Knowledge Article View

July 2022: Getting the Most Out of Connected Designs This month's lunch and learn covered how to import photos into a SPIDAcalc project and use them to assist with pole design and QC efforts.
June 2022: Advanced Connected Designs The June lunch and learn explored advanced functionality in SPIDAcalc, including features such as the CSV project import, Extend Lead functionality, and more. We also built on those concepts to share helpful tips for building out connected and complex designs.
May 2022: Client File Maintenance and Updates In this month's lunch and learn, we discussed various strategies in client file maintenance, including tips, tricks, and best practices to consider when client file updates are needed.
April 2022: SPIDAcalc Analysis 101 During this month's lunch and learn, we explored SPIDAcalc’s Client Editor and Analysis Workspace, highlighting the Analysis Summary and Detailed Analysis Results while reviewing pole loading results.
March 2022: SPIDAcalc Design Tools and Review In the March lunch and learn, we highlighted some of the tools in SPIDAcalc to make designing poles more efficient, also taking look at the Views for evaluating and comparing versions of a pole.
February 2022: SPIDAcalc and SPIDAstudio Integrations During the February lunch and learn, we dove into SPIDAstudio to highlight the benefits of storing, retrieving, and managing SPIDAcalc designs in SPIDAstudio Design Manager.
January 2022: Back to the Basics In this month's lunch and learn, we covered the basics of SPIDAcalc, including navigation of the user interface, how to start a new project, basic design techniques, and more.
December 2021: SPIDA Support End-of-the-Year Wrap-Up The December lunch and learn covered the top support questions of 2021, as well as questions submitted by SPIDAcalc users.
November 2021: SPIDAcalc Advisor This month's lunch and learn covered the basics of the Advisor tool, which allows users to perform a diagnostic and analytic review of existing designs.
October 2021: Local and Client Assemblies During the October lunch and learn, we covered the differences between local and client assemblies, utilizing assemblies in the pole design process, and how to create and share local assemblies.
September 2021: Client File Maintenance September's lunch and learn covered the basics of the Client Editor, including ways to make reviewing, updating, and distributing a client file as efficient as possible.
August 2021: Data Collection Through Forms In this lunch and learn, we covered SPIDAcalc forms, exploring how an organization can leverage both project and location forms to streamline data collection.
July 2021: Getting the Most Out of Analysis View July's lunch and learn was all about using SPIDAcalc for pole loading analysis, including the basics of pole loading and the different analysis methodologies available.
June 2021: Applying Damage to a Pole Design The June lunch and learn focused on reviewing damage types in SPIDAcalc and their associated properties, how to apply damage to a pole design, and how the calculated RSM value can impact analysis results.
May 2021: Using Design and Draft Layers with Comparison View This month's lunch and learn focused on design and draft layers: the differences between the two, how to use them to maximize efficiency, and using Comparison View to examine variations between pole designs.
April 2021: Wire Types in SPIDAcalc In April's lunch and learn, we discussed the two wire types in SPIDAcalc v7.3, the tension calculation options available to the user, and how these inputs can impact sag and tension outputs.
March 2021: Getting the Most Out of Collected Photos The March lunch and learn focused on how photos can be imported into a SPIDAcalc project and used to assist with pole design and QC efforts.
February 2021: Profile View for Clearances February's lunch and learn focused on the elements used for clearances, such as labels, calculated vs. measured heights, and using weather case examples to show the process.
January 2021: SPIDAcalc: Back to the Basics During this lunch and learn, we went back to the basics, reviewing how to navigate the SPIDAcalc interface, how to start a new design project, basic design techniques, and more.
December 2020: SPIDA Support: End of the Year Wrap-Up During the December lunch and learn, our support staff discussed the top support questions of 2020, including questions directly from the users.
November 2020: Joint Use Attachment Request Use Case Do you have joint use attachments to consider in your pole loading design? In this month's lunch and learn, we ran through some of the steps involved in various aspects of the make-ready process.
October 2020: Introducing SPIDAcalc - v7.3 Golden The October lunch and learn introduced the upcoming release of SPIDAcalc; new features we covered include an all-new Profile View, topography and elevation enhancements, advanced wire calculations to account for creep, and more.
