# Material Groups The Material Groups section of the Data Maintenance allows users to create and edit material groups, define their display order in material drop-down lists, and assign [property groups](/total-materia-integrator/creator/data-maintenance/property-groups.md) to each material group. The system also allows users to configure up to four levels of material classification (e.g. Metals / Ferrous Alloys / Steels / Stainless Steels) or define only top-level material groups, such as Metals, Polymers, etc. To create a new material group or edit/delete an existing one, simply click the "ADD MATERIAL GROUP"

buttons in the interface. To search for existing material groups, enter the full or partial material group name in the

text box. Clicking the "ADD MATERIAL GROUP"

button opens a new window in which users can either assign a subgroup (2^nd, 3^rd, or 4^th classification level) to an existing main material groups or define a main material group by clicking

slider to the right. {% hint style="warning" %} After adding the new material group, assign it to the appropriate [User Profile](/total-materia-integrator/creator/user-management/user-profile.md#material-groups) in "Material Groups" section to ensure its visibility. {% endhint %} "Material group" text box, in which the material group name is defined, is mandatory and must be populated when adding both parent and child material groups. To add a material subgroup (child group), the main material group must be selected in drop-down list.

**Figure 1:** Screenshot of Material groups in Data Maintenance section

**Figure 2:** Screenshot of Add Material Group window when adding child group

To assign desired [property groups](/total-materia-integrator/creator/data-maintenance/property-groups.md) to existing material groups, click the

link for each material group. This will open a window in which multiple property groups can be selected.

**Figure 3:** Screenshot of Add property groups window

To order main material groups, click the

link, located in the upper-right corner. This will open a window in which ordering of material groups is done by clicking the arrows on the right.

**Figure 4:** Screenshot of Order main material groups window

{% hint style="warning" %} Deletion of materials groups is not possible if the group is already assigned to a material. Ordering of material groups is only available for main material groups. {% endhint %} --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.totalmateria.com/total-materia-integrator/creator/data-maintenance/material-groups.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.