Filtering Tool for Tekla Structures β fast model filtering by phase
Filtering Tool is a Tekla Structures plugin that speeds up daily modelling work by reducing model filtering by phase to just two mouse clicks. After installation it appears in the Applications & components catalog, in the DDBIM group. A double-click launches a small floating window listing every phase of the currently open model. Just check the phases you are interested in and right-click β the view immediately shows only the elements that matter at that moment. The tool is designed for designers and modellers of steel and reinforced-concrete structures who filter elements hundreds of times during their workday and do not want to waste time navigating Tekla’s standard dialog windows.
Why Tekla's standard filters slow down work
Tekla Structures’ built-in filters work correctly, but using them is time-consuming. Each switch of a view by phase requires opening the filter dialog, choosing a criterion, setting the phase number, confirming and often also saving the filter under a new name so it can be reused. On a large model with several dozen erection phases, deliveries or trades, this sequence β repeated hundreds of times a day β eats up real hours every week and disrupts focused work. The risk of mistakes also grows β it is easy to leave the wrong filter active and then wait a long time for Tekla to redraw the view. Filtering Tool removes this overhead. All phases are always visible in a single list, and changing the view scope is just ticking a checkbox and one right-click. The model is redrawn instantly, with no extra dialogs and without having to remember saved filter names.
The most important features
The plugin offers view filtering by phase, applicable to all views or only to the selected ones. There is also a selection filter that restricts mouse selection exclusively to objects from the chosen phases β useful when the model is dense and it is easy to click the wrong element. From the same window you can manage phases: add new ones, rename them, set the model’s current phase and move selected objects between phases. Import and export functions let you transfer phase sets between models, which shortens the configuration of new projects. You can also save and load presets of view display attributes β entire model appearance configurations β and switch between them with one click. All from a single, small floating window that always stays within sight.
How to use Filtering Tool step by step
Working with the tool starts with opening a model in Tekla Structures. Then, in the Applications & components catalog under the DDBIM group, you click the Filtering Tool icon. A floating window opens with a list of all phases present in the model. You check the boxes for the phases you want to display and right-click on the View filter list if you want to filter the views, or on the Selection filter list if you want to restrict selection. Tekla immediately redraws the views according to the new setting. The Help menu contains built-in documentation that describes all remaining features step by step, such as multi-select, set-current-phase, move-objects-to-phase, weld-1, nearest plane, object info and small-window mode. The whole interaction fits within a few mouse gestures and requires no additional training.
One plugin, every Tekla version
Filtering Tool is published with two TSEP installation packages β one covers versions 2016β2024, the other 2025 and newer β together with an MSI installer that supports the very old Tekla versions 20.0β21.1 (released before 2015).
Most frequent questions about filtering by phase in Tekla
Below are five questions that most often go to Google and ChatGPT in the context of working with phases in Tekla, with short answers that Filtering Tool provides.
1. How do I quickly filter a view in Tekla Structures by phase?
Check a phase in the plugin’s list and right-click β phase filtering in Tekla takes a second.
2. Is there a plugin for phase filtering in Tekla?
Yes, Filtering Tool from the DDBIM group.
3. How do I move selected objects to another phase in Tekla Structures?
Select the objects in the model and use the move-objects-to-phase function from the plugin’s menu.
4. How do I import and export phases between Tekla models?
The built-in import/export functions transfer the whole set of phases.
5. How do I restrict mouse selection to chosen phases only?
That is what the Selection filter is for β phase management in a Tekla model from a single list.
Summary
Filtering Tool is a small, dedicated plugin that turns the routine clicking through filter dialogs in Tekla Structures into a single mouse gesture. For the designer this means fewer interruptions of modelling work, fewer mistakes when working with phased structures and better team collaboration, because phase sets and attribute presets can easily be moved between models and between modellers. The plugin is released under the MIT license and after installation is located in the Applications & components catalog under the DDBIM group, so it is available exactly where the designer looks for their tools. It works equally well in simple projects with a few phases and in large models with dozens of erection phases, deliveries or trades.
See animations bellow
Tutorial
Base help is avaiable in application: Menu > Help
Basic tutotial is avaiable on Youtube. Link to playlist contains 10 movies:
License:
MIT (Free and open-source)
Source codes:
https://github.com/dawiddyrcz/Filtering-tool-for-tekla-structures