September 2020: Implementing SPIDAsilk In this month's lunch and learn, we learned about SPIDAsilk, an upcoming, standalone product designed to produce precise wire tension and conductor installation charts.
August 2020: Getting the Most Out of Collected Photos During this month's lunch and learn, we focused on how photos can be used to improve pole design accuracy. We reviewed the options for obtaining height data from a photo, as well as how to leverage photos for QA/QC.
July 2020: Understanding and Applying Connectivity in SPIDAcalc Have you ever wondered what the benefits of designing in connected space are, or how connectivity can affect analysis results? In the July lunch and learn, we addressed both questions while working with use cases involving both wire and design connectivity.
June 2020: Adding New Materials to Your Client File In June's lunch and learn, we taught users what information is needed and how to build new structures in a client file.
May 2020: Evaluating and Correcting Troubled Designs This month's lunch and learn featured SPIDAcalc's Advisor tool. If you've ever wondered why your SPIDAcalc design is failing or how to correct it, this could be the tool for you.
April 2020: Next-Level Assemblies April's lunch and learn showcased how to build assemblies in SPIDAcalc that go beyond an organization’s overhead standards – by including equipment, third-party attachments, and more – to save time during the design process.
March 2020: Getting the Most Out of the Analysis View The March lunch and learn built on February's session and examined all aspects of Analysis View, including results, charts, detailed inputs, and load case details.
February 2020: Review of Analysis Methods The February lunch and learn featured a review of the Loading tab in Client Editor and covered the basics of pole loading, as well as the different analysis methodologies available in SPIDAcalc.
January 2020: SPIDAcalc Design 101 Following the recent release of SPIDAcalc v7.2 – Arrow, we spent this month's lunch and learn how to design a project from start to finish using a variety of tools. These included design layers, the CSV import, assemblies, bundles, new Map View features, and the integration with SPIDAstudio for design storage.
December 2019: SPIDAcalc Support FAQs In the December lunch and learn, our support team reviewed top questions submitted over the course of the year, as well as addressed questions from our users.
November 2019: SPIDAcalc Deliverables This month's lunch and learn covered various tools in SPIDAcalc that can be helpful in generating deliverables, as well as what those deliverables can include.
October 2019: SPIDAcalc v7.2 - Arrow: Commit Your Data Enhancements to SPIDAcalc and SPIDAstudio enable users to store and manage in-flight and system-of-record structural data. The October Lunch & Learn focused on the defined process for structure management between SPIDAcalc and SPIDAstudio in the upcoming release of SPIDAcalc v7.2.
September 2019: Client File Maintenance Strategies SPIDAcalc client files are created and edited within the Client Editor. Maintaining the data in the client file is critical to ensure that the correct structures and their properties are used in designs and that load case parameters are set up to produce expected analysis results. This month's Lunch & Learn covered the features in Client Editor to make reviewing, updating, and distributing the client file as efficient as possible. View the PowerPoint presentation: Client File Maintenance Strategies_Lunch and Learn_092019.pdf
August 2019: Understanding and Applying Connectivity in SPIDAcalc During the August Lunch & Learn, we focused on design and wire connectivity in SPIDAcalc, and specifically on use cases such as new attachment requests and reconductoring.
July 2019: Designing Using Photos and Field Notes The July Lunch & Learn was a use-case specific lesson focusing on using photos and field notes to design poles in the office. We also demonstrated the enhancements made to the Photos dialog in SPIDAcalc v7.1 – Orb Weaver.
June 2019: Working with Wire Tensions During this month's session, we explored wire tensions within SPIDAcalc. This included reviewing tension methods, how to make the necessary updates to your client file, the use of the Tension Adjustment Factor, as well as running and interpreting the new Wire Tension Report.
May 2019: Using Design and Draft Layers with Comparison View May’s Lunch & Learn focused on design and draft layers, as well as how to use Comparison View to examine variations between pole designs.
April 2019: Quick Assemblies, Span Guys, and Support Assemblies With the recent upgrades to SPIDAcalc, many enhancements have been made to increase user efficiencies when adding support structures in SPIDAcalc. For April’s Lunch & Learn, we demonstrated the new methodologies for adding span guys and stub poles, creating support assemblies, and more.
March 2019: Getting the Most Out of Analysis View In this month's session, we reviewed all aspects of Analysis View, including results, charts, detailed inputs, and load case details.
