Explorer Window

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Application Window	Message Window	Graphics Window	Access Window	Explorer Window	Trend Window	Controls Window	TagList Window	Project Window

Latest SysCAD Version: 25 October 2024 - SysCAD 9.3 Build 139.36522

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Introduction

The SysCAD Explorer Window may be accessed in any of the following ways:

Command Button
Command Path	View - Explorer	OR	Window - Select Window
Short Cut Key	Ctrl+E	OR	Ctrl+W

The Explorer window can be used to:

• navigate the documents and windows in the project.
• access shortcuts to some features and settings through right-click context menus.
• arrange the Graphics pages into Areas.
• view all the unit models in the project. This can be by Graphics or by other lists such as by UnitTypes.
• find model

The Explorer window is not necessarily constrained within the boundaries of the SysCAD window and may be moved beyond the SysCAD limits depending on the settings in General Options. This is a useful feature for managing screen space to view the actual project.

Navigating to Existing Document Windows

The layout of the Explorer Window is as follows:

Graphics (The total number of Graphics Windows and Areas in the project will be shown here) open this outline level will show all the areas in the project open this outline level will show all the graphics windows in the project then next level will show all the unit operations on the selected graphics windows UnitTypes (The total number of UnitTypes in the project will be shown here, can be turned off by right clicking and select Hide UnitTypes) open this outline will show all the unit types in the project next level will show all the units for the selected unit type Nodes (The total number of Nodes in the project will be shown here, can be turned off by right clicking and select Hide Nodes) open this outline will show all the unit operations in the project in one long list Flange Flows Available from Build 139.31388. (The total number of Flanges in the project will be shown here, can be turned off by right clicking and select Hide Flange Flows) open this outline will show the three types of flanges, Flange, Flange-In and Flange-Out. open this outline will show all the flanges of the chosen type. Tears (The total number of Tears blocks in the project will be shown here, can be turned off by right clicking and select Hide Tears) open this outline will show all the tear blocks in the project in one long list Trend (The total number of Trend Windows in the project will be shown here) open this outline level will show all the Trend windows in the project Tag List (The total number of TagList Windows in the project will be shown here) - Available from Build 139. open this outline level will show all the TagList windows in the project System open this outline level will show the two Access Windows, Message Window and Project Window.

The user may navigate to any Graphics or document window in the project by simply clicking on the required window in the Explorer window. SysCAD will activate the required window.

Flowsheets grouped in Areas

The Explorer Window is very useful when navigating a large project with multiple flowsheets, models and document windows. For flowsheets the user may group these into Areas directly from the Explorer window or in Plant Model Flowsheets tab.

The image below shows the same project with 12 flowsheets. The left window has all of the flowsheets in a single default Area, while the window on the right has flowsheets group by area:

• The Graphics windows are listed alphabetically in the Explorer window, it is often a good idea to number the flowsheets so that they follow the process flow, (shown by left image above)
• If the user has added Areas to the project, then the flowsheets may be grouped by area. This is a really useful feature for a large project that contains many Graphics windows.
• If the user has added Areas to the project, these will also be listed alphabetically, so again it is recommended that the areas are alphanumeric and follow the flow of the project, (shown by right image above)

Notes:

1. Flowsheets can be dragged and dropped into areas using the Explorer Window. Available from Build 139.
2. The Explorer default behaviour can be found on Tools | General Options | General.
3. Graphics, Trend and TagList information are always available;
4. Nodes, Tears and Flows (Flows are only available for dynamic projects) information will be Off by default. The user may right click on the group and choose Show.

Document Type Right Click Options

Graphics

The Graphics Options have four levels: Overall Graphics, Area, Individual Flowsheets and Individual Units.

From Build 139, flowsheets can be dragged and dropped between Areas. And Areas can be managed through right click context menus for the Explorer window Graphics as described below.

