Kubla Software https://www.kublasoftware.com Engineering - Surveying - Construction. Wed, 16 Mar 2022 08:19:47 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.9.9 https://www.kublasoftware.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/cropped-square-icon-32x32.png Kubla Software https://www.kublasoftware.com 32 32 Watch the housing projects webinar https://www.kublasoftware.com/watch-the-housing-projects-webinar/ Wed, 16 Mar 2022 08:19:44 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5907
Don’t miss the chance to improve and learn a new workflow in Kubla Cubed!

Using the example of a housing project, this presentation will walk through, step-by-step, what we believe are the best ways to get the best results to your cut and fill calculations.

Starting with defining the Existing TIN surface, we will finish by producing cutfill reports with separate break-downs for the
different areas on site (plots, gardens, roads etc.)

Watch the best bits from the webinar we hosted on 4th and 5th March:

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Webinar | Housing Projects in Kubla Cubed https://www.kublasoftware.com/webinar-housing-projects-in-kubla-cubed/ Fri, 11 Feb 2022 11:35:34 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5526
Don’t miss the chance to improve and learn a new workflow in Kubla Cubed!
Using the example of a housing project, this presentation will walk through what we believe are the best ways to get the best results to your cut and fill calculations.
Starting with defining the Existing TIN surface, we will finish by producing cut\fill reports with separate break-downs for the
different areas on site (plots, gardens, roads etc.)

Thursday 03 March 2022

We hope you can join us live but if you can’t make it you will be able to watch it back, on YouTube, at a later date.

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The Dirt | User Review of Kubla Cubed https://www.kublasoftware.com/the-dirt-user-review-of-kubla-cubed/ Tue, 25 Jan 2022 10:42:03 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5503

Read or watch this review hosted by a Kubla Cubed user. Published by Equipment World in their blog, The Dirt.

https://www.equipmentworld.com/the-dirt/video/15287280/this-estimating-tool-could-be-big-help-for-small-contractors

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Offset a Contour Line, Break-line or Outline https://www.kublasoftware.com/offset-a-contour-line-break-line-or-outline/ Thu, 13 Jan 2022 14:26:56 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5461

Have you traced lines or extracted then from a PDF/CAD file? You may need to add more lines or perhaps you weren’t able to extract all the lines. The Offset tool is useful when creating a footpath by offseting the road outline, for pond contours or an area around a building pad.  

The Line editing tools (Join, Split, Offset and Set Multiple Elevations) assist with the definition of lines. They are accessible from within the element editor (left-hand menu) in from the tools 🛠 button.

The video below shows a few scenarios of how you can use the Offset tool:

 

🛠  THE OFFSET TOOL

The Offset Tool (new to Kubla Cubed 2021) gives you the functionality to create a new line placed at a user specified offset (relative distance and relative elevation) from the original line.

  1. Click Edit on a Feature Surface (or be in the editor view)
  2. Select the Offset tool from the Editing Tools 🛠 menu
  3. Select the line you wish to offset
  4. Position your crosshair cursor and click to confirm which side of the original line you want the new line to be added to.
  5. In the bottom menu bar, specify the Distance relative to the original line (how far the new line will be placed from the original)
  6. Specify the relative Z adjustment (the new line’s elevation relative to the original).
  7. The preview will display after valid data has been entered and the user has deselected the input boxes
  8. Check the preview is what you want, and update Distance and Z Adjustment as required.
  9. Press the ‘Finish‘ button

    By default the Distance is 1 and the Z Adjustment is 0.00

🛠  THE OFFSET TOOL – ROUND CORNERS

When the new outline is outside the original line, there is the option to adjust the roundness of the corners. Move the Round Corners slider to adjust to your requirements. 

Tip:- zoom into the new outline to see the changes to the line as you move the slider. 

FURTHER RESOURCES

 

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Kubla Cubed 2021 | 6.2 Update https://www.kublasoftware.com/kubla-cubed-2021-6-2-update/ Fri, 07 Jan 2022 14:38:46 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5478

To upgrade to the latest version of Kubla Cubed 2021 6.2, open your installed application and click Download Now.

You will then install the latest fixes, updates and features, including the linear Offset Tool.

