DDBIM Custom Properties for Tekla Structures — a free plugin extending Tekla's capabilities
DDBIM Custom Properties for Tekla Structures is a free, open-source plugin that adds 30 custom report properties (with the CUSTOM.DD_ prefix) to model objects in Tekla Structures. The plugin is distributed as a Tekla Structures Extension Package (.tsep), and once installed, every property becomes available everywhere Tekla reads custom report properties — in report templates, drawing templates and marks, Organizer categories and filters, IFC property exports, and in model checking and the model browser. The plugin is released under the MIT license and compatible with Tekla versions from 2016 to 2099.
Key features and properties of the plugin:
- 30 ready-to-use custom report properties (CUSTOM.DD_*) available immediately after installation, with no extra configuration required.
- Full integration with Tekla mechanisms: report templates, drawing templates and marks, Organizer (categories and filters), IFC export, model checking.
- A replacement name property (DD_NAME) that also returns names of plugin-generated connections — which the standard Organizer otherwise misses.
- Properties that strip separators from part and assembly numbers and produce digit-only identifiers (useful for DWG/PDF file names).
- A complete set of connection properties: the connection code (DD_CONNECTION_CODE) and its shortened variants, plus the minimum weight of connected parts.
- Structural classification of elements: detection of columns, plate stiffeners, and parts parallel to the XY plane.
- Full plate-bolt geometry: diameter, hole, tolerance, spacing, and edge distances in the plate-local coordinate system.
- Cleaner bolt and hole names for drawing marks — removal of BOLT/ŚRUBA prefixes, cleanup of nut and washer types, and proper formatting of countersunk holes.
- A more accurate net weight value for steel profiles (DD_WEIGHT_NET) than Tekla’s built-in property, plus the number of welds connected to the part.
- A WinForms picker UI „DDBIM Custom Properties” — a window listing every property name and its live value for the currently selected object, refreshed automatically on selection change.
- A built-in diagnostic property (DDBIM_CUSTOM_PROPERTIES_ARE_INSTALLED) returning 1, so report templates can confirm a successful installation.
- Open source code — you can add your own properties as additional classes implementing ICustomPropertyPlugin, without modifying the rest of the solution.
- Two .tsep package variants built from a single source tree — one for Tekla 2016-2024 and another for 2025 and newer.
What problems the plugin solves
The plugin grew out of real-world needs of modelers and structural engineering offices working with Tekla, and it targets specific gaps and inconveniences in the built-in functionality. First, it fixes the situation where Tekla Organizer ignores the names of connections generated by other plugins — making it impossible to filter and categorize such objects. Second, it provides a corrected net weight for hot-rolled steel profiles, since the built-in WEIGHT_NET property returns incorrect values in many cases, which breaks bills of materials. Third, it fills in the missing connection codes in IFC export, so that models exchanged between offices contain a complete set of information about structural details. Fourth, it tidies up the formatting of bolt marks on shop drawings, eliminating redundant BOLT/ŚRUBA prefixes, double dashes, and DUMMY traces in nut types. Fifth, it generates clean DWG and PDF file names — without separators and in a digit-only variant, which is sometimes a requirement of document workflow systems. Sixth, it provides plate-bolt geometry (diameter, holes, tolerances, edge distances) as ordinary report properties, which previously required complex calculations. Seventh, it introduces an easy classification of elements (column, stiffener, horizontal element) — essential for model checking and building advanced filters. Eighth, it exposes the number of welds connected to a part, enabling automated checks of connection completeness. Finally, the picker UI solves the everyday problem of searching for and copying property names while authoring templates — every value is visible for the currently selected object.
Installation and usage
To install the plugin, close all running Tekla Structures programs, download the .tsep file matching your Tekla version from Tekla Warehouse, and double-click it — the default TSEP installer will take care of the rest. Alternatively, you can drop the file into the „To be installed” folder of your Tekla environment — the package will then be detected and installed when the program starts. After installation, simply use the CUSTOM.DD_* names in any report template, drawing template, drawing mark, Organizer category, filter, or IFC export — no additional configuration is required. The „DDBIM Custom Properties” window opens like any plugin from the component catalog and lets you preview property values for the selected object on the fly.
10 questions this plugin can answer
If you are wondering whether this plugin is for you, you have probably already typed one of the following questions into a search engine or ChatGPT:
1. How do I fix the incorrect net weight of steel profiles returned by Tekla Structures in bills of materials?
2. Why doesn’t Tekla Organizer see the names of my plugin-generated connections, and how do I work around it?
3. How do I export connection codes to an IFC file from a Tekla Structures model?
4. How do I remove the BOLT or ŚRUBA prefix from bolt marks on shop drawings in Tekla?
5. How do I get the number of welds connected to a part in a Tekla report template?
6. How do I create a digit-only identifier to use in DWG and PDF file names generated from Tekla Structures?
7. How do I check in a report template whether a given element is a column, a horizontal beam, or a sloped member?
8. How do I retrieve bolt diameter, hole spacing, and plate edge distances as report properties in Tekla?
9. How do I detect whether a plate is a stiffener welded between the flanges of a beam?
10. How do I add my own custom report properties to Tekla Structures without writing an entire plugin from scratch?
This plugin is free
The plugin is free, available on Tekla Warehouse, and its source code is publicly released under the MIT license. If you work with Tekla and regularly run into the problems above, installing DDBIM Custom Properties takes a minute and saves hours of work on every subsequent project.