1
Current Element and Current List Position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
Navigate to a Given Element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:3
Design Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:4
Members List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:5
iii 12.0
Other Explorers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:6

My Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:6
Modify the Content of a Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:7
Drawlist GUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:7
Change the Visual Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:9
Display of Graphical Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:10
Display of Primitives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:10
Other Drawlist Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:10
PDMS Search Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:13
Saved Searches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:17
Create a Saved Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:17
Delete a Saved Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:17
Explorer Bar Functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:17
Search Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:17
Functionality on the Search Output Form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:19
GUI Grid Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:20
Move around the Grid using the Keyboard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:21
Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:21
Grid Splitting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:23
Pin Rows and Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:24
Row and Column Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:24
Column Re-order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:25
Column Sort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:25
Column Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:25
Numeric Data Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:27
Group Sorting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:27
Miscellaneous Grid Data Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:29
Product Range. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1
Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1
Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:1
Definitions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:1
Abbreviations and Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:5
iv 12.0
Scope of this Manual
1 Scope of this Manual
1.1 What it Includes

This manual provides an introduction to PDMS as a system and describes some functions
which are common to several disciplines. The manual gives an introduction to what PDMS
does and how it does it, including introductions to:
the PDMS modules and what they do
the PDMS databases
the PDMS user interface.
More detailed information, particularly on the PDMS modules and the databases they use,
can be found elsewhere in the PDMS user documentation set.
1.2 Who Should Use this Manual

The manual is written for a new user who is:
coming to a 3D Plant Design Management System (i.e. PDMS) for the first time
or
migrating from a similar 3D system.
Both types of user will probably, but not necessarily, have attended a PDMS Basic Training
course.
1.2.1 Assumptions
It is assumed that the user:
is familiar with Microsoft Windows 2000 and/or XP
has a reasonable understanding of the principles and jargon of process plant design.
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Scope of this Manual
1.3 How the Manual is Organised

The manual is organised as follows:
PDMS Functions introduces the basic steps to be taken to design a Plant

using PDMS, and introduces the PDMS modules.
PDMS Databases and introduce the PDMS databases and the way data in PDMS
How PDMS Data is is structured and how it is stored.
Stored
Using PDMS, Basic GUI describe how to get in to PDMS and use it perform simple
Features and Basic operations.
Operations in PDMS
Product Range shows the AVEVA product ranges.
Glossary of Terms and is a glossary of PDMS terms and abbreviations.

Abbreviations
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PDMS Functions
2 PDMS Functions
PDMS (the Plant Design Management System) enables you to design a 3D computer model
of a process plant. PDMS allows you to see a full colour-shaded representation of the
plantmodel as your design progresses, adding an extremely impressive level of realism to
traditional drawing office techniques.
In the model you can store huge amounts of data referring to position, size, part numbers
and geometric relationships for the various parts of the plant. This model becomes a single
source of engineering data for all of the sections and disciplines involved in a design project.
All this information is stored in databases. There are many different output channels from
the databases through which information can be passed on. These range from reports on
data stored in the databases, fully annotated and dimensioned engineering drawings, to full
colour-shaded 3D walk-through capabilities which allow you to visualise the complete
design model.
Even with the advanced features of PDMS, the main form of communication between the
plant designer and the fabricator remains the drawings. Without engineering drawings the
task of building a plant would be almost impossible. To meet this requirement, PDMS can
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PDMS Functions
produce numerous types of drawing, ranging from complex 3D illustrations to fully

annotated and dimensioned arrangement drawings and piping isometrics.
All the data in a PDMS design would be of little value without the ability to ensure the quality
of the design information. PDMS contributes to the quality of the design in the following
ways:
Ensures consistent and reliable component data
In a design environment which uses only 2D drawing techniques, the size of each
fitting must be decided before it can be drawn. This is a time-consuming and error-
prone process, where often the design errors are only found during the erection stage
of the project. With PDMS, all piping component sizes and geometry are predefined
and stored in a catalogue, which cannot be changed by the designer. This ensures
that all items are true to size and are consistent throughout the design, no matter how
many users there are on the project.
Adheres to definable engineering specifications
Piping specifications and steelwork catalogues, stating precisely the components to be
used, are compiled for the purpose of ensuring consistent, safe and economic design.
Design applications for Piping, Hangers and Supports, HVAC, Cable trays and
Steelwork all use specifications to assist component selection.
Ensures correct geometry and connectivity
There are many different ways of making design errors, such as incorrect fitting
lengths, incompatible flange ratings, or simple alignment errors. PDMS can check all of
these using data consistency procedures built into the system to check all or individual
parts of the design model.
Avoids component interferences
Despite a wealth of skill and experience in plantdesign, traditional drawing office
techniques are still subject to human error. Laying out complex pipe runs and general
arrangements in confined areas using conventional 2D methods, inevitably leads to
clashes between elements, which are trying to share the same physical space. PDMS
enables you to avoid such problems in two ways:
1. By viewing the design interactively during the design process, allowing visual
checks on the model from different viewpoints. Potential problems can thus be
resolved as they arise.
2. By using the powerful clash checking facility within PDMS, which will detect clashes
anywhere in the plant. This can be done interactively or retrospectively.
Annotation and dimensions obtained directly from the design database
Extracted information from the PDMS database, such as arrangement drawings, piping
isometrics and reports, will always be the latest available as it is stored only in one
source. Through the course of a project, information is constantly changing and
drawings need to be reissued. When this happens, drawings, reports etc can be
updated and reissued with the minimum of effort.
2.1 Using PDMS in the PlantDesign Process

The sequence of operations (greatly simplified) in a new plant design project would be:
Create the project and set up administrative controls (using the PDMS ADMIN
module).
Create the Catalogue and Specification data from which standard design Components
can be selected (using the PARAGON module).
Design the various parts of the plant, referencing items from the catalogues (using the
DESIGN module).
Check the design for errors and inconsistencies (DESIGN module).
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PDMS Functions
Document the design in the form of drawings (general arrangement, construction,

assembly, and isometric), reports and material lists (DRAFT and ISODRAFT modules).
You may also wish to transfer design data to or from other systems at various stages.
2.2 PDMS Modules

PDMS is split into a number of modules which are used at different stages in the plant
design process.
2.2.1 DESIGN Modules
DESIGN
DESIGN is the main, graphically driven constructor module. It enables a full sized three-
dimensional plantmodel to be defined in the design database, with selected views of the
current state of the design shown on the graphics screen as the design progresses.
All parts of the design (including equipment, and piping and structural steelwork layouts) can
be created. Component selection is provided through Specifications that dictate which
Catalogue Components can be used. Each part of the design model can be displayed in
colour-shaded solid colour-coded representations for ease of interpretation.
The DESIGN module can check for interferences (clashes) between items created in the
design. There is a very flexible reporting capability that can be used to produce a wide
variety of design documents - from bulk Material Take Off to detailed nozzle schedules.
Piping isometrics can be previewed in DESIGN (without having to switch to the Isometric
drawing generation module, ISODRAFT).
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PDMS Functions
SPOOLER
SPOOLER is used for pipework spooling. It allows the designer to split the pipework design
into logical sections (spools) ready for fabrication. The spool data can then be output as
isometric drawings using ISODRAFT (see below).
2.2.2 Drafting Modules
DRAFT
DRAFT enables dimensioned and annotated scale drawings of selected parts of the design
model to be produced. All information needed to create the drawing is accessible via a
single drawing database, which extracts data to be used for dimensioning directly from the
DESIGN database.
Annotation can be in the form of labels attached to DESIGN elements, or 2D annotation
such as drawing notes, or drawing frames, tables, lines etc.
Annotation attached to a design data element on the drawing will move if the 3D position of
the element changes. Dimensions are recalculated automatically every time the drawing is
updated.
A design model 3D view can be previewed in DRAFT to aid assembly of a drawing in the 2D
view.
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PDMS Functions
Diagrams
Diagrams supports the creation of cabling diagrams. The application is based on the AVEVA
Design Platform GUI and diagram layouts are created using an embedded Microsoft Office
Visio drawing control. All relevant data entered through the application is stored into the
Schematic Database.
ISODRAFT
ISODRAFT produces automatically annotated and dimensioned piping isometric drawings,
with associated material lists, of specified sections of the plant pipework. The content and
style of the drawings can be chosen to suit the needs of pipe fabricators and/or erectors and
can include a wide range of optional features to suit local requirements.
Other facilities include:
Full material lists.
Automatic spool identification.
Automatic splitting of complex drawings.
User-defined drawing sheets.
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PDMS Functions
2.2.3 Catalogue and Specification Management Modules
PARAGON
Used to generate and modify catalogues, with facilities for catalogue component
construction with visual control (including 3D colour-shaded representations of the item
being designed). The catalogues in PDMS serve a similar purpose to the manufacturers
catalogues, which you would refer to when using conventional design methods. The PDMS
component catalogue is used to specify the geometry, connection information, obstruction
and detailing data of steelwork, piping, and HVAC and cable tray components.
It should be noted that, whereas the design data is specific to a particular design,
catalogues and specifications may be specific to a company but general to a number of
projects in that company. For example, the same catalogue component may also appear in
other designs proceeding at the same time.
SPECON
Used by the administrator to create or modify the component specifications within the
catalogue database. Specifications define the suitability of catalogue components for
particular types of use.
PROPCON
Used by the administrator to create or modify the properties database, which holds details
of those properties of the components and materials which may be needed for stress
analysis or safety auditing of all or part of a design. It also includes data such as the material
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PDMS Functions
densities needed by the DESIGN module structural applications for calculating weights and
centre of gravity of steelwork items.
2.2.4 Project Administration Modules
ADMIN
Large plants designed using PDMS will usually be broken down into individual areas (either
physical areas or design areas), depending on the physical size, complexity and
configuration of the plant. On a large project, the System Administrator will first agree with
Project and Design Management, the breakdown of the PDMS project into sections which:
Are relevant to the needs of project reporting and control.
Form reasonable design subdivisions with sensible match-lines and design content.
Enable enough designers to work in parallel with simultaneous access to carry out their
design tasks.
In much the same way as in a design office (with its section leader, draftspeople, etc.),
PDMS has Teams, the members of which are called Users. These Teams can consist of
any number of Users and can be organised by discipline or physical work areas.
The main features are:
Access Control (Teams and Users)
Databases
Multiple Databases (MDBs)
Database management functionality
ADMIN includes a database integrity checking utility, used to check for inconsistencies in
the contents of the databases and to derive statistical information about the use of the
database storage capacity.
ADMIN also allows the System Administrator to reconfigure a project. This may be
necessary:
to compact databases at intervals, freeing disk space
to upgrade PDMS projects when the database structure changes
to compare the contents of two similar databases; for example, to create a modification
record
LEXICON
Used by the System Administrator to set up user defined attributes (UDA) and user defined
defined element types (UDET). Both are defined in a DICTIONARY database. User defined
element types allow objects in a database to be given a user defined name to replace the
generic name, for example an EQUI element can be called a :PUMP or :VESSEL. Additional
information can be stored in user defined attributes assigned to database elements and
extracted into drawings and reports.
MONITOR Module
The MONITOR Module is commonly used to query the status of a projects users and access
rights. MONITOR allows basic querying of database information which normally can only be
obtained using the ADMIN Module (which can only be accessed by a Free user).
MONITOR can also be used to quickly change a password of the currently logged in user or
completely switch to another user (if the user credentials are known).
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PDMS Functions
Depending on the user type (Free or General), MONITOR can be used to change access
rights and defer databases.
Batch processing and simply messaging can also be achieved.
If there is a problem with a project that inhibits another PDMS module from loading, then the
software will automatically load the MONITOR Module allowing simple diagnostics to be
conducted via its command line interface.
For a detailed explanation of the MONITOR Module refer to MONITOR Reference Manual.
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PDMS Databases
3 PDMS Databases
3.1 Introduction
The overall purpose of PDMS is the controlled creation of a complete three-dimensional
process plant design model using computer-simulation techniques. All information which
exists about a PDMS design project, whether administrative or technical, is stored in a
series of hierarchical databases. Use of the various PDMS modules allows you to create,
modify and extract information from these databases.
This chapter describes
The purpose of each type of database
How the detailed project information is held in each
How the separate databases are related to each other
3.2 Database Types
3.2.1 Project
A PDMS Project consists of the complete collection of information which relates to a single
design project. This is identified by a name, allocated by the Project Administrator when the
project is first initiated. This name is used to identify the project to the system whenever you
wish to work in the project using PDMS. This allows access rights and use of system
resources to be monitored and controlled. For further details of these functions, see the
Administrator User Guide and Monitor Reference Manuals.
There are 10 different types of database which can go to make up a complete Project:
Design and Drawing Databases:

DESIGN database
PADD (DRAFT) database
ISOD (Spooler) database
Reference Databases:
CATALOGUE database
LEXICON (Dictionary)
PROPERTIES database
Administration Databases:
SYSTEM database
COMMS database
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PDMS Databases
MISC database
TRANSACTION database
(Refer to the Administrator User Guide for more background information on Reference
databases).
Each PDMS module requires access to one or more specific database types, and entry to
the module may be prevented if appropriate databases do not exist or if you dont have the
appropriate access rights. New databases can only be created by the Project
Administrator; see the Administrator User Guide for details.
The functions of each type of database are summarised in the following subsections.
3.2.2 DESIGN Database

The DESIGN databases contain all information needed to create a full-scale three-
dimensional representation of the plant.
Each user is normally allowed to modify the DESIGN databases which relate to his function
in the plant design team, and will often have permission to look at other DESIGN databases
so that his work is compatible with that of other designers.
Typical design functions, each of which may use a different DESIGN database, include:
Equipment design (process vessels, storage vessels, pumps, heat exchangers etc.)
Pipework design (the interconnecting pipes between the various equipment items)
Structural design (the columns, beams, walls, stairways etc. which support and give
access to the operational equipment and pipework)
Hangers and Supports (specialised pipe support structures)
The compositions of the principal types of DESIGN element are described in the Data Model
Reference Manual.
3.2.3 PADD Database

The Production of Annotated and Dimensioned Drawings (PADD) database holds data
about both the pictorial content of drawings and about their annotation and dimensional
information. It therefore holds a complete specification of the contents of a drawing. Its use
is specific to the interactive drawing module DRAFT.
For further information, see the Draft User Guide.
3.2.4 ISOD Database

The ISOD database holds pipework spool drawings generated by the SPOOLER module.
See Pipework Design User Guide for more details of SPOOLER.
3.2.5 CATALOGUE Database

The CATALOGUE database contains a catalogue of the standard components which the
user may select when designing pipework, ducting, hangers and supports or structural
steelwork. It includes:
Dimensional details for each component
Details of permissible connections between different components and of the bolts
needed to assemble flanged components
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PDMS Databases
Specifications of the components, which define the conditions of use for each type
(maximum pressure, temperature etc.)
A CATALOGUE database may contain a single universal catalogue, but it will more
commonly contain a general catalogue plus one or more specialised catalogues specific to
particular design functions. For further information, see the Catalogues and Specifications
User Guide.
3.2.6 DICTIONARY Database

The DICTIONARY database holds the definitions of user defined attributes (UDA) and user
defined element types (UDET). User defined elements types allow objects in a database to
be given a user defined name to replace the generic name, for example an EQUI element
can be called a :PUMP or :VESSEL. Additional information can be stored in user defined
attributes assigned to database elements and extracted into drawings and reports.
3.2.7 PROPERTIES Database

The PROPERTIES is available for storing data about material properties, which may be
needed to supplement Catalogue and Specification data for some design functions such as
stress analysis. Its use is specialised and will not be described further in this manual.
For further information, see the PROPCON chapter in the Catalogues and Specifications
Reference Manual.
3.2.8 SYSTEM Database

There is only one SYSTEM database in each Project Folder. It holds administrative
information about the composition and use of the project, including the following:
A list of databases of all categories which are usable in the project
A list of all users, identified by name and password, who can legally access the
databases, and the operating team(s) to which they are assigned
A list of PDMS modules available for use in the project
Access control data, which defines those databases which are accessible to any
specific user and whether he may modify them or only look at them
3.2.9 COMMS Database

The COMMS database stores the information about who is using which module and which
databases are current. Each user has a separate area of the COMMS database, which can
be accessed in write mode, and so can record module changes etc. Each user has read
access to the other users areas, and so can find out about other users in the project.
3.2.10 MISC Database

The MISC database is used to store inter-user messages, and inter-database macros. This
database can only be opened in write mode by one user at a time, but many users can read
from it. All users need to be able to write to this database, but only when they are sending
messages or writing inter-database macros, or deleting messages and macros. All users
can read from the database at any time.
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PDMS Databases
3.2.11 TRANSACTION Database

To enable the System Administrator to monitor the progress of Global commands, PDMS
Global stores details of issued commands in a TRANSACTION database. Transaction
messages are generated in the database each time the progress of the command changes.
Transaction databases are only present when PDMS incorporates the Global product. See
Admininstrator Command Reference Manual for details of Global.
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How PDMS Data is Stored
4 How PDMS Data is Stored
Despite the huge power and potential of PDMS, the database is structured in a very simple
and logical form. The database is hierarchical, a tree like structure, as illustrated below.
Note: The hierarchy below illustrates the (simplified) DESIGN database hierarchy, but the
CATALOGUE, PADD, ISOD, LEXICON and PROPERTIES databases also have a
hierarchical structure.
In this hierarchical structure all the database elements are owned by other elements, with
the exception of the WORLD. Elements that are owned by another element, e.g. a ZONE is
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owned by a SITE, are said to be members of the owning element, e.g. The ZONE is a
member of the SITE.
4.1 DESIGN Database Element Types
4.1.1 WORLD
When the database is first built, it is empty except for a single element named the WORLD.
Every database has its own WORLD element as the first element in the hierarchy.
4.1.2 SITE
Below the WORLD, the second level of the hierarchy is the SITE. A SITE may be
considered as a significant collection of plant, whose size is not necessarily determined by
physical area, but by practical considerations. It may, for example be the whole project, or
one part of a large project. There can be as many SITEs within a PDMS project as required
for data organisation.
4.1.3 ZONE
The next level below a SITE is a ZONE. Again, a ZONE is not necessarily used to define a
physical area, it is more likely to store similar types of item for easy reference, such as a
piping system in one ZONE, related equipment in another, and so on. There can be as many
ZONEs owned by a site as required for data organisation.
Below ZONE level the hierarchy is discipline dependent, i.e. the elements depend on which
discipline you are modelling.
4.1.4 EQUIPMENT (EQUI)

Equipment items are built up in PDMS using elements known as primitives. Each piece of
Equipment can comprise any number of primitive shapes positioned to form the item. The
primitives may be owned directly by the EQUI element or by a Sub-Equipment element. An
Equipment would typically be a Pump, or a Vessel. The Box and Cylinder primitives are
clearly visible in the Pump Equipment shown in figure below.
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4.1.5 SUB-EQUIPMENT (SUBE)

A SUBE is an optional element to further sub-divide an EQUI. The SUBE can also own
primitive elements.
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4.1.6 PRIMITIVES
Primitives are the basic building blocks of PDMS. They are used by other disciplines to
create catalogue components. There are many types of primitive, each with its own
features, which when combined with other primitives can represent complex shapes.
Examples of primitives are nozzle (NOZZ), box (BOX), cylinders (CYLI) and pyramids
(PYRA).
4.1.7 STRUCTURES (STRU)

STRU elements are administrative elements, i.e. they exist to own FRAMEWORK elements,
and allow the plant structures to be separated for ease of modelling and reporting.
4.1.8 FRAMEWORK (FRMW)

FRMW elements are used to store structural components in the model. A complex structure
can be divided into logical frameworks. Dividing the structure in this way allows structural
modelling, and also reporting, to be done more efficiently, e.g. by copying a complete
FRMW. Structural components may also be owned by a Sub-Framework element.
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4.1.9 SUB-FRAMEWORK (SBFR)

A SBFR is an optional element that can own structural components. Subframeworks are
used to further sub-divide complex projects or for modelling sub-assemblies within a
framework.
4.1.10 STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS

Structural profiles are represented in PDMS by section (SCTN) elements. I-section profile
sizes are selected using a Section Specification that references standard catalogue data
for section sizes complying with various national standards. Plates are represented by panel
(PANE) elements and curved profiles are modelled using a general section (GENSEC)
component.
4.1.11 PIPE
Pipes may be considered like lines on a flowsheet. They may run between several end
connection points and are usually grouped by a common specification and process.
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4.1.12 BRANCH (BRAN)

Branch elements are sections of a pipe, which have known start and finish points. In PDMS
the start and finish points are called the Head and Tail. Heads and tails may be connected
to nozzles, tees or other Heads and tails, depending on the configuration of the pipe, or left
open ended.
4.1.13 PIPING COMPONENTS

A BRAN can own a wide variety of components such as gaskets (GASK), flanges (FLAN),
tees (TEE), valves (VALV), elbows (ELBO), etc. These form the shape and geometry of the
BRAN and ultimately the pipeline itself.
Piping components are selected using Piping Specifications that reference standard
catalogue data. For example, each time you want to use a 100mm bore elbow, PDMS
always accesses the data for it from the component catalogue. The data for this remains
constant no matter how many 100mm bore elbows are used in the design.
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4.2 Attributes in PDMS

