A Custom Material can be added to CET in two ways. It can be added as a visual reference only, or it can be added with the information necessary to order the material, resulting in the material being added to Calculations. 

We can add a material that is not standard for the symbol selected from the Custom Materials tab in the material selection window. All Custom Materials will be displayed in the field in the center of the window.

The Customer's Own Materials tab

	Opens the Custom Material dialog.
	Removes the selected material from the list.
	Reset all changes to the initial Custom Materials.
	Close the dialog.

Custom Material dialog

Click the Create/Edit Material button to access this dialog:

When the Show COM Part Information in Calculations box is unchecked, the material will be added as a visual reference only and it will not be added in Calculations. Fields with the * will need to be completed for the material to apply.

• Code: (required entry) This is the code that will identify the price level (such as "Custom" in the image above.)
• Description: (required entry) Type a description of the COM to be used on the linked option (similar to "Undecided" in the image above).
• Link to Std material: (required selection) You have to link your COM to an already existing standard material for rules and pricing. You can edit the pricing later in Calculations.
• Transparency: Drag the slider to the right in order to increase the transparency of the COM.
• Scale: Enter a value between .001 and 100 to change the size of the COM.
  • 1=scale of the image
  • Less than 1 decreases the scale, e.g. 0.5 = 1/2 the size of the image
  • Greater than one increases the scale, e.g. 2 = 2x the size of the image.
• Browse for Texture: Opens your File Explorer where you choose the image you want to use as a texture. Many suppliers have high quality images of their materials on their website.
• Edit Color Material: Opens the Color dialog where you can choose from a set of predefined colors.
• Browse GMaterial: Opens the Browse GMaterial dialog where you choose .gm files you want to use as a texture. If the .gm file was previously created in the enhanced COM dialog, the COM information may also load with the texture.

When the Show COM Part Information in Calculations box is checked, you'll have access to additional fields to provide the ordering information for the material and a line will be added in Calculations. Fields with the ** are required while the other fields are optional. 

• Code: (required entry) This is the code that will identify the price level (such as "Custom" in the image above.)
• Description: (required entry) Type a description of the COM to be used on the linked option (similar to "Undecided" in the image above).
• Pattern: (optional) Pattern name as provided by the manufacturer.
• Colorway: (optional) Colorway as provided by the manufacturer.
• Category: (optional) Define the material category the COM will appear under in Material Explorer.
• Part Number: (required to show COM as a line item in Calculations) COM part number from the material manufacturer. Shows in the Part Number column in Calculations.
• Supplier: (recommended if showing in Calculations) Organization responsible for supplying the COM. Shows in the Options and Description columns in Calculations.
• Manufacturer: (recommended if showing in Calculations) Manufacturer of the COM. Shows in the Company column in Calculations.
• Length Unit: (recommended if showing in Calculations) Unit of measure the COM is sold in. Shows in the Material Quantity column in Calculations. The number of units needs to be manually entered in Calculations for pricing to be reflected. See below for more information on the steps to take in Calculations.
• Price Per Unit: (required to show COM as a line item in Calculations) Price of the material per unit of measure.
• Approval Number: (optional) Approval number from furniture manufacturer. Shows in the Options and Description columns in Calculations. 
• Shipping Info: (optional) Information on where the COM will be shipped for application. Shows in the Options and Description columns in Calculations.
• Link to Std material: (required selection) You have to link your COM to an already existing standard material for rules and pricing. You can edit the pricing later in Calculations.
• Transparency: Drag the slider to the right in order to increase the transparency of the COM.
• Scale: Enter a value between .001 and 100 to change the size of the COM.
  • 1=scale of the image
  • Less than 1 decreases the scale, e.g. 0.5 = 1/2 the size of the image
  • Greater than one increases the scale, e.g. 2 = 2x the size of the image.
• Browse for Texture: Opens your File Explorer where you choose the image you want to use as a texture. Many suppliers have high quality images of their materials on their website.
• Edit Color Material: Opens the Color dialog where you can choose from a set of predefined colors.
• Browse GMaterial: Opens the Browse GMaterial dialog where you choose .gm files you want to use as a texture. If the .gm file was previously created in the enhanced COM dialog, the COM information may also load with the texture.

	Opens the Save As dialog to save the material as a .gm file.
	Closes the dialog and returns to the Custom Materials tab of the Option Selection dialog, applying the material to the symbol.
	Cancels the addition of the Custom Material and returns to the Custom Materials tab of the Option Selection dialog.

Custom Material in Calculations

When showing COM part information in Calculations, the Material Quantity should be entered manually on the product lines. After the material is applied to the parts in the drawing, open Calculations. From the View Settings dialog, select the Columns tab and check the Visible box for the Material Quantity.

Now that the Material Quantity column is turned on, click the on the line containing the COM to expand the lines showing the subparts. Click the to expand the part information for the part and the material to see all the available information. 

Enter the Material Quantity value as shown below. Once this field is edited, it will be highlighted in light green.

Pricing information will update automatically based on the Material Quantity entered and quantity of the part.