If you have a Perpetual License (2019 or earlier) and would like to upgrade to Kubla Cubed 2021, please contact sales@kublasoftware.com.

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Season’s Greetings https://www.kublasoftware.com/seasons-greetings-2/ Thu, 23 Dec 2021 14:27:53 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5466
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Change The Cursor Label https://www.kublasoftware.com/change-the-cursor-label/ Tue, 07 Dec 2021 11:34:27 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5418

Kubla Cubed can display information (in real time) on the mouse 🖱️ cursor. The label options can be customised to show only the information you require.

Here is a quick video to show you how to change the cursor label: 

 

SETTINGS > CURSOR  🢒

The default settings can easily be changed by clicking:

‘Settings’ in the top menu bar then ‘Cursor 🢒 ’.

 

CURSOR SETTINGS

Tick the ones that you want to have visible on your cursor. Or untick to turn off, if they are not required. 

 

X: Y:  Co-ordinates. The position of at the point the mouse is hovering over.

Z(Existing):  Ze. The existing ground level.

Z(Proposed):  Zp. The proposed ground level.

Cut\Fill:  C = Cut; F = Fill.  The difference between the Ze and Zp

 

 

MEASURING TOOL COPY

Sometimes there is a requirement to copy the contents of the cursor label.

To copy the contents of the cursor label to the clipboard:

1. Tick the ‘Measure Tool Copy’ on the cursor menu, to turn it on.

2. Tap theM’ key. This will activate the quick measure tool and copy the contents to the clipboard.

3. After copying open a document or spreadsheet and paste either using the Edit menu of the program or using the universal Ctrl+V shortcut for pasting. 

 

YOU MIGHT ALSO BE INTERESTED IN:

Kubla Cubed can display either metric or imperial (English) units. Learn how to change the units.

FURTHER RESOURCES

 

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Add Features From A PDF / CAD File https://www.kublasoftware.com/add-features-from-a-pdf-cad-file/ Mon, 06 Dec 2021 18:23:10 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5408

Have you imported a PDF or CAD file as your site plan? Are now ready to begin generating your existing and proposed surface using contour lines? 

Contour lines, points and breaks can all be used to define the terrain using a fixed elevation, in a Feature Surface. You can manually trace contour lines, breaks and points and you add a fixed elevation after completing the line or point. However in Kubla Cubed 2021, you can now extract these features (Outlines, Contours, Breaks, Points) straight from your file, saving you time and accuracy.

This article guides you through extracting your data from the file.

 

EXTRACT DATA FROM A CAD / PDF FILE

 

Having added and scaled a PDF or CAD site plan in your Kubla Cubed project, you can now extract the vector lines or CAD data for your existing and proposed surfaces.

To do this:

    1. Add a new Feature Surface
    2. Click the tab for the feature you wish to add (Outlines, Contours, Breaks, Points)
    3. Click the +File (Add from Site Plan or File) button
    4. Select the file you want to use to extract data from

Once you have selected a CAD (.dxf, .dwg) file or vector PDF, the below window will appear.

Note: this window will only display the features that can be interpreted as the feature type you have selected, for example:

    • Outlines: Only closed lines will be displayed
    • Contour Lines: Only lines will be displayed
    • Break Lines: Only lines will be displayed
    • Points: Only points will be displayed

You can inspect the layers in the file by clicking on the Layers Bar

You can toggle each layer on and off. Layers which have been turned off will not be imported.

You can also change the colour of layers by clicking in the colour box.

This is purely to help identify different layers in this window, and the changes you make will not be saved into the CAD/PDF file.
The other important setting is the units of the file which can be chosen from the drop-down. By default, the units are set to metres if the CAD/PDF file’s ‘insertion units’ are metric and to feet if they are imperial (English units).

Note: The ‘insertion units’ variable is often set incorrectly when CAD files are saved; it is important to check the value, is as you expect.

      5. Click ‘Set From Sample’.
      6. In the ‘Original Data‘ window, draw a rectangle across the type of line or point you want to import.
      7. View in the Extracted Data window.
      8. Click ‘OK’ and your lines and points will now show in your project 2D design window.