Every element in a PDMS database has a fixed set of properties known as its attributes.
Some attributes are common throughout the range of elements while others differ according
to the type of element involved. For example, a cylinder (CYLI) has HEIGHT and
DIAMETER attributes whilst the size of a box (BOX) is determined by XLENGTH, YLENGTH
and ZLENGTH attributes, as illustrated below:
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When you create an element, a set of appropriate attributes are entered into the database.
The attributes will vary according to the type of element but essentially the process is the
same. For example, a cylinder has the following attributes:
Attribute Default Value

NAME Name if specified or hierarchy description
TYPE CYLI
LOCK false (the element is not locked)
OWNER the name of the owning element or its hierarchy description
POSITION N 0mm E 0mm U 0mm (relative to its owner)
ORIENTATION Y is N and Z is U (relative to its owner)
LEVEL 0 10 (this is a representation level setting)
OBSTRUCTION 2 (it is a solid hard element for clashing purposes)
DIAMETER 0 mm
HEIGHT 0 mm
4.2.1 NAME
Every element in PDMS can be named. Whether named or not every element will have a
unique system-generated reference number. If a name is not specified, then a hierarchy
description will be displayed in the Design Explorer or Members List (see Navigate to a
Given Element). Internally PDMS uses the reference number since this cannot change. A
table of names against reference numbers is maintained for this purpose.
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All PDMS names begin with a forward slash character (/), which is considered to be part of
the name. In order to save you the effort of typing this, all of the forms you encounter will
add the forward slash for you when you press the Enter key after typing a name. The
forward slash character is not shown in the Design Explorer or Members List. The WORLD
has a special name in PDMS, /*.
Names cannot contain spaces and are case sensitive. For example, /E1302A is a different
name from /E1302a or /e1302A. Elements in a PDMS database are unique, i.e. they cannot
have the same name or reference number.
4.2.2 TYPE
This attribute refers to the specific type of element it is, e.g. EQUI is an Equipment type.
4.2.3 LOCK
The LOCK attribute determines if an element may be changed or not. If an element is
locked, its LOCK attribute is set to the value TRUE, preventing it from being modified until
unlocked. By default, LOCK is false.
4.2.4 OWNER
The different levels in the hierarchy are maintained by an Owner-Member relationship. An
EQUI will have ZONE as its owner, while a CYLI might well be one of the EQUIs members.
The owner is that element which is directly related to the current element at the next level up
in the hierarchy, as shown in the diagram below:
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The element on the upper level is the Owner of those elements directly below it, e.g. the
equipment (EQUI) owns the primitive (CYLI). The lower level elements are Members of the
owning element, e.g. the EQUI is a member of the ZONE.
4.2.5 POSITION
Many items in a database have a POSITION attribute which is the position of the element in
relation to its owner. All primitives have a position attribute which relates to its point of origin.
As each primitive has a different Point of Origin changing the position attribute will have the
effect of moving the cylinder to some other position with its point of origin positioned on the
new co-ordinates.
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4.2.6 ORIENTATION
By default, a cylinder is created in a vertical direction; that is, with one of its ends facing up.
The orientation attribute allows this to be changed to any angle on any axis.
4.2.7 LEVEL
PDMS can produce different representations of an item, depending on how it has been
modelled and the representation levels used. The default level is 0 to 10 but levels can be
set beyond this range if needed.
For example, steelwork profiles can be represented by centreline (stick representation) only
or by the full detail of the section profile. By manipulating level settings it is, therefore,
possible to have simple or complex representation of elements for DESIGN display or
DRAFT drawings.
4.2.8 OBSTRUCTION
The OBSTRUCTION attribute is used to declare whether an element is solid or not.
Obstructions can be declared as Hard, Soft or No Obstruction, depending on the value of
the OBSTRUCTION attribute. The default value of 2 results in a Hard obstruction, 1 results
in a Soft obstruction (used for walkways, maintenance access etc.) and 0 is for No
Obstruction (used to save computing time when elements are enclosed in another element
which acts as an overall obstruction).
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4.2.9 HEIGHT
The height of the cylinder.
4.2.10 DIAMETER
The diameter of the cylinder.
4.3 UDAs (User Defined Attributes)

This type of attribute is defined and assigned to elements using the LEXICON module by
the System or Project Administrator. A UDA is just like any other attribute but may be
specific to the company or the particular project. The setting of the UDA is up to the user,
although it may have been set to a default value. Changing this is the same as with all other
attributes. Their current values may be found by querying the items attributes. A UDA can
be recognised by the colon placed in front of it:
:COLOUR (User Defined Attribute)
:HEIGHT (Normal Attribute)
4.4 Pseudo-Attributes
These are attributes that are set by the system for a specific purpose, and cannot be
changed by the user.
4.5 Attributes Form

The Attributes Form displays all the attributes that have been specified for a database
element. The form is accessed by selecting Display>Attributes Utility from the Design
main menu bar:
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The left hand column shows the names of the attributes, the right hand column shows the
values. A brief description of the attribute is provided at the bottom of the form.
All data in the form is read-only; it is not possible to add or delete attributes, or to change
their values.
Invisible attributes are not shown on the form (these are set by the system or Project
Administrator using the LEXICON module).
Attributes are grouped according to the categorisations; these are also set in LEXICON. The
form above shows three attribute categorisations: Construction, General and Misc. If an
attribute does not have a categorisation, then it is assigned an appropriate draft
categorisation in the Attribute Form.
The form can be docked, floating and resized.
Icons at the top of the form determine how the attributes are listed:
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When the left icon is selected, the attributes are grouped by Category or by Data Type, as
determined by selecting the appropriate options from the right-click menu (described
below).
When the middle icon is selected, all the attributes are listed alphabetically, regardless of
Category or Data Type.
Right-clicking anywhere on the form displays a pop-up menu with the following options:
Track CE - By default the form will track the current element. That is, if the current element
is changed in the Design Explorer or 3D View, the forms content will change to display the
attributes of the new current element. This menu option toggles tracking on or off.
Groups by Category - The attributes are grouped according to Category (which are set in
LEXICON). The Category icon at the top of the form also needs to be selected.
Group by Data Type - The attributes are grouped according to their data type, i.e. Boolean,
Double, Element, Hyperlink, Integer, Orientation, Position, String and Word. The Data Type
icon also needs to be selected.
Show Description - Used to hide/show the description field at the bottom of the form.
Collapse All Nodes - Collapses all nodes in the list - equivalent to clicking on all the -
icons on the left hand side of the form.
Expand All Nodes - Expands all nodes in the list - equivalent to clicking on all the + icons
on the left hand side of the form.
Open Document - For an attribute of data type hyperlink, the pathname of a referenced
document will be displayed in the Value field. Selecting this option opens the referenced
document. It will be opened outside PDMS; PDMS does not control access rights to the
document.
Array attributes are shown with each member of the array listed separately, using a space
as the separator, as shown in the following example:
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Using PDMS
5 Using PDMS
5.1 Logging into PDMS

Assuming PDMS has been correctly installed on your workstation, start PDMS by selecting
Start>Programs>AVEVA>Plant 12.0>Run Plant; two command windows and a splash
screen will appear briefly. The Login form that appears requires you to specify a number of
details at the outset of your session.
To enter PDMS, you must first click on the Login form to make it active. The form should be
populated in the following order.
5.1.1 Project
In the Project field enter a three letter project code. Alternatively a long project identifier can
be entered if one has been created by the System Administrator.
Clicking on to the right of the field will open the following PDMS Projects form.
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Using PDMS
This form lists all available PDMS Projects.

Clicking on the Sort by pull down allows the sorting of the list of available projects. The
following selections can be made.
Project
Project Code
Name
Description
A filter may also be applied to the list of available projects by entering a criteria in the Filter
field; an asterisk may be used as a wildcard.
Note: The Filter field only applies to the Project column of the list of available projects.
Clicking on a project will result in the PDMS Projects form closing and the selected project
will be populated in the Project field of the Login form.
5.1.2 Username
A username will have been allocated to you by the System Administrator.
Clicking on to the right of the Username field will open the Select User form.
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Using PDMS
Click on the Sort by pull down allows the sorting of the list of available users in a project.
The following selections can be made.
Name
Description
Note: The Filter field only applies to the Name column of the list of available users.
Clicking on a user will result in the Select User form closing and the selected user will be
populated in the Username field of the Login form.
5.1.3 Password
A password will have been allocated to you by the System Administrator. Passwords are
case sensitive, be sure to enter correctly.
Clicking on the Change button to the right of the password field will allow the user to change
the password for the selected user. You will be prompted to enter a new password and to
confirm the change.
5.1.4 MDB
Note: Before attempting to enter a value for the MDB field make sure that a valid username
and password has been entered. You will not be able to proceed if not the case.
In the MDB field enter the name of a Multiple Database you wish to use.
Clicking on to the right of the field will open the Select MDB form.
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Using PDMS
Clicking on the Sort by pull down allows the sorting of the lists of available Multiple
Databases.
The following selections can be made:
Name
Description
Note: The Filter field only applies to the Name column of the list of available MDBs.
Clicking on a MDB will result in the Select MDB form closing and the selected MDB will be
populated in the MDB field of the Login form.
5.1.5 Module
From this pull down select the PDMS Module to launch, the following options are available.
MONITOR
DESIGN
DIAGRAMS
SPOOLER
DRAFT
ISODRAFT
PARAGON
SPECON
PROPCON
LEXICON
ADMIN
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Using PDMS
5.1.6 Read Only

To modify the database as you work, leave the Read Only check box unchecked. Only
select this option to view the project in the Read Only mode.
Click on the OK button to enter the selected module.
5.1.7 Restore Views

This Restore views check box is only available when DRAFT is selected in the Module pull-
down.
Restore views effectively restores the layout of all forms and re-opens the last known project
at the point where it was left when the Draft application was exited from a previous session.
If the Restore views box is checked then the following will take place immediately when the
Draft module is loaded:
Re-position all forms to the locations they were left in the last open session.
Automatically conduct a Get Work operation.
Position the current element in the Draft Explorer to the selected element in the last
session.
5.2 Exit out of PDMS