February 2019: Review of Non-Convergent Pole Design The February SPIDAcalc Lunch & Learn focused on the review of non-convergent poles. Our team explained nonconvergence, identified areas of designs to focus on when a pole is nonconvergent, and reviewed load steps.
January 2019: Implementing Orb Weaver Features In 2018, we introduced the new features of SPIDAcalc v7.1 – Orb Weaver. In the January Lunch & Learn, our team discussed best practices and things to consider when implementing those new features.
December 2018: SPIDAcalc Frequently Asked Questions During this session, we spent time reviewing frequently asked support questions from 2018, as well as offered an opportunity to new and experienced SPIDAcalc users alike to ask questions about the things that are most important to them when using SPIDAcalc.
November 2018: The Bundler Feature of SPIDAcalc v7.1 Orb Weaver The November Lunch & Learn focused on the Bundler feature introduced in SPIDAcalc v7.1 Orb Weaver. Our team reviewed how to build communication bundles within the Client Editor and create project bundles on the fly, as well as walked through examples in which bundles change from span to span.
September 2018: Introducing SPIDAcalc v7.1 Orb Weaver The September Lunch & Learn was devoted to reviewing the new features within SPIDAcalc v7.1, including communication bundles, wire tension checks, and new and improved user interfaces.
August 2018: Review of Pole Damages During the August SPIDAcalc Lunch & Learn, we dug into the importance of analyzing damages on poles, how they affect the structure’s load capacity and strength, and reviewed the Remaining Section Modulus (RSM) for shell and heart rot. We reviewed the damage tab, analysis results, client file settings, the interaction with SPIDAmin, and strength vs. load evaluation.
July 2018: APIs: Extending SPIDAcalc Functionality During the July Lunch & Learn, SPIDA Software’s Development Manager showed users how you can extend SPIDAcalc’s functionality with our APIs. We reviewed GitHub, the collaborative platform we use to share technical information, and showed a sample integration using SPIDA’s APIs. We also discussed how to create a project and the use of APIs for reporting. View the demo files used during this lunch and learn here.
June 2018: Making the Jump to SPIDAcalc Jumper During the June Lunch & Learn, we discussed what to expect when you make the jump to SPIDAcalc – v7.0 Jumper. We reviewed the changes in our licensing model and pricing structure; discussed considerations that must be addressed during the transition process, including implications on the client file and compatibility between different versions of SPIDAcalc; and reviewed changes to the SPIDA Software Support Site and updates to the SPIDAcalc Account Portal.
May 2018: Preparing Deliverables During the May Lunch & Learn, we focused on new reporting features within SPIDAcalc Jumper, including how to create client reports, exporting data, how to push data to SPIDAdb, and more.
April 2018: Using SPIDAcalc in the Field During the April Lunch & Learn, we looked at how SPIDAcalc can be used in the field to build new designs. We covered how to capture GPS points with a connected Bluetooth device, assign photos, add assemblies from a design, design warnings, changing design construction, benefits of licensing changes, how to push projects to SPIDAdb, and more.
March 2018: Pole Attachment Request and Make Ready Workflow During the March Lunch & Learn, we explored SPIDAcalc’s ability to pull designs from SPIDAdb, clone design layers, add overbuild communication cables, compare designs, and how to use the photo measuring heights tool.
February 2018: Building a Connected Project During the February Lunch & Learn, SPIDAcalc experts demonstrated how to build a connected project using assembly properties. The Map View toolset was used to create a connected project. Assembly properties were also explored in this Lunch & Learn.
January 2018: Client Assemblies - Converting Framing Planner Units and Connected Projects The January Lunch & Learn's focus was on client assemblies. As clients transition from v6 to v7, framing units will be converted to client assemblies. The replace assembly feature and guy attach point of an assembly were demonstrated. We also took a look at managing and applying assemblies to a connected project.
December 2017: CSV Importer & Designing in a Connected Project The December Lunch & Learn's focus was on how to design in a connected project and using tools such as the CSV Importer.
November 2017: Creating, Managing & Applying Local Assemblies The November Lunch & Learn examined local assemblies within SPIDAcalc Jumper. We specifically demonstrated a user’s workflow to create, organize, and apply local assemblies.

Lunch & Learns: SPIDAcalc on Demand