Overall Graphics	Right click on Graphics in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: (Note that from Build 139, Add New Area is available.) This allows the user to carry out a number of actions: New Graphics Window allows the user to open a new flowsheet window. Group Operations opens the Graphics Flowsheet Group Operations dialog box. Bulk Tag Change opens the Bulk Tag change dialogue box, allowing the user to change a number of tags easily. Colour Scheme allows the user to change the overall colour scheme of all flowsheets. Window Behaviour allows the user to specify if graphics windows are sized, moved or displayed individually or together. Copy Graphic List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the graphics (flowsheet) names onto the clipboard, this is a sorted list Copy Graphic, Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the Area (if used) and graphics (flowsheet) names, as well as all of the unit tags onto the clipboard, the data copied is sorted by Area, then Flowsheet, then by unit tag name. Add New Area allows the user to add a new Area to the project. The user can accept the default name for the new area or change it to the desired name. (Available from Build 139.)
Area	Right click on an Area name in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: (from Build 139, some additional commands are available): This allows the user to carry out a number of actions: Copy Graphic List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the graphics (flowsheet) names onto the clipboard, this is a sorted list Copy Graphic, Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the Area (if used) and graphics (flowsheet) names, as well as all of the unit tags onto the clipboard, the data copied is sorted by Area, then Flowsheet, then by unit tag name. Activate (X Units on Y Pages) allows the user to activate all flowsheets and units within the area. (Available from Build 139.) DeActivate (X Units on Y Pages) allows the user to deactivate all flowsheets and units within the area.(Available from Build 139.) Add New SubArea allows the user to add a new area which will be a subarea of the selected area. This is only available if the AllowSubAreas option has been ticked on the Plant Model - Flowsheets tab. (Available from Build 139.) Rename Area allows the user to rename the selected area. (Available from Build 139.) Delete Area allows the user to delete the selected area. This is only available if the area contains no flowsheets. (Available from Build 139.)
Individual Flowsheets	Right click on a Flowsheet name in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: This allows the user to carry out a number of actions on the flowsheet: Activate : Use this to Activate the selected flowsheet (See also Group Operations). Deactivate: Use this to Deactivate the selected flowsheet (See also Group Operations). Rename: Change the name of the selected flowsheet. Bulk Tag Change: Use this to change a number of Tags on the selected flowsheet. See Bulk Change Tag Copy the Bitmap: Copies the selected flowsheet to be used in an external application, such as an Excel report or a word document. Please note that the Heading text that appears on the flowsheet may be changed by going to Tools - General Options - Graphics Tab Copy Tag list to Clipboard: Copies the tags name of units in the selected flowsheet. The list of tags copied will depend on the Filter selection (at the bottom of the Explorer window). See Pipe List for a Graphics Page for an example. Delete: use this to delete the flowsheet (this will delete all the models on the graphics page) Close: use this to close the flowsheet (NOT recommended). Any closed graphics pages are NOT saved during project save, this could lead to missing graphics page and orphan models. Recommend using minimize when not in use. Use Delete if the Graphics Window is no longer required to remove the models as well as the graphics. Reset: Reset values for the individual flowsheet - this sets all flows to zero and clears any calculated values for the models. When the user presses the Solve button, the flowsheet will be forced to re-solve. Please also see Action Commands - Reset. Remove any Qualities: Removes qualities such as size data, lockups, etc., from the flowsheet. This only removes any Quality that has built up in the recycle streams during project solve.
Individual Units	Right click on a Unit name in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: This allows the user to carry out a number of actions on the flowsheet: Access Opens the Access Window for the selected unit. Change Tag... Changes the Unit Tag Name for the selected unit. Goto on: "Flowsheet Name": moves the focus to the Graphics page, with the cursor at the selected unit's location.

Unit Type

The Unit Type Options have three levels: Overall UnitType, Individual UnitType and Individual Units.

Overall UnitType	Right click on UnitType in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: This allows the user to carry out a number of actions: Show / Hide UnitTypes allows the user to show or hide the UnitType information. Bulk Tag Change allows the user to change a number of Tags in the project. See Bulk Change Tag Copy UnitType List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the Unit Type names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Copy UnitType, Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the Unit Type and Unit names onto the clipboard. The copied data is sorted by UnitType, then by Unit Name per type.
Individual UnitType	Right click on a Unit Type name in the Explorer window for the pop up menu as shown: This allows the user to carry out a number of actions on the flowsheet: Bulk Tag Change: Use this to change a number of Tags in the project. See Bulk Change Tag Copy Tag list to Clipboard: Copies the tags name of units of the selected unit type to the clipboard. The list of tags copied will depend on the Filter selection (at the bottom of the Explorer window). See Pipe List for a Graphics Page for an example. Copy TagSelect Report to Clipboard (Horizontal) Copy TagSelect Report to Clipboard (Vertical) Reset: Reset values for the individual flowsheet - this sets all flows to zero and clears any calculated values for the models. When the user presses the Solve button, the flowsheet will be forced to re-solve. Please also see Action Commands - Reset. Remove any Qualities: Removes qualities such as size data, lockups, etc., from the flowsheet. This only removes any Quality that has built up in the recycle streams during project solve.
Individual Units	As per Graphics - Individual Unit

Other Document Types

Trend		Right Click on the Trend (overall) has the following options: New Trend Window allows the user to open a new Trend Window. New Controls Window allows the user to open a new Controls Window. Window Behaviour allows the user to specify if Trend windows are sized, moved or displayed individually or together. Copy Trend List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of Trend Page names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Right click on an individual Trend has the following options: Rename: Change the name of the selected Trend Window. Close: use this to close the Trend Window. Any closed Trend Windows are NOT saved during project save. Recommend using minimize when not in use. Only Close the Trend Window if it is no longer required.
TagList		Right Click on the TagList (overall) has the following options: New TagList Window allows the user to open a new TagList Window. Window Behaviour allows the user to specify if TagList windows are sized, moved or displayed individually or together. Copy TagList List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of TagList Page names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Right click on an individual TagList has the following options: Rename: Change the name of the selected TagList Window. Close: use this to close the TagList Window. Any closed TagList Windows are NOT saved during project save. Recommend using minimize when not in use. Only Close the TagList Window if it is no longer required.

Others

Nodes is a simple list of all models. Flange Flows is a list of all flanges (the connection flange objects between pipes and models). Tears is a list of all Solver Tears.

