own size and then simultaneously provide the exact static pressure drop at the connector for duct pressure loss calculations within the duct system .
“ There are quite a few things in the productivity pack that are industry firsts – things that no one else is doing anywhere else ,” Guither said . “ That ’ s what brought them to the pack . Things with formulas , auto-sizing content , or even flow propagation of area . For example , we can propagate the area served by a roof drain throughout the piping system . Once the data ’ s there , then you can use it to size things really fast . Prior to that , all of that had to be manually input and checked and calculated – and then rechecked . Things were lost during design , and now everything is connected .”
Another industry first , Guither noted , is the model group workflow , now termed prefabricated design . In simple terms , this involves completing designs used frequently for projects – and then taking it one step further by having manufacturers provide initial product sizing and grouping recommendations and contractors reviewing installation layouts and arrangements for these model groups . These model groups are now very close to final , installed conditions .
The fan-powered variable air volume ( VAV ) box shown above is part of the mechanical equipment family category , which can have a nearly infinite set of duct , pipe , and power connection sizes and arrangements . These connections are what drive information into the systems within the model .
Paul Dischinger , a mechanical designer and colleague of Guither ' s , has been building out these model groups since the beginning and was key in the initial buildout of the plumbing model groups , which , to date , have been the most time-saving features in the pack . One of the latest prefab-designed boiler heating plant model groups can be dropped into a room in the model in five minutes – which was previously 30 hours of work . This also can account for over $ 500,000 of mechanical product-related costs , all contained in these groups .
The tagging system within this productivity pack is now set up to display any information a designer wants . For example , they could show equipment tags with connected airflow or equipment and its apparent load . Another benefit to this is providing coordination information in views for other disciplines to do their design – for instance , showing structural weight and identity . The new system under way for Canada will include metric and also dual unit functionality .
WHAT IS BIM ?
Building Information Modeling ( BIM ) is the holistic process of creating and managing information for a built asset . Based on an intelligent model and enabled by a cloud platform , BIM integrates structured , multi-disciplinary data to produce a digital representation of an asset across its lifecycle , from planning and design to construction and operations .
Source : Autodesk
This jig is one of the items involved in tool and part creation . It has many faces , including the fan-powered VAV box above . www . AyresAssociates . com 29