Managing Catalogs

Catalogs are your libraries of profiles, materials, bolts, and rebar. They define the standard components available when modeling — when you assign a profile to a beam or a material to a plate, you're selecting from the catalog.

Access all catalogs from the Library menu in the menu bar.

Profile Catalog

The profile catalog contains cross-section definitions for beams, columns, and other linear members.

What's included by default

New models come with a comprehensive set of European steel sections:

Category	Examples
I-sections	IPE80–IPE600, HEA100–HEA1000, HEB100–HEB1000, HEM100–HEM1000
Channels	UNP, UAP
Angles	L-sections
Circular Hollow Sections (CHS)	CHS42.4x2.6 – CHS508x16
Square Hollow Sections (SHS)	SHS40x3 – SHS400x16
Rectangular Hollow Sections (RHS)	RHS50x30x3 – RHS500x300x16

How profiles are organized

Profiles follow a three-level hierarchy:

1. Catalog — A collection (e.g., "European Sections")
2. Group — A category (e.g., "IPE", "HEA", "CHS")
3. Section — An individual profile (e.g., "IPE300", "CHS168.3x5")

The first catalog in the list is your model's local catalog — you can add, edit, and remove sections freely. Catalogs imported from files appear as read-only references.

Supported section types

Type	Shape	Parameters
I	I-beam / H-section	Height, width, web thickness, flange thickness, fillet radius
U	Channel	Height, width, web thickness, flange thickness, fillet radius
L	Angle	Height, width, web thickness, flange thickness, fillet radius
Circle	Solid circular	Diameter
Rectangle	Solid rectangular	Height, width
CHS	Circular hollow	Outer diameter, wall thickness
SHS	Square hollow	Side length, wall thickness, corner radius
RHS	Rectangular hollow	Height, width, wall thickness, corner radius
Custom	Arbitrary shape	Outer polygon + optional inner holes

Quick profile entry

You can type profile names directly in the beam's profile field using shorthand notation:

Input	Result
IPE300	Looks up IPE300 from the catalog
D200	Solid circular section, 200 mm diameter
200x100	Solid rectangle, 200 × 100 mm
PL20 or PL200x10	Plate designation
I150x70x5x7	I-section with custom dimensions
CHS200x10	Circular hollow section 200 × 10
SHS100x5	Square hollow section 100 × 5
RHS200x100x8	Rectangular hollow section 200 × 100 × 8

Managing profiles

In the profile catalog dialog (Library → Profile Catalog), you can:

• Add a group — Create a new section category
• Add a section — Add a profile within a group
• Rename groups and sections
• Delete groups or sections
• Drag and drop — Reorder sections between groups
• Import — Load profiles from a .profileCatalog file
• Export — Download your catalog as a .profileCatalog file to share with others

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Material Catalog

The material catalog defines materials with their physical properties.

What's included by default

Type	Included grades
Steel	S235, S275, S355J2, S460
Concrete	C20/25, C25/30, C30/37, C35/45, C40/50, C50/60
Timber	GL24h, GL28c, C24

Material properties

Each material has:

• Name — Material designation (e.g., "S355J2")
• Type — Steel, Concrete, Timber, or Miscellaneous
• Density — Unit weight in kg/m³

Managing materials

In the material catalog dialog (Library → Material Catalog):

• Add new materials
• Rename and delete existing materials
• Import from .materialCatalog files
• Export as .materialCatalog files

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Bolt Catalog

The bolt catalog manages bolt components and complete assemblies.

What's included by default

DIN933/DIN934 bolt assemblies in common sizes: M12, M16, M20, M24, M27, M30 with standard washers and nuts.

Catalog structure

Each bolt catalog contains four sub-categories:

Category	What it defines
Bolts	Bolt definitions — standard, size, grade, length
Washers	Washer definitions — standard, size, dimensions
Nuts	Nut definitions — standard, size, dimensions
Assemblies	Complete bolt assemblies combining a bolt, washers, and nuts

Assemblies

A bolt assembly defines which components make up a complete bolt connection:

• Bolt — The fastener itself
• Washer 1 — Under the bolt head
• Washer 2 — Above the nut
• Washer 3 — Additional washer (if needed)
• Nut — Primary nut
• Nut 2 — Lock nut (if needed)

Managing bolts

In the bolt catalog dialog (Library → Bolt Catalog):

• Add items to any sub-category
• Rename and delete items
• Import from .boltCatalog files
• Export as .boltCatalog files

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Rebar Catalog

The rebar catalog defines reinforcement bar grades, sizes, and bending parameters.

What's included by default

B500B reinforcement bars in standard diameters: Ø8, Ø10, Ø12, Ø16, Ø20, Ø25, Ø32

Rebar properties

Each rebar entry has:

• Grade — Steel grade (e.g., B500B, B500C)
• Size — Bar designation (e.g., Ø16)
• Diameter — Actual bar diameter in mm
• Bending radius — Minimum bending radius in mm

Managing rebar

In the rebar catalog dialog (Library → Rebar Catalog):

• Add rebar items
• Rename and delete items
• Import from .rebarCatalog files
• Export as .rebarCatalog files

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Sharing Catalogs with Your Team

Each catalog type has its own file format:

Catalog	File extension
Profiles	.profileCatalog
Materials	.materialCatalog
Bolts	.boltCatalog
Rebar	.rebarCatalog

Exporting a catalog

1. Open the catalog dialog from the Library menu
2. Click the download/export button
3. The catalog is saved as a file you can share via email, file server, or any other method

Importing a catalog

You can import catalog files in three ways:

1. Library menu — Open the catalog dialog and use the import button
2. File → Open — Select a catalog file
3. Drag and drop — Drag the catalog file directly into the Calculus window

When you import a catalog, it is merged with your existing data — duplicate entries (matched by ID) are skipped, and only new entries are added. This means you can safely import the same catalog file multiple times without creating duplicates.

Building a team library

A practical workflow for teams:

1. Set up your catalogs once with your company's standard profiles, materials, and bolt assemblies
2. Export each catalog to a shared folder
3. Each team member imports these catalogs into their models
4. When standards change, update the catalog files and have everyone re-import

Since catalogs are embedded in .calculus model files, anyone who opens your model will automatically have access to the same catalog data you used.