piping lesson six

CADWorx Video Training Series Lesson Six Productivity Tools

Written by Anthony W. Horn 2011 CAD Training Technologies, LLC Houston, TX USA 169

Lesson Six Productivity Tools

This section will cover a number of topics:

Exporting a CADWorx line into CAESAR II for analysis Generating custom components in CADWorx Modeling Cable Trays Working with Databases in CADWorx Checking data in the CADWorx model compared to the P&IDs Using Xrefs effectively Introduction to Sheet Sets

As these topics begin to get implemented in your work process, you will find your productivity steadily improving. Depending upon which of these you use, you should find that you start having less duplication of effort, or better communication, or less cross-checking. Exporting and Importing back a line between CADWorx and CAESAR II CADWorx has the ability to export a line out to CAESAR II pipe stress software. The line will export out with full and correct geometry. CAESAR II can then open it up seamlessly, and the design engineer can then analyze it for code compliance. During the analysis, if the engineer modifies the geometry of the line, the changes can be imported directly back into CADWorx and the model updated. The following section illustrates how this works.



Exporting this line

out to CAESAR II

In this example you will export out this line to CAESAR II.

1. Open the drawing: 8-LH-1012-150_M. You can find it

either in the Examples folder or the Lessons folder (under C:\CADWorx_Video_Training\).

2. Once the drawing is open, you can click: 3. Plant, Accessory, CAESAR II, System Out



The system will

build a complete CAESAR II input file

The system will export the line out into a CAESAR II format with a .c2 file extension. 4. Click Save 5. Select the components to be exported, and press .

(Note: You can isolate a line beforehand if needed using the CADWorx line isolate command).

6. Press (you will not specify start locations). The system will proceed and write out a CAESAR II input

file for you.



Opening the file in

CAESAR II

7. Click OK to finish the export. At this point you have a completed CAESAR II input file.

All the geometry of the line will be modeled correctly, and viewed quickly within CAESAR II.

To illustrate this, below is how the line looks when it is

opened in CAESAR II.



The CAESAR II file

has the supports and nodes all set up

If the line is

modified in CAESAR II, the changes can be imported right back into CADWorx and the model automatically updated

When the view is zoomed in closer in CAESAR II you can see how the nodes are numbered and the restraints (supports) are modeled. Its easy to see how this can impact your productivity gains in 3D CAD modeling. When you can cut out the duplication of effort for the engineer to recreate the geometry, great time and cost savings will result. As a final part of the process, if the line is modified in CAESAR II, then the file can be saved and imported directly back into CADWorx. So the geometric and design data makes the round trip seamlessly.



Flame Arrestor

custom component Custom components

in CADWorx are created with graphics theres no programming

Drawing the outline

of the flame arrestor

Creating Custom Components CADWorx allows you to create your own special components in an easy to use procedure. In this lesson youll create the Flame Arrestor shown below. 1. Start a new drawing (using the Metric template). 2. Set the Main Size to 6. 3. Set the Specification to A10 (you should have an A10 spec

from previous lessons. If not, open the 150_M spec using the spec editor and save as A10).

4. Following the videos measurements, place the two flanges as shown, and model the polyline as described.



Using a CADWorx

tool button to start the Create command

Adding the new

component to the specification

5. Erase the flanges on each end, but leave the polyline. 6. Bring up the Miscellaneous tool bar, and click on the

Create tool button. 7. Following the videos, fill out the information for your new

component. 8. Then click the two ends as shown in the video, and click on

the polyline. The system will then read the polyline geometry, and

produce a data file (measurement file) for you automatically.

Then, all thats left to do is add the component to the spec,

so it knows where to find it to draw it. 9. Following the video, add a new User Shape to your

specification.



A few steps later

you have the new user defined component

The component is

fully intelligent

10. After adding the Flame Arrestor to your specification, you

can bring it into the drawing (the video will cover this step by step).

This is an intelligent CADWorx object that was created

without any programming. 11. Double click on the component, and youll see the

information embedded in it.



Connecting the

flame arrestor to other components

CADWorx will

include the component in an isometric

The video will show connecting the flame arrestor to other CADWorx components.

12. Follow the video and connect gaskets, flanges, and piping to

the flame arrestor you created. 13. Then send the line out to Isogen and view the results (as shown

in the video). The system will generate an Isogen iso with the flame arrestor

drawn and listed in the bill of materials.



The flame arrestor

will be included in the bill of materials

CADWorx also has

tools to create non-symmetrical user components

The component will be drawn as a simple rectangle in the

isometric, but it will be piecemarked and listed in the bill of materials.

Creating a non-symmetrical User Shape CADWorx also has the ability to create user shapes that are

non-symmetrical. In this next section, youll create the shape shown in the following figure.

The video on this section will describe how this object was

created using standard AutoCAD solids.



Adding this shape

does not involve any programming

You go through

some steps, and click the connection points

Adding it to a spec

To bring this object into CADWorx as an intelligent object: 1. Click the Create button on the Miscellaneous toolbar (as

shown in the video). 2. Following the video, enter in the descriptive information for

the component. 3. Then youll tell the system you are going to select a block. 4. Next you will select 3D, to bring in a 3D block. 5. Then you will select the Reference Point (which is the

insertion point). 6. Then youll pick the far end of the block (at the end of the

flange on the end). The block must be a straight through block for this to

work. If theres an offset it will come in tilted. 7. Then you pick a connection point. In this case you pick

the same two points in the same order, plus the point at the end of the top flange. The order is important.

8. Press and 9. Select all the objects in this 3D block. Next, youll add this new component to one of the specs, so

you can tell the system to draw it. 10. Type: SPED (this starts the spec editor). 11. Select the A10 spec (if you dont have this spec, you can use

the 150_M spec. 12. When the spec is opened, click User Shape in the left area of

the dialog box, and click Add (see the following figure