You will normally leave PDMS directly from the application module in which you are working.
You may either save all work done in the current module before leaving or you may quit
directly without updating any databases.
Select Design>Exit:
All the modules have an Exit menu selection; the one shown below being for DESIGN:
If you have made changes prior to selecting Exit and have not carried out a SAVEWORK
operation, you will be asked if you first wish to save your changes to the appropriate
database:
Clicking YES at this point would be the equivalent of doing a SAVEWORK (and then a
QUIT). If you have done a SAVEWORK (and made no subsequent changes), or if you have
made no changes at all during your Design session, then Exit will display a message asking
you to confirm that you wish to leave DESIGN:
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Using PDMS
In every case, when you leave PDMS you will be returned to the operating system at the
point from which you entered PDMS.
5.3 Internationalisation
Microsoft produces many localised variants of Windows. AVEVA products are designed to
work in English on all of these, though they do not currently support the use of all the local
languages. At the time of writing, AVEVA provides limited facilities that vary somewhat
between products.
Users of PDMS need to enter data (text and names) using their local language and output
the same onto deliverables such as drawings, reports etc. In some cases, there is also a
need to localise or translate the user interface. The same data are also required in other
products such as AVEVA Plant Design Review.
By default, your PDMS project can use any language whose characters are contained within
the Latin-1 character set, comprising:
Danish Dutch English Faroese
Finnish French Icelandic Irish
Spanish German Norwegian Portuguese
Swedish Italian
PDMS can also support the following groups of languages:

Far Eastern, comprising:
Japanese Simplified Chinese
Korean Traditional Chinese
Latin-2, comprising:
Albanian Czech English German
Hungarian Polish Rumanian
Serbo-Croatian Slovak Slovene
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Using PDMS
Latin-Cyrillic, comprising:
Bulgarian Byelorussian English
Macedonian Serbo-Croatian Ukrainian Russian
PDMS does not support any other character set/language, nor does it support the mixing of
any of the above except the mixing of one Far Eastern language with English.
PDMS must know if you are using a non-Latin-1 language in order to display characters
correctly on drawings.
To use an alternative character set/language:
You must use an appropriate version of Windows and a suitable keyboard.
You must select the appropriate options from the Windows , Regional
Options.
For further details, see the Plant Installation Guide, also the Administrator User Guide for
details of font families.
5.4 Customisation Facilities; The Programmable Macro

Language (PML)
Most PDMS modules make use of a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to drive the software.
The interfaces provided with PDMS are designed to apply to a wide range of situations and
business needs. However, as you become more experienced with PDMS you may wish to
design an interface which is more closely related to your requirements. You do this using
AVEVAs Programmable Macro Language (PML).
For full details of PML, refer to the Software Customisation Guide and the Software
Customisation Reference Manual.
Before you begin customising a GUI, you must have a good working knowledge of the
command syntax for the module you are working with. The commands are described in
detail in the reference manuals for the modules.
The ability to customise individual Applications to suit your own specific needs gives you
great flexibility in the ways in which you use your system. But it also introduces the risk that
your modified macros may not be compatible with future versions of the software, since they
are no longer under AVEVAs control. Your own Applications may diverge from future
standard versions and may not take advantage of product enhancements incorporated into
the standard product. To minimise this risk, it is most important that your in-house
customisation policies constrain any changes which you make to the Applications so that
they retain maximum compatibility with the standard product at all times. Remember that
AVEVA can give you full technical support only for products over which it has control. It
cannot guarantee to solve problems caused by software which you have written yourself.
5:7 12.0
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Basic GUI Features
6 Basic GUI Features
PDMS uses a Graphical User Interface (GUI) using forms (dialogue boxes) and menus
with which Microsoft Windows users should be familiar. This chapter describes those GUI
features which are specific to PDMS.
6.1 Using the Mouse

You use the mouse to steer the pointer around the screen and to select or pick items by
using the mouse buttons. The buttons perform different tasks depending on the type of
window, and the position within the window, where the pointer is positioned. The
appearance of the pointer changes according to the type of display item that is underneath
it.
The left-hand mouse button has three functions:
On a graphical view, clicking the left-hand button with the pointer over a design element
results in that element becoming the current element (that is, the design item on which
you want to carry out the next operation).
In a sequence of menus, dragging with the left-hand button activates the command
represented by the highlighted menu option when the button is released.
On a form, the effect varies according to what you select.
The middle mouse button is used primarily to manipulate a graphical view. The right-hand
button is used to access the menu options specific to the graphical view window, or items
listed on a form.
6.2 Using Forms

Forms are used both to display information and to let you enter new data. Forms typically
comprise an arrangement of buttons of various types, text-boxes, and scrollable lists. Input
to a form is usually via a combination of mouse and keyboard.
While you have access to a form, you can change a setting, return to the initial values,
accept and act on the current data, or cancel the form without applying any changes,
according to the nature of the form.
Forms can include any of the following:
text boxes
drop-down lists
option buttons
check boxes
scrollable lists
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Basic GUI Features
action buttons.
6.2.1 Text Boxes
Text boxes are the areas where you type in alphanumeric data such as names or
dimensions. A text box will usually have a label to tell you what to enter.
When you first open a form which contains text boxes, the first text-box on the form is
current and a text editing cursor (a vertical bar) is displayed in the box. A text-box often
contains a default entry (such as unset) when first displayed. Some text boxes accept only
text or only numeric data, and entries with the wrong type of data are not accepted.
To enter data into a text box:
Click in the box to insert the text editing cursor.
Type in the required data, editing any existing entry as necessary. (You may need to
delete the existing entry first.)
When you have finished, confirm the entry by pressing the Enter (or Return) key. Any
text box with an unconfirmed setting is highlighted by a yellow background.
6.2.2 Drop-down Lists

Drop-down lists let you choose one option from a multiple selection. The list will usually
have a label to tell you what you are setting and will show the current selection.
They typically have the following appearance:
To change the setting, click on the down arrow or button face to reveal the full list of
available options, then pick the required option.
6.2.3 Option Buttons

Option buttons are used to select one option, from a group of options. The selection is
mutually exclusive, so that selecting one option deselects others in that group automatically.
Option selected
Option not selected
To change the selected option button in a group, click the required button.
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Basic GUI Features
6.2.4 Check Boxes

Check boxes are used to switch an option between two states, typically set and unset.
Unlike option buttons, they do not interact, so that you can set any combination of check
boxes at the same time.
Set
Unset
6.2.5 Scrollable Lists
A scrollable list is displayed as a vertical list of options within a form, with vertical and
horizontal scroll bars along its sides. To select an option, click on the line you want. The
selected line is highlighted.
Some scrollable lists let you make only a single selection, so that selecting any option
deselects all others automatically. Other lists let you make multiple selections, with all
selected options highlighted simultaneously. You can deselect a highlighted option in a
multiple-choice list, by clicking on it again (repeated clicks toggle a selection).
6.2.6 Action Buttons

Most forms include one or more action buttons. You use these to tell PDMS what to do with
the details you have entered in the form.
The common action buttons are:
Tells the system to accept the current form settings, and closes the
form.
Cancels any changes you have made to the form, and closes the
form.
Tells the system to accept the current form settings, and leaves the
form displayed for further use.
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Basic GUI Features
Cancels any changes you have made to the form, and leaves the
form displayed for further use.
Closes the form, keeping the current settings.
Some forms contain more specific types of control button which carry out particular
command options. The action is indicated by the name of the button (such Add or Remove).
6.3 Menus
Menu options in pull-down or pop-up menus can be in any of three formats:
Standalone options initiate an action immediately.
Options followed by three dots display a form.
Options followed by a pointer, display a subsidiary menu

that offers a further range of options.
Throughout this guide, related selections from menus are abbreviated form using the >
symbol as a separator. For example:
Select Position>At>Explicit means:
1. Select Position from the bar menu.
2. Select At from the resulting pull-down menu
3. Move the pointer to the right and select Explicit from the resultant submenu.
6.4 Toolbars
Toolbars are displayed immediately below the main menu bar in the application window.
Some modules are provided with several toolbars. Toolbars contain a number of icon
buttons which let you carry out common tasks without searching for the options in the
menus.
If you hover the cursor over a button, a tool-tip pop-up box will remind you of the function of
the button. To activate a button click on it.
Note: Toolbars can be switched on or off by right-clicking on a toolbar or the menu bar. The
names of all the toolbars available for the module will then be listed. Toolbars
currently displayed will have a tick next to their names. Click on the name of a toolbar
to add or remove it from the display as required.
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Basic GUI Features
6.5 Status Bar
The status bar displays messages telling you what actions the application is carrying out.
You should look at it frequently, especially if the system appears to be waiting for you to do
something, since it will always prompt you for any input or action which is required to carry
out the next step of your current activity.
If the prompt lets you repeat a task an unspecified number of times, such as picking a
selection of items using the cursor, you must press the Esc key when you have finished to
indicate that you are ready to move to the next operation.
6.6 Respond to Alert Forms
Alert forms are used to display information such as error messages, prompts and requests
for confirmation of changes. You should respond by carrying out the task prompted for, or by
clicking on the control buttons on the form usually an OK or Cancel button.
6.7 Dockable Forms, Toolbars and Menu Bars

Certain key forms, for example Design Explorer and My Data, and all menu bars and
toolbars are provided with dockable functionality. This gives you considerable control over
the layout of forms and other aspects of the graphical interface. The layout that you set up is
saved when you end a design session and restored when you begin a new session. As
much as possible, layouts are also maintained when switching between modules.
Forms, menu bars and toolbars may be docked to any edge of the application window;
forms and toolbars may be set to 'float' at any position on the screen.
6.7.1 Toolbars
To float a toolbar, either double left-click on its move handle , or circle the move handle
and drag the toolbar away from the side of the main application window it is docked at.
Once a toolbar is floating it will be displayed with a title bar. You can then drag the title bar to
move the toolbar to a new location.
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Basic GUI Features
To dock a floating toolbar, drag its title bar to the top, bottom, left or right side of the
application window. Alternatively, double-click its title bar; the toolbar will return to its
previous docked position.
6.7.2 Menu Bars

Menu bars can be docked at any of the four sides of the application window, but they cannot
be floated. To deck a menu bar at a new position, click the move handle and drag the
menu bar to another side of the application window until it snaps into place.
6.7.3 Forms
PDMS allows you to choose where to put a form by using the mouse to drag it to a new
position. The following options are available:
Floating on its own, in which case it can be resized to any size.
Attached to any side of the main application window.
Attached to any side of another form that is already docked.
Attached in the same place as another docked form; tabs are used to switch between
the forms.
AutoHide support, to maintain an uncluttered screen.
To undock a form (i.e. floating), select the title bar and drag it to a new position within the
application window.
To dock a form that is floating, or to re-locate a docked form to another side of the
application window, select and drag the title bar of the form. As the form is dragged the
Docking Tool will be displayed:
The Docking Tool indicates the positions where the form can be docked. While still holding
down the left mouse button, as the mouse pointer is moved over one of the allowable
positions, a translucent coloured rectangle is drawn to show the eventual position of the
form when the mouse button is released.
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Basic GUI Features
When moving the mouse pointer over a window that is already docked, the same Docking
Tool is displayed to allow docking on any side of that window:
If the mouse button is released while the mouse pointer is over the central part of the
Docking Tool, the form will be attached to the first one, with the same size and position.
Each form that is attached in this way will have a tab located at the bottom of the combined
form, to allow switching between the forms.
The figure below shows the Design Explorer from being docked in this way to the My Data
form:
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Basic GUI Features
When docking is complete, the display will be as shown below:
6:8 12.0
Basic GUI Features
The tabbed form can be positioned and docked as for a normal (untabbed) form.
An AutoHide function is available for docked forms (including tabbed forms as described
above). To save space on the screen, a docked form can be unpinned (hidden) by clicking
the AutoHide icon on the title bar. The form is replaced by a tab, as shown below:
When the tab is clicked the form is displayed again.
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Basic GUI Features
6.8 Using Commands
6.8.1 Why use Command Syntax?