 

CAD FILES

 

As long as your CAD file has Z values (the elevations) set for the contour lines, breaks and points, that you are extracting, these will import automatically and you just need to double check they are correct before clicking Apply and OK

See how to edit contour lines; Split, Join, Set Multiple Elevations.

 

VECTOR PDF FILES

 

Vector PDF files do not contain meta data and therefore the Z values are not contained in the file. You will need to follow the steps in our article on Extracting PDF Vector Lines and Points.  

 

Once you have added all your features, including the boundary outline. Click Apply and OK.  View your surface in 2D and 3D to check for any anomalies (extreme peaks or troughs).

TOP TIPS :

Blocks in CAD

 

FURTHER RESOURCES

 

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Split A Line https://www.kublasoftware.com/split-a-line-in-kubla-cubed/ Mon, 06 Dec 2021 17:49:49 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5392

Have you imported a site plan and extracted contour lines and/or break-lines from either a CAD file or vector PDF file?  

Lines import as they are in the original CAD or PDF site plan. This is usually fine and they will be whole lines, but occasionally you may wish to split a line, for example when two lines have been joined in error. 

The Line editing tools (Join, Split, Set Multiple Elevations) assist with the definition of lines within a Feature Surface. They are accessible from within the element editor (left-hand menu) in from the tools 🛠 button.

 

🛠  THE SPLIT TOOL

The Split Tool (new to Kubla Cubed 2021) gives you the functionality to quickly and efficiently cut a contour or break line, generating two new lines.

When a segment is selected within the line to be split, the new lines generated will not include the selection.

When a point is selected within the line to be split, the newly created lines will both have an end point at the split point.  

Image above: Contour line (red) with a point (blue) selected where it will be split

Image above: The preview of the contour line with a segment (blue) selected where it will be split. The green and red lines show the proposed new lines. 

🛠  USING THE SPLIT TOOL

  1. Select the line you wish to be split
  2. Find and click the point or section of the line where the split is required (it will become highlighted) 
  3. Select the Split tool from the menu
  4. Check the preview is indeed what you want (green, grey and red lines)
  5. Press the ‘Finish‘ button when you are ready to proceed
    7. Press ‘Apply’ and ‘OK’ when you have finished editing

TOP TIPS

  • Closed lines are not supported. If the line is closed, the split will fail and the validator will show an error message identifying what is incorrect.

    This is recoverable once the necessary selection change has been made; there is no need to start again.

    If the operation needs to be cancelled, click on the ‘X’ in the top right of the black strip along the bottom, will cancel the Split operation.

FURTHER RESOURCES

 

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Join Two (or more) Lines https://www.kublasoftware.com/join-two-or-more-lines/ Mon, 06 Dec 2021 16:59:30 +0000 https://www.kublasoftware.com/?p=5386

Have you imported a site plan and extracted contour lines and/or break-lines from either a CAD file or vector PDF file?

Lines import as they are found in the original CAD or PDF site plan. This is usually fine and they will be complete lines, but occasionally lines may have gaps (caused by text or other entities breaking the line in the drawing). As a result, you need to join the two (or more) contour lines to form just a single contour line.

The Line editing tools (Join, Split, Set Multiple Elevations) assist with the definition of lines. They are accessible from within the element editor (left-hand menu) in from the tools 🛠 button.

 

🛠  THE JOIN TOOL

The Join Tool (new to Kubla Cubed 2021) gives you the functionality to quickly and efficiently stick two of more contour or break lines together.

  1. Click Edit on a Feature Surface (or be in the editor view)
  2. Select the Join tool from the Editing Tools 🛠 menu
  3. Select the lines you wish to be joined
             a) Select the first line you wish to join (by clicking on it so that it turns pale blue)
             b) Hold down the Ctrl key and select the second (third etc.) lines which you want to make into one line.
  4. Press the ‘Continue‘ button when ready to proceed
  5. Check that the preview is indeed you want (the lines will be joined and highlighted in green)
  6. Check the level (contour type lines only) and edit as required
  7. Press ‘Finish‘ button 

For contour lines, when there is more than one elevation selected, the highest elevation is chosen by default. Alternatively, this value can be edited.

FURTHER RESOURCES

 

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