Nodes		Right click on Nodes (overall) in the Explorer window has the following options: Show / Hide Nodes allows the user to show or hide the Nodes information. Bulk Tag Change allows the user to change a number of Tags in the project. See Bulk Change Tag Copy Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of all the Unit names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Right Click on an individual Node is as per Graphics - Individual Unit
Flange Flows		Available from Build 139.31388. Right click on Flange Flows (overall) in the Explorer window has the following options: Show / Hide Flange Flows allows the user to show or hide the Flange Flows information. Copy Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of all the Flange names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Copy FlangeType, Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of the Flange Type and flange names onto the clipboard. The copied data is sorted by FlangeType, then by flange Name per type. Show Active: List of flanges will be restricted to those that are active. Show In Use: List of flanges will be restricted to those that are currently in use. Show Ever Used: List of flanges will be restricted to those that have ever been used. Show All: All flanges will be shown in the list. Right Click on Flange (between cross-page connectors), Flange-In (between pipe and unit) or Flange-Out (between unit and pipe) has the following option: Copy Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of all the Flange names of this type onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Right Click on an individual Flange has the following options: Access Opens the Access Window for the selected flange. Change Tag... Changes the Flange Tag Name for the selected flange.
Tears		Right click on Tears (overall) in the Explorer window has the following options: Show / Hide Tears allows the user to show or hide the Tears information. Summary allows the user to go to the Tear Summary Page Copy Tear Tag List to Clipboard allows the user to copy a list of all the Tear block names onto the clipboard. This is a sorted list. Right Click on an individual Tear has the following options: Summary: Opens the Solver Settings access window which includes the GlobalTear, Tears and TearTags tabs. Access Tear: Opens the Access Window for the selected tear.

Creating Equipment or Pipe List

User can get full equipment list from the Explorer window by :

1. right clicking on Graphics - data copied may include Area (if used), Graphics page and/or Unit Tag names. (Sorted by Area, Graphics then by Unit Tag Name)

   

2. Right clicking on Unit Types - data copied may include unit type and / Unit Tag names. (sorted by unit type, followed by Unit Tag name)

   

3. Right Clicking on Nodes (if shown) - data copied is Unit Tag names (sorted)

   

User can also selectively copy some equipment that meets some criteria, by using Filter. This is explained in the next heading.

Pipe List for a Graphics Page

The user may limit the units that are displayed by using the Filter at the bottom of the Explorer Window.

For example, if the user wishes to copy the pipes on a single graphics page, and the pipes all have the naming convention P_xxx, then in the filter window

• choose Filter type "Contains" or "StartsWith" then
• type in P_ as shown in the picture below.

the list of unit operations for the Graphics page will be shortened, displaying only those containing P_ Right click and choose "Copy Tag List to Clipboard" as shown to the left, note that the list copied will be unsorted. User can paste the list in another application such as MS Excel for reporting purposes. See Excel Reports Tag P_001 P_002 P_004 P_005 P_006 P_007 P_003

Missing Models or Graphics

Models Marked with Red Cross

Missing models will be marked with red cross.

• A Missing Model refers to a SysCAD unit model that's been deleted, but the Graphics still exist.
• This could be a result from the following actions:
  1. A SysCAD unit model/graphics page has been deleted
  2. User closes graphics page without saving
  3. User then saves the project. (Closed graphics page will NOT be saved)
  4. User then closes and opens the project, and reopens the graphics page (that was not saved).
• As a result, the model has been deleted from the database but the graphics file has not been updated, thus causing the mismatch.
• The easiest way to check for missing models is by looking at the Graphics page directly (not from Explorer). If miss model exists, the models would appear grey and there is no access window when you click on them.
• The recommended action for Missing Model with graphics is to delete all the dummy graphics using Graphics - Delete, then re-build the flowsheet.

Missing Graphics

It is possible to get into a situation where "orphan" models without Graphics Representation exist in the SysCAD project.

The missing Graphics could be due to user accidentally closing the Graphics Page, or Graphics Symbol got "corrupted" and has gone missing, thus creating "orphan" models without graphics representation.

1. If the models are valid and must exist, then the graphic symbols should be added back to the project.
   • In the case of missing an entire page: try and located the missing graphic page from previously saved versions, copy back into the project and open it using Open file: "xxxx.scg"
   • In the case of missing single Graphics Symbol:
     • In the empty spaces where the graphics should be, use Graphics-Insert Symbol to add back an appropriate Graphics Symbol. (This is a dummy symbol)
     • Use Graphics - Construct Symbol to attached this dummy symbol to an orphan model. (See also Manipulating Graphics)
2. If the Orphan models in the project are NOT required, then user can delete these orphan models using the Explorer Window:
   • From the section called Missing Graphics under the graphics tree, open that tree to get a list of all the unit operations in the project without graphics.
     
     
   • If user wish to delete all the orphan models, simply right click on the word Missing Graphics to bring up a popup menu, select the option to Delete all nodes without graphics.
3. Once that is done, save the project, close and reopen Explorer to refresh the explorer list. User should find that the missing graphics is fixed.