First steps
Open a new chat and describe the system you want to look at. You do not need to pick a template, a calculation type, or a code first. Describing the problem is the interface.
Design a single-span steel beam, span 6 m, IPE 300 in S235, uniform load 12 kN/m.
Show me the bending verification and the maximum deflection.
You get the internal forces, the utilisation to EN 1993, the deflection against its limit, and the intermediate steps. Every assumption Mia had to make is stated, so you can correct one and ask again.
Ask for what you actually need
The single biggest difference in answer quality comes from saying what you want out, not just what you have.
Weaker:
I have a 6 m beam with 12 kN/m.
Better:
6 m single-span beam, 12 kN/m including self-weight, S235.
Pick the lightest IPE that keeps deflection under L/300 and utilisation under 0.9.
The second version states the criterion, so the answer is a decision rather than a table you still have to interpret.
What happens when something is missing
Mia asks instead of inventing. That is deliberate, and it is the behaviour you want from something that produces numbers you will sign.
Dlubal CALC states what it assumed instead of hiding it. Ask for "a beam over 6 m" with no load and you get a question back, not an assumed load. Ask for a concrete column without a national annex and you get asked which one applies, because the partial factors differ.
If you would rather it just proceed, say so in the same message: "assume the German NA and a live load of 5 kN/m², and tell me what you assumed."
What the assistant can and cannot see
It sees your conversation, the files you attach in that conversation, and whatever it looks up with its tools (knowledge base, geo data, web search, your RFEM if connected).
It does not see your other chats, your colleagues' chats, or anything on your machine that you did not attach or expose through the Dlubal-Connector.
When RFEM is not reachable from a chat, the answer says so and offers to help you set the connection up, with a link to the step by step guide. It will not blame your plan for it: RFEM access is included in every plan, Free included.
Example: ask why the deflection in your RFEM model looks wrong and RFEM is not
connected. You get two routes offered instead of a dead end: connect RFEM so the model,
its supports, loads and results can be read directly, or send the numbers, a screenshot or
the .rf6 file and have the values re-derived by hand.
File attachments come with Professional and above. On Free and Starter, describe the numbers in text instead of attaching a document.
What it costs
A Standard chat message costs 1 credit, a Deep one costs 2. Searches and RFEM calls are billed separately when they happen. The full table is in Plans and credits.
Example: the beam question above, answered without any tool call, costs 1 credit. The same question where Mia looks up a snow load for a location costs 1 plus 2 for the geo lookup.
Where to go next
- Connecting RFEM if you want Dlubal CALC to drive your own RFEM 6.
- Reports to turn a conversation into a PDF you can hand over.