Bays & Bay Details

Overview

The Bay Count and Bay Details functions in SMS allow you to define the number and width of bays within a building design.

These functions provide flexibility when configuring shed layouts and ensure that each bay suits the intended use, such as adding roller doors or adjusting space around end walls.

Why this is important

Enables precise control over bay spacing and building configuration.
Allows for uneven bay sizes to accommodate roller doors or special design requirements.
Helps optimise structural efficiency and material use.

Bay count

The Bay Count function defines the total number of bays in the building.

Displayed in the central image on the design layout.
You can add or remove bays by selecting the required number within the building design.
Changing the number of bays automatically updates the building’s internal layout and frame configuration.

Bay details

The Bay Details function allows you to adjust individual bay measurements.

This feature lets you:

Nominate a specific number of bays at certain widths.
Create buildings with uneven bay sizes when required.

It is especially useful when:

Adding large roller doors to side walls that have smaller standard bays.
Adjusting end bays to provide additional space for end wall girts.

Example

Starting with a 6 m long building with two bays of 3 m each:

Your client requests a 3 m wide roller door on the side wall.

Using the Bay Details feature, you can change one bay to 3.5 m wide to accommodate the roller door.

For more information, refer to the Portal Frame Components section in the Knowledgebase.

Tips, best practices & troubleshooting

When modifying bay spacing, verify that roller door openings align correctly with internal frame spacing.
Keep bays as even as possible for simpler engineering and cost efficiency.
Review overall building length and span after editing bays to maintain proper proportions.
Recalculate the design after changes to ensure SMS updates the BOM and drawings.