For most purposes you will want to use PDMS via the GUI. However, by using commands
you may be able to streamline your methods of working and save you time on repeated
tasks. In particular, you may want to:
Create macros to automate repetitive procedures (see the Software Customisation
Guide and Software Customisation Reference Manual)
Design and create new forms and menus for your graphical user interface that match
your working needs precisely (see the Software Customisation Guide and Software
Customisation Reference Manual)
In some cases it can be slightly quicker to use commands rather than the GUI for simple
operations. For example:
Q MEM - list the members of the current element
Q ATT - list the attributes of the current element
Note: that you should always use the GUI to create elements.
6.8.2 Command Window

The Command Window is used to type is commands instead of using forms and menus. To
display the Command Window, select Display>Command Line from the main menu:
Type your command in the Command Window text box and press Enter to enter the
command. The scrollable list shows the previous commands entered and any resulting
output. The list will maintain approximately the last 1000 lines of output. The keyboard Up
and Down arrow keys can also be used to scroll through the history of entered commands.
Any line in the command window can be double-clicked to copy it as the active line.
6:10 12.0
Basic GUI Features
Clicking the right mouse button in the window displays a pop-up menu:
Copy Copies highlighted text in the command window.
Paste Pastes copied text into the command window. Macro text,
which has been copied from any source, can be submitted
for processing by pasting it into the Command Window.
This paste option will execute each line of the copied text as
a separate command as if they had been typed into the
Command Window.
Paste as Macro This option first creates a temporary file containing the
copied macro commands and executes this as a macro.
For a large number of commands this gives better
performance.
Font Size Allows you to select the font size for the text in the
Command Window. The choices are Large, Medium and
Small.
Clear Clears the Command Window.
Note: Macro files can also be dragged into the command window from their location in
Windows Explorer.
6.8.3 Note on Filenames

PDMS filenames can be up to 1024 characters long, and can include spaces. For example,
the following command can be used within PDMS:
SLIST C:\Program files\Aveva\a temporary file.txt.
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Basic GUI Features
6:12 12.0
Basic Operations in PDMS
7 Basic Operations in PDMS
Work in any PDMS module is mostly about manipulating the elements and their attributes in
one or more databases; either to add, change, read or delete data. You must therefore be
able to tell PDMS:
which database(s) you want to access.
which elements in the database hierarchy you want to access.
what changes, if any, you want to make to the databases contents.
This chapter tells you how to do these things.
7.1 Querying
You will often find, when working in PDMS, that you need to check existing information
about some aspect of the programs operations. For example, you may need to find out
about any of the following:
The current usage of the program in terms of users, modules and databases.
The unique code which identifies the process you are running and the station you are
running it from (useful for generating unique work file names).
The current setting of a command option.
The contents of part of a particular database; for example, the current setting of an
attribute or the list of member elements owned by a specific element.
The elements which match specific selection criteria entered by you.
Each module incorporates a Query pull-down menu which allows you to ask about some of
these topics, the scope of the facility being dependent upon the particular module which you
are using. For example, the Query pull-down menu for DESIGN is:
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Not all of the querying operations available from PDMS can be accessed using the GUI. For
these other (general) options, the QUERY command must be used.
7.2 Current Element and Current List Position

How PDMS Data is Stored explained the principles of database structures and the concept
of owners and members. This section introduces two new concepts which apply to all
aspects of database navigation when you are using a constructor module.
When you are working in any database, PDMS always considers you to be located at a
specific element in that database. This element is known as the Current Element.
The Member List of any element comprises a list of pointers to those elements directly
below it in the database hierarchy; that is, to those elements which it owns. These pointers
have a definite order, identified by numbered positions in the list. In addition to being
notionally at the Current Element, PDMS also considers you to be at a specific pointer. This
position is known as the Current List Position.
Pointer to
Current Element Current List Position
Members of
Current Element
1 2 3 4
List Position in Member List
As you move about within a database, the Current Element and Current List Position are
continuously updated so that PDMS always knows where you are. As soon as you access a
new element, this becomes the Current Element.
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To view the Current Element and its Member List (in numeric order) at any time, simply click
the box next to the desired current element in the Design Explorer (see Design
Explorer). The members of the current element will be shown. For example:
Alternatively, give the commands:
Q CE to display the current element
Q MEM to display the members list of the current element
7.3 Navigate to a Given Element

The user normally navigates to an element by means of the Design Explorer or the
Members List.
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7.3.1 Design Explorer
The Design Explorer provides an easy-to-use, graphical method of exploring the Design
Database. It has the following features:
A Tree View display of DESIGN database elements (which can be expanded and
contracted by clicking the or icons) in the current MDB. The icons in the tree view
represent the different DESIGN database element types.
navigation to database elements in DESIGN databases
the ability to manage items in the display using the Draw List (a separate window
listing the displayed items)
the ability to query the attributes of, rename, delete, copy and paste DESIGN database
elements.
The current element can be identified in the Design Explorer as the highlighted item in the
tree view and is displayed in the History list in the main menu bar. The History list contains
a list of recently visited items.
Design Explorer replaces most of the functions of the Members List in PDMS DESIGN. The
Members List is still available from the Display menu.
The Design Explorer will be displayed on entry to DESIGN. If you dismiss it, it can be
reinstated by selecting Display>Design Explorer from the main menu bar.
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7.3.2 Members List
As with the Design Explorer, the Members List displays the database elements in the
current MDB.
There are a number of ways to navigate from one item to another. The and arrows at
the top of the Members List allow navigation up and down the list at the level of the current
element. For example, if positioned at an EQUI element, selecting would move to the
next EQUI element in the list. Selecting would move back to the previous EQUI element.
The Goto menu at the top of the form can also be used. First select this menu, then select
the Owner option, this will navigate to the owner of the CE.
Choosing the Goto>Reference option will give a list of further options depending on the
Current Element. Goto>Reference at EQUI level will only navigate to its owner, i.e. a
ZONE. If the current element were a nozzle (NOZZ) then Goto>Reference would allow
navigation inside the catalogue database via the NOZZs Catref attribute.
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PDMS databases may contain many thousands of elements, however, only one element
can be accessed at a time. As all elements, with the exception of the WORLD, are owned by
another element, deleting, say, a ZONE would cause everything owned by that ZONE to be
deleted as well.
7.3.3 Other Explorers

Besides the Design Explorer (to navigate the DESIGN database), there are similar explorers
in DRAFT (to navigate the DRAFT database), SPOOLER and ISODRAFT (to navigate the
ISOD (spool drawings)) database and PARAGON (to navigate Paragon, Design and
Properties databases).
7.3.4 My Data
The My Data window is used to group data into collections. You can then carry out
operations on all the items in a collection in one action. The My Data window is accessed by
selecting My Data from the Display menu.
Using the window, you can generate collections of database elements which you may need
to work on. Each time you access the My Data window in any of the modules that use it
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(DRAFT, DESIGN, SPOOLER, etc), the data collections generated will be displayed. This
enables elements to be easily transferred between these modules.
The contents of My Data persists between applications and module switching, as well as
between design sessions. The data stored is per user, per project in the PDMSUSER
directory. This means that, for example, in DESIGN you could add elements to My Data and
then switch to DRAFT to use the same data. Note that is the PDMSUSER directory is
shared between users, those users will see the same data.
7.4 Modify the Content of a Database

You would normally create, modify or delete elements using the GUI, by means of the
Create, Modify and Delete pull-down menus. The options available depend on the module
that you are in and the application that is loaded. For example, for the DESIGN module,
General Application:
7.5 Drawlist GUI

To display the Drawlist, right-click on the Drawlist button and select Drawlist from the
pop-up menu:
7:7 12.0
The Drawlist form lists the names of items displayed in the 3D View. Adding an item to the
3D View (by dragging from the Design Explorer) automatically adds the item to the Drawlist.
Individual elements can be added, or an entire Zone or Site.
The visual properties of Drawlist members can be changed using the controls on the
Drawlist form.
A Drawlist member can also be added to the My Data form by dragging an item from the
Drawlist and dropping it into the My Data form.
The Drawlist can be organised in groups by dragging a column header to the indicated
position on the form. The gadgets at the top of the list can be used to filter the list by making
selections from the right-click pop-up menu.
Right-clicking on a Drawlist member gives the following shortcut menu:
7:8 12.0
The options are:
Navigate To - Makes the selected item the current element.
Hide - Temporarily removes selected items from the display.
Show - Shows items that were previously hidden.
Remove - Remove the selected item from the Drawlist. A similar operation
can be performed from within Design Explorer, or using the
Remove button.
Add to My Data - Adds the selected items to the My Data list. It is also possible to
drag and drop an item from the Drawlist into the My Data form.
Multiple elements in the Drawlist can be selected using the standard Microsoft Windows list
selection methods (using the mouse together with the Shift or Ctrl keys). Any changes made
to visual properties apply to all selected items.
The Add CE to drawlist button is used to add the current element to the Drawlist.
The Select CE in list button is used to add the current element to the Drawlist (if it has been
added to the list).
The Remove button removes selected objects from the 3D View.
The Refresh Lists button updates the Drawlist to reflect any additions or removals that
have been made to the 3D View.
7.5.1 Change the Visual Properties

The Drawlist form allows the Colour, Edges and Translucency of displayed items to be
modified. The new settings are applied to the selected objects when the Update Display
button is clicked. The Reset button resets the Display Settings without applying changes.
Colour
The colour of all selected items in the Drawlist can be changed by selecting from a
colour palette; this is displayed when the Colour button is clicked.
Edges
The Edges option can be used to display edges on the selected items, or to remove
edge display on selected items.
Note: The current element will be displayed in the current element colour and so will be
unaffected by colour changes until another element is made current.
When modifying the visual properties of a top-level element in the Drawlist, lower
level elements in the list owned by this element will also be modified.
Translucency
Setting the translucency of displayed items allows you to see through the translucent
items to items behind them in display. The degree of opaqueness can be controlled
selecting the required percentage translucency on the slider bar. On this scale, 0% is a
solid colour and 100% is completely transparent.
Note that items drawn with translucent colour may appear to overlap with each other in
some view directions. This is not a problem, it is an effect of viewing one translucent
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item through another. It is often better to draw translucent items with edges shown for a
clearer view of the item.
7.5.2 Display of Graphical Selection

