In this article you will learn why some components in Advance Steel receive negative position numbers and how you can control this behavior. Negative numbers serve to deliberately exclude specific components from the creation of the bill of materials and from fabrication.

Prerequisites

  • The model has already been numbered in whole or in part using the Numbering function.

Step-by-step instructions

If a component has a negative number but should appear in the bill of materials, follow these steps:

  1. Select the relevant component in the model and open the Advance Steel properties by double-clicking or via the context menu.
  2. Navigate to the Behavior tab.
  3. Check the Same-part detection option (e.g. for single parts or main parts). If it is deactivated, the part receives a negative number.
  4. Activate the Same-part detection by placing the checkmark in the corresponding checkbox.
    Result: The prerequisite for positive numbering is now in place.
  5. Perform the Numbering in the Output tab again for the entire model or the selected parts.
    Result: The component now receives a valid, positive position number and is correctly listed in the bill of materials (BOM).

Important notes

  • Deliberate default: Components that are not to be numbered (e.g. placeholders or auxiliary constructions) automatically receive a negative number and are ignored in bills of materials.
  • Not a software error: Negative numbers are a technical indicator for components that have been explicitly excluded from the fabrication documentation.
  • Consistency: Determine at the start of the project which component types (e.g. existing structures) are to be excluded from numbering.

Troubleshooting

  • Part does not appear in the bill of materials despite numbering: Check whether the component has a negative number. If so, activate the same-part detection in the properties as described above.
  • Number does not change after adjustment: Make sure that after changing the properties you run the Numbering command again, since the numbers do not update automatically in real time.