The Graphical Selection tab lists those objects in the current graphical selection. The
Display Settings can be modified for these objects in the same way as for the Drawlist tab.
7.5.3 Display of Primitives

When an object is displayed in the Drawlist tab, its primitives can be displayed in the
Primitives tab. This allows the control of the display for individual primitives.
7.5.4 Other Drawlist Functions

The Drawlist button on the 3D View toolbar has both a left-click and a right-click function,
described below.
Pick Object to Hide

In normal operation, the 3D view allows an object to be hidden with a right mouse click in the
graphical view. However during a multi-pick sequence, this function is not available. For
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example, when defining a clipping box by two picks, if the object of interest for the second
pick is obscured, it cannot be picked.
A left click on the Drawlist button sets the graphical view so that the next 3D object picked
will be hidden. This has the effect of temporarily suspending any current multi-pick
sequence and allowing the obscuring object to be picked. This will cause the picked object
to be hidden whereupon the multi-pick sequence will be restored, allowing the user to
complete the sequence.
Show Hidden Objects

Once an object has been hidden in the graphical view, it can be reshown using either of two
menu options available with a right click on the Drawlist button.
The first option, Show Last Hidden Object(s) reshows the objects most recently hidden
during the current session, provided that they are still in the drawlist.
The second option, Show All Hidden Objects reshows all objects hidden during the current
session, provided that they are still in the drawlist.
The third option, Show Hidden Objects displays a form allowing the user to select objects
to be reshown. The form lists all the objects in the drawlist for this view that are currently
hidden.
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Local Views
When a graphical view is first displayed from the main DESIGN menu, it will display any
objects in the global drawlist. The Drawlist button right-click menu provides an option to
create a new local view of the graphical selection. The new view will be created with its own
drawlist containing only those objects in the graphical selection.
Clone Views
The Drawlist button also provides an option to create a clone of the current view. This
creates another view using the same drawlist as the current view. This may be the global
drawlist or a local drawlist depending on how the current view itself was created.
Note: Undoing the deletion of an element will result in the element being added to the
global drawlist, but it will not be re-added to any local drawlist which contained the
deleted element.
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Representation
When a Drawlist is created, it inherits the current representation settings from the global
drawlist. A subset of these settings can then be controlled for a particular view by displaying
the Representation form using the Drawlist button
7.6 PDMS Search Utility

The PDMS Search Facility enables the user to search for model items in all the graphical
applications and list the search results in a table. To display the Search form select:
Display>Search Utility.
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Name Contains You can search for items where name contains a specified
string. The search function is case-sensitive.
Item Type Once or more item types can be entered in this field,
separated by a space, comma or semi-colon such as:
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EQUI PIPE, NOZZ; TEE
Selecting the [ALL] option from the drop-down list finds all
item types within the current scope. This field requires a
valid entry before the search process is initiated.
The history for the current session in the combo-box is remembered by the search tool and
can be cleared at any time by selecting the Clear History option from the drop-down list.
Display Search Results Opens the Search Results table.
Clicking the Search button starts the search process.
Search Filters
Two scopes for the search can be set in the Search Filters section of the Search form.
1. Hierarchical Search beneath a Ceiling
When the search tool is first opened during a session, the default scope will have the
world element (/*) as the ceiling of the search within the current database (e.g. Design,
if within the Design application). To change this ceiling, select the Beneath Item
checkbox combo-box. Alternatively, click the CE button to set the current element as
the Ceiling for the search.
The databases listed in the In Database combo-box are those that are available to you
and the combo-box will automatically update if the database item exists in any of those
databases. Similarly, if you change the database type in the combo-box then the
database item currently displayed will be checked, and if not found in that database,
the ceiling of the search scope will be reset to world.
The database items entered in the Beneath Item combo-box will be remembered
throughout the session. This history can be cleared by selecting the Clear History
option from the pull-down list.
2. Volumetric Search within an Existing Model Item or an Explicit Volume
To set the search scope for Volumetric Searching, select the In Volume checkbox to
activate the Of Item and Explicit Volume search scope approaches.
With the Of Item checkbox selected, enter a valid model item for the scope of the
search in the adjacent combo-box. Alternatively, click the CE button to enter the current
element in the combo-box. The items found will reside within the volume of the
specified model item. A Clear History option is available from the drop-down list.
With the Explicit Volume checkbox selected, you can specify the opposite 2 corners of
a 3D box in which to conduct a search by setting the appropriate coordinates in the X,
Y and Z boxes.
The Completely within and Partially within option buttons, which are applicable to
both volumetric search approaches, allow you to specify whether the found items exist
completely or partially within the specified volume.
Attribute Filters
You can set one or more attribute filters for the search. The specified attributes will apply to
each item type listed. If there is more than one attribute filter specified then the found items
will satisfy all of the attribute filters.
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To add an attribute filter, select the Add Filter action label and then enter a valid attribute in
the displayed field. Click in the Operator field and accept the suggested Operator or select
a different one from the drop-down list. With the Operator selected, click in the Value field
and enter an appropriate value. Accepting these settings enters them in the filter grid.
In List Operator
The In List Operator enables you to specify a list of values (separated by spaces) for the
specified attribute value - these can be numeric or non-numeric, depending on the type of
the attribute. For example, Attribute=AREA, Operator="In the List", Value="0 1 3", would find
items which have AREA attribute equal to either 0 or 1 or 3.
In Range Operator
The In Range Operator enables you to specify a range of 2 numeric values i.e. an upper
and a lower limit, inclusive. So, for example, Attribute=AREA, Operator="In the range",
Value="1 10", would find items which have AREA attribute equal to any numeric value
between and including 1 and 10.
If the attribute is changed once it is in the grid, then the Operator and Value fields will
update accordingly.
Delete Filter Selecting one or more rows and then clicking this action
label removes the appropriate attribute filters from the grid.
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7.6.1 Saved Searches

You can save the searches that you have created, and these will be available in future
session of PDMS. The application you are using will determine where you will be able to
save searches and which saved searches are available to you for use. By default all users
will be able to save searches into the local settings directory of the local computer.
A saved search is composed of the criteria used to determine the search, together with the
columns which are to be output in the search results form.
In order to run a saved search you can select a named search and press the search button.
The results will be output into the grid on the search results form. The main search form will
become populated with the search criteria.
7.6.2 Create a Saved Search

You can save a search at any time by selecting the action label Create "Saved Search"
Based on Current Search Criteria. This will prompt for the name of the search and the
location on the hard drive of your computer (this is determined by the application you are
using).
7.6.3 Delete a Saved Search

Select the action label Delete Selected Saved Search to delete the current saved search.
Note that you can also delete the saved search from the location on your computer, and it
will not be loaded the next time you start PDMS.
Note: There is also a toolbar for saved searches. This allows you to run and delete saved
searches without having to open the main Search form.
7.6.4 Explorer Bar Functionality

The Scope of Search and Attribute Filters explorer bars can be open and closed using
the expand/collapse button at the end of each bar. Also the positions of the bars can be
interchanged by dragging and dropping one above or beneath the other.
7.6.5 Search Results

As soon as the search is underway the text on the Go button changes to Stop, and this can
be clicked at any time to stop the search.
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On completion of the search the Search Tool will automatically open the Search Results
table and populate the table with the search results.
Note: If the Search Results form is closed, then it can be opened at any time by selecting
the Display Search Results link label on the Search form, or from the Display
toolbar menu.
The Search Results form contains a grid control. You can specify the columns that are
displayed - each column represents an attribute or a valid PDMS expression of an item in
the system.
You can select either one or more rows in the Search Results form and perform specified
actions on this data. For example, within DESIGN, you can drag & drop one or more items
into the 3D graphical view. All menu actions can be specified within the AVEVA
customizable menu builder application.
Search Results functionality is accessible through the right-click pop-up menus. Right-
clicking on the column titles shows the general functionality menu and right-clicking on
search results shows a menu of operations that can be performed on the selected items.
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7.6.6 Functionality on the Search Output Form
General Functionality
Set Columns in the Search Results

Attribute columns can be created, modified and deleted with the Column settings function.
To access this function, select the Column Setup option from the white-space pop-up menu
to display the Column Setup form.
Using this form, you can change the order of columns, as well as deleting and adding
columns.
Note: The changes to the order of the columns will not be shown until a new search is
initiated.
Clear the Search Results

The data in the Search Results form can be cleared with the Clear Grid Results white-
space pop-up menu command.
Search Results Form Settings

Enable Group Sorting
Enable Filtering
Display Column Summaries
Enable Column Sort
Suppress "unset" values
Suppress "Nulref" values
Interaction Mode
Read Only
Single Cell Edit
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Bulk Cell Edit
Feedback Colours
Read Only Cell Colour
Edit Success Colour
Edit Fail Colour
Reset Default Feedback Colours
Reset Cell Feedback

Following cell editing operations the cell feedback (highlight colour and edit feedback tool
tip) can be cleared.
Refresh
All cell values are refreshed from the data source. This refreshes the grid if the data source
and displayed information are out of synchronisation.
Save as Excel
The Export to Excel menu option enables the search results to be saved to a specified
Excel file (.xls).
Print Preview
This enables the search results to be previewed in a Print Preview window and then
printed.
Row Selection Menus

The row selection menus are module dependent.
Other Functionality
Drag & Drop

Selected rows can be dragged and dropped into an appropriate drag target - such as the
Design 3D View.
Adding to My Data
Selected rows in the Search Results can be added to My Data by drag and drop or through
the appropriate menu option.
Customizable Menus
See the Software Customisation Guide.
Filtering etc
See GUI Grid Data.
7.7 GUI Grid Data

Data that is presented on a grid on a form can be customised using the grid control
functionality. Each instance of the grid control will be utilised and customised in each
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application in a different way. Not all of the available functionality described here will
necessarily be available on any particular instance of the data grid.
The following figure shows a typical data grid display, comprising PIPE and EQUI items.
Note: The attribute POSITION is invalid in PIPE items, and is indicated by an appropriate
icon. Similarly, PSPEC is invalid on EQUI items.
In addition to the functions described below, right-clicking an item can display a pop-up
menu with options to execute various commands on these items, such as Add to 3D View.
7.7.1 Move around the Grid using the Keyboard

In single or bulk edit mode, use the Tab key to move form one cell to the next. Use Shift +
Tab to move to the previous cell.
In read-only mode, use the Tab key to move from one row to the next. Use Shift + Tab to
move to the previous row.
Both horizontal and vertical scroll bars are available in the grid.
7.7.2 Selection
In read-only mode, click anywhere on a row to select it:
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In single edit mode, clicking on a cell places that cell in edit mode:
In bulk edit mode, double clicking on a cell places that cell in edit mode. A single click on a
cell selects the cell itself. Use the standard windows selection methods (left mouse click plus
Ctrl and Shift keys) to select multiple groups of cells. A left mouse key drag operation can
also be used to select multiple cells:
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In bulk edit mode, Fill Down, Fill Up and Copy/Paste operations apply to all cells currently
selected.
To select an entire row in single or bulk edit mode, click on the row selector column at the
left of the grid:
In both read-only and single or bulk edit modes, multiple rows are selected using the
standard windows selection methods (left mouse click plus Ctrl and Shift keys).
7.7.3 Grid Splitting

The grid can be split into any number of smaller grids, by clicking on the splitter bars and
dragging them to the required location. These are located at the top of the vertical scroll bar
and at the left of the horizontal scroll bars. The figure below shows the grid split into four
areas:
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To return to the standard grid display, drag the splitter bars to the top and left of the grid to
remove them.
7.7.4 Pin Rows and Columns

These functions are useful when scrolling through large amounts of data.
If the row selector column is displayed for a data grid, rows can be pinned (i.e. fixed to the
top of the grid) by clicking on their pin icons. Another click on the icon unpins that row.
Pinnned rows are shown in yellow:
Similarly, columns can be pinned to the left of the grid by clicking on the pin icon in the
column header. Clicking again unpins the column.
7.7.5 Row and Column Size

The height of all rows can be changed by dragging a row separator in the row selector
column. All rows have the same height.
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Individual column widths can be changed by dragging the column separator in the heading
area.
Column widths can be changed to the width of the widest entry in the column by double-
clicking on a column separator.
7.7.6 Column Re-order

The columns in a grid can be arranged in a different order by dragging and dropping a
column header to a different position, as shown below. The system assists the operation by
displaying red arrows for valid drop points.
7.7.7 Column Sort

The data in a column can be sorted alphabetically by clicking on a column header; a second
click will reverse the direction of the sort. An up or down arrow symbol at the right of the
column header indicates the sort direction. Only one column at a time can be sorted in this
way. In the following example, the DESCR column has been sorted alphabetically.
7.7.8 Column Filter

Two different methods of filtering are available on each column, depending on attribute data
type: Auto-Filtering and Pattern Match filtering.
Auto-Filtering
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This filtering method enables data in a column to be filtered according to the data in
that column (as in Microsoft Excel). Alternatively, data can be filtered on blank or non-
blank data.
Clicking on the down arrow button at the right of the column under the header displays
a drop-down list from which an option can be selected: The mouse pointer may need to
be moved into this area for the icon to become visible.
Pattern Match Filter

This type of filtering enables data to be filtered by searching for patterns within the data,
such as 'Starts with', 'Ends with', 'Contains', etc. Clicking on the icon at the left of the
column under the header displays a drop-down list from which an option can be
selected:
The filter text is then entered into the area to the right of the filter icon.
Note that different columns can be set with different filters, to provide compound filtering.
The filter on an individual column can be cleared by clicking the Clear Filter button. The
mouse pointer may need to be moved into this area for the button to become visible.
To clear all the filters in the grid, select the Clear All Filters button at the top of the row
selector column:
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7.7.9 Numeric Data Functions

For columns which contain numeric data, several numeric operations are available, the
results being displayed at the foot of the column. This functionality is available by clicking on
the summation symbol in the header of the column.
7.7.10 Group Sorting

Group Sorting allows the grid data to be shown in groups based on the data in the columns.
To display the data in groups, drag a column header into the Group Sort Area above the
grid data, as shown below:
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In the example below, the 'Type' column has been dragged into the Group Sort Area and
the data is therefore grouped according to 'Type':
To remove the group sorting, drag the tile from the Group Sort Area back into the heading
row.
Multiple group sortings are possible by dragging other column headers into the Group Sort
Area. The following figure shows a grid which is first ordered on 'Type', then on 'Area'.
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7.7.11 Miscellaneous Grid Data Functions

The following functions may be available on some forms (via a right-click menu), depending
on the application/utility.
Save to Excel
This enables the grid data to be saved to an Excel file.
Import an Excel Spreadsheet
If this option is available, the Excel file must contain a set of column headings in the
first row of the file, followed by the data beneath the headings.
Print Preview the Grid Data
Provides a facility to print preview the grid data, prior to printing it.
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7:30 12.0
Product Range
8 Product Range
8.1 Introduction
8.1.1 Products
AVEVA Plant is a set of integrated plant design and engineering applications combined with
open and flexible lifecycle management solutions. It provides the fastest, most productive
and risk-free tool set to design, build and operate plant of any size and complexity.
AVEVA NET
AVEVA NET is an application-neutral platform for all engineering data for the plant industry.
On this platform, a virtual plant information model is created, that enables all types of
lifecycle data - regardless of the programs that created them - to be made available and
useful to a wide range of existing applications, processes and therefore a wide range of
users across organisations. NET can be used to develop additional applications to meet the
specific lifecycle information management needs of both EPCs and Owner Operators.
VPE P&ID
VPE P&ID is an intelligent P&ID application, based on AutoCAD. Fully compatible with VPE
Workbench, with two-way synchronisation, the application enables smart on- and offline
database operation, with a full range of reports.
VPE Workbench
VPE Workbench is an integrated engineering database which manages the evolving
engineering descriptions of all tagged items in a plant.
P&ID Manager
P&ID Manager is an application for importing P&IDs from different authoring systems into
the PDMS database, to allow consolidation of all P&ID data in a project. Inconsistencies
between P&ID drawings can be identified and highlighted.
Schematic 3D Integrator
Schematic 3D Integrator is an integration application that provides data consistency
between P&IDs and the PDMS 3D model. It can be used to build the 3D model from P&ID
data, or to associate an existing 3D model with the P&ID, so that inconsistencies can be
highlighted and corrected during design development.
PDMS
PDMS is a datacentric, multi-disciplinary design environment for the 3D modelling of
process plant. It has modules for the design of equipment, piping, HVAC, structure and
8:1 12.0
Product Range
cable trays. Modelling is carried out using a customer-defined catalogue and specification,
in a full 3D environment, with the support of tools that ensure a clash-free design. A full
range of drawings and pipe isometrics can be produced automatically from the model.
Multi-Discipline Supports
Multi-Discipline Supports is an additional application for PDMS that enables the detailed
design, material take off and automated drawing production of supports for piping, ducting
and cable trays. A comprehensive range of standards are included, in addition to user-
defined catalogue customisation.
Cable Design
Cable Design is an application for the design of cables, including their routing in cableways
and through penetrations. Output includes cable schedules with routes, cable cutting lists
and material take off.
Laser Model Interface

Laser Model Interface provides online verification of as-built 3D model data by interfacing
with point cloud data from leading laser scanning systems. The interface enables revamps
to be undertaken with confidence, using the measurement, modelling tools and clash
management functions of PDMS.
Pipe Stress Interface

Pipe Stress Interface provides two-way exchange of information between PDMS and the
CAESAR II pipe stress system. Piping designers and stress engineers can exchange design
and stress information seamlessly, to eliminate data re-entry and duplication.
Model Management
A set of powerful model management tools to maximise design productivity and quality.
Functions include:
Managing and reporting the progress, status and attributes of plant objects in PDMS
Producing and controlling deliverables (isometrics, equipment drawings etc.)
Populating a 3D PDMS model directly from VPE P&ID data
Comprehensive clash management and resolution
Final Designer
Final Designer can be used at any point in the drawing production process to produce
AutoCAD drawings from PDMS and to edit them in a closely integrated environment.
Global
Global allows users at multiple sites to work together online on the same project. It controls
the release of data to each site and ensures that all sites and users have access to the
latest approved data, right down to attribute detail. Global operates across low bandwidths
and is tolerant of communication faults.
Review
Review is a powerful 3D visualisation tool for large, complex plant models. With features
such as walk-through, animation, and high-quality photo-realistic images, Review lets you
analyse designs and communicate complex ideas.
8:2 12.0
Product Range
ReviewShare NEW!
ReviewShare brings together 3D design review, mark-up and collaboration using 3D
models, embedded screenshots, document views and hyperlinks, into one application.
ReviewShare works with a large number of 3D data formats, not just PDMS, with server-
based streaming technology or desktop model files.
VPRM
VPRM allows the effective management of materials, vendor documents, design
documents, progress and costs, through all phases of a project from inception to handover.
It includes an overarching management information system summarising all VPRM activities
for project management.
NET Portal
NET Portal is a web-enabled platform for the integration and collaborative use of
engineering information. 3D models, schematics, documents and data from any application
can be accessed and navigated in context, with full intelligence, without needing the source
applications that originally created the data.
8:3 12.0
Product Range
8:4 12.0
Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations
9 Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations
9.1 Introduction
This glossary comprises:
Technical terms relevant to PDMS, with brief explanations of their meanings in the
context of AVEVA programs.
Abbreviations and acronyms used throughout the PDMS documentation, with
expansions to their full derivations.
It does not list general process engineering terms, with which you are assumed to be
familiar.
9.2 Definitions
Add-in
An add-in provides a means of adding functionality. An add-in application appears on
the applications menu, which provides a method of switching to it.
Applicationware (Appware)
A suite of forms and macros designed for use with a specific design task, for example
pipework design.
Attribute
A specific item of data which defines one of the properties of an element in a
database. An element is fully specified by combining all its attributes.
Batch Mode
A method of running a computer program without user intervention; for example,
overnight. The command inputs are stored in a file and then read sequentially into the
computer. The opposite is Interactive Mode.
Cancel
Removes a form without making any changes (To cancel a graphical selection
operation), press the Esc key.
Crosshairs
A crosshair cursor. A horizontal and a vertical line on a display screen whose
intersection represents the cursor position.
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Current Element
The element in a database at which you are notionally situated at a given stage of
database navigation.
Database
All information which exists about an AVEVA design project, whether administrative or
technical, is stored in a series of hierarchical databases.
Default
An option selected automatically if you do not specify any particular choice from an
available range of commands or attribute settings.
Discipline
A branch of a project that is concerned with specific types of Plant items (e.g. HVAC,
Piping, Steelwork, Equipment) or a specific area of the design process (e.g. Model
Management, 2D drawing).
Docking/Dockable
This describes forms and menu bars that can be attached in appropriate places to the
frame of the main PDMS window.
Drag-and-drop
Select with mouse and then drag (holding the mouse button down) to a different place.
Element
A discrete item of data held in a database; identified by number and/or name and
defined by its attributes.
Expression
A mathematical or logical definition, the calculated result of which is to be used as a
command argument.
File
An identifiable part of the computer's memory used to store data. Data may be added
to and removed from a file, or may be manipulated as a whole by operations on the
complete file.
Filename
The name of a file in the computer's operating system. When referenced from within
PDMS the filename must be preceded by a / symbol, or in some contexts surround by
quotes. The symbol is not part of the filename as defined by the computer's operating
system.
Form (also referred to as a Dialogue Box)
That part of a graphical user interface screen into which you may enter the settings of
parameters or command arguments, usually with prompting text which shows you
what to enter at each location.
Graphics File
See Plotfile.
GROUP
A collective element which can be used to form temporary links between otherwise
unrelated elements in a database.
Head
The input end of a BRANCH (under normal flow conditions).
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Hit Radius
The maximum acceptable error in identifying a point on a screen using a graphics
pointer. If the distance from the pointer position to the intended location is larger than
the hit radius, the location will not be identified.
Interactive Mode
The method of operation whereby you perform an operation using the mouse and/or
keyboard and wait for PDMS to interpret and act upon it before you perform the next
operation. The opposite is Batch Mode.
Level (drawing)
An attribute of an element in a Design database which defines whether or not the
corresponding item is to be shown when a drawing is plotted. The levels to be drawn
are specified as part of the plotting command.
Level (hierarchic)
The vertical position at which a given type of element is situated in a database
structure; analogous to a generation in a family tree.
Macro
A sequence of commands stored as a text file. When the macro is called from within
PDMS, the command processor reads each line of the file in turn and behaves as if
the commands were being directly entered.
Member (of an Element List)
A lower-level element linked immediately below another element (its owner) in a
database hierarchy. A Group Member is an exception in that it is linked only indirectly
to the GROUP, which is a parent but not its owner.
Member (of a Team)
A named PDMS user who is linked with other users (as a team) who share common
access rights to one or more databases.
Module
A subdivision of the overall PDMS program which is used to carry out a particular type
of operation on the databases. Each module has its own name within the program
suite.
Multiple Database (MDB)
A group of databases linked together administratively for a specific purpose. You can
only access a database if you have access rights to an MDB which contains it.
My Data
a storage area for remembering PDMS data for future use. Typically used to copy
collections of elements from one module to another.
Name
A name in PDMS is an element identifier which you allocate to it. It is an alphanumeric
string prefixed by a / symbol. This identifier is always additional to the element's
reference number, which is allocated automatically by PDMS.
Offspring
A lower-level element linked anywhere below another element (one of its parents) in a
database hierarchy. A member is a special case of an offspring.
Owner
One higher-level element linked directly above another element (one of its members)
in a database hierarchy.
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Parameter
A -variable item of information (value, text etc.) which must be defined before a
command can be executed unambiguously.
Parent
A higher-level element linked anywhere above another element (one of its offspring) in
a database hierarchy. An owner is a special case of a parent.
PIPE
An element, comprising an assembly of BRANCHes, which defines part of a complex
piping system. The term has a specific meaning in PDMS which may not correspond
with its usual engineering meaning.
Plotfile
A file which contains encoded graphics data. The file's contents can be unspooled to a
plotter or graphics screen when the corresponding drawing is to be generated.
Pointer (1)
An indicator (also referred to as the cursor) on a display screen which identifies one
of two types of location:
An alpha pointer (e.g. a flashing block or bar) shows where the next input
character will appear
A graphics pointer (e.g. an arrowhead) identifies a location or an element in the
depicted part of the design model.
Pointer (2)
A link between elements or attributes, indicating the path by which information is
transferred logically between the various parts of the databases.
P-point (Principal Point)
An imaginary location and direction used to manipulate and interconnect elements
which represent physical entities in the design model. A P-line is a p-point extruded in
a specific direction.
Primitive
A fundamental design shape (box, cylinder etc.) used to build up the design of a
physical entity in the design model or component catalogue.
Read-only
An access category that allows you to look at the contents of a database or file but not
to modify them.
Read/Write
An access category that allows you to look at the contents of a database or file and to
modify them.
Enter (key)
The carriage return key on the keyboard. Used to end each typed command line and
send its contents to the command processor. Also referred to as the Return key.
Selection
A selection of objects defined using the 3D graphical view.
Shortcut Menu
a context-sensitive menu activated by the secondary (usually right-hand) mouse
button.
9:4 12.0
Syntax (Of Commands)

the rules which define precisely how a command line must be entered so that PDMS
can interpret your instructions unambiguously. Syntax is usually specified by using
diagrams to show the valid command sequences.
Tail
The output end of a BRANCH (under normal flow conditions).
Team
An administrative grouping of PDMS users who share common access rights to one or
more databases.
Textual Expression
An expression which manipulates text simply as strings of alphanumeric characters
without regard to their overall meaning.
Title bar
The top of a window, containing its title.
Toolbar
A collection of GUI icons, used to trigger the GUI actions.
Unspooler
A translation program which allows graphical output files (plotfiles) produced by a
computer program to be input to an offline plotter. Each combination of output format
and plotter type requires a specific unspooler.
User-Defined Attribute
A database attribute whose name and type of content are defined by the user rather
than by the default PDMS structure.
WORLD
The highest level element in any database; always allocated the symbol /* as its
PDMS name.
9.3 Abbreviations and Acronyms

Abbreviations which are thought to be self-explanatory, particularly those which are simply
the first few letters of an obvious word, are not listed.
ABA Area Based ADP
ADP Automatic Drawing Production
ASCII American Standard Code for Information Interchange
API Application Programming Interface
CATREF Catalogue Reference
CE Current Element
CL Centreline
COCO Connection Compatibility
CPU Central Processor Unit
9:5 12.0
CREF Connection Reference
CTORU Circular (cross-section) Torus
DABACON Database Constructor
DAC Data Access Control
DB Database
DDL Data Definition Language
DXF Drawing Exchange Format (as used by AutoCAD)
GTYP Generic Type
GUI Graphical User Interface
HPGL Hewlett Packard Graphics Language
I/O Input/Output
IGES International Graphics Exchange Specification
Iso ADP Isometric ADP
LJSE Lap Joint Stub End
MDB Multiple Database
MOM Model Object Manager
MDS Multi-Discipline Supports
OS Operating System
Pn P-point n (where n is an integer)
PA P-Arrive or Arrive P-point
PADD Production of Annotated and Dimensioned Drawings
PDMS Plant Design Management System
PH Pipe Head
P&ID Piping and Instrumentation Diagram
PID Piping and Instrumentation Diagram
PL P-Leave or Leave P-point
PML Programmable Macro Language
POHED Polyhedron
PT Pipe Tail
PTRANS Percent (%) Variable Translator
PVOL Preferred Volume or Penalty Volume
Q Query
9:6 12.0
Refno Reference Number (of an element in a database)
RTORU Rectangular (cross-section) Torus
SHU Standard Hookup
SKEY Symbol Key
SPCOM Specification Component
SPREF Specification Reference
STYP Symbol Type
UDA User-Defined Attribute
VDM View Definition Matrix
WN Weld Neck
2D or 3D Two- or Three-dimensional
@ Crosshair cursor location
9:7 12.0
9:8 12.0
Index
A DRAFT module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:4

Drawlist GUI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:7
ADMIN module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:7
E
B
Escape key/button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Button
control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
G
toggle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3 Grid Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:20
C I
Check box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3 ISODRAFT module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:5
Command Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:10
Control button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
L
Current element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
Current list position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2 LEXICON module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:7
List
D scrollable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
Database
M
CATALOGUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2
COMMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
DESIGN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2 (of element) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
DICTIONARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2 Menu
MISC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
PADD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:2 pull-down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
PROPERTIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 MONITOR Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:7
SYSTEM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3 Mouse buttons
TRANSACTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:4 functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1
DESIGN module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:3
Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:5
Dockable Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Index page 1 12.0

O
Option button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:2
P
PARAGON module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:6
Product Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1
Project Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1
Prompts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
PROPCON module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:6
Pull-down menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
R
Radio button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
S
Scrollable list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:3
Search Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:13
SPECON module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:6
SPOOLER module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:4
Status bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:5
Submenu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
T
Text box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:2
Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:4
Index page 2 12.0

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Getting Started With PDMS PDF

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Getting Started

First published September 2007

AVEVA Solutions Ltd, and its subsidiaries

Getting Started With PDMS

PDMS Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:1

PDMS Databases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:1

SYSTEM Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3:3

How PDMS Data is Stored . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4:1

Using PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5:1

Basic GUI Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6:1

Basic Operations in PDMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:1

Other Explorers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:6

Product Range. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8:1

Glossary of Terms and Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9:1

1 Scope of this Manual

1.1 What it Includes

1.2 Who Should Use this Manual

1.3 How the Manual is Organised

PDMS Functions introduces the basic steps to be taken to design a Plant

Product Range shows the AVEVA product ranges.

Glossary of Terms and is a glossary of PDMS terms and abbreviations.

produce numerous types of drawing, ranging from complex 3D illustrations to fully

2.1 Using PDMS in the PlantDesign Process

Document the design in the form of drawings (general arrangement, construction,

2.2 PDMS Modules

2.2.1 DESIGN Modules

2.2.2 Drafting Modules

2.2.3 Catalogue and Specification Management Modules

2.2.4 Project Administration Modules

3.2 Database Types

Design and Drawing Databases:

3.2.2 DESIGN Database

3.2.3 PADD Database

3.2.4 ISOD Database

3.2.5 CATALOGUE Database

3.2.6 DICTIONARY Database

3.2.7 PROPERTIES Database

3.2.8 SYSTEM Database

3.2.9 COMMS Database

3.2.10 MISC Database

3.2.11 TRANSACTION Database

4 How PDMS Data is Stored

4.1 DESIGN Database Element Types

4.1.4 EQUIPMENT (EQUI)

4.1.5 SUB-EQUIPMENT (SUBE)

4.1.7 STRUCTURES (STRU)

4.1.8 FRAMEWORK (FRMW)

4.1.9 SUB-FRAMEWORK (SBFR)

4.1.10 STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS

4.1.12 BRANCH (BRAN)

4.1.13 PIPING COMPONENTS

4.2 Attributes in PDMS

Attribute Default Value

4.3 UDAs (User Defined Attributes)

:COLOUR (User Defined Attribute)

:HEIGHT (Normal Attribute)

4.5 Attributes Form

5.1 Logging into PDMS

This form lists all available PDMS Projects.

5.1.6 Read Only

5.1.7 Restore Views

5.2 Exit out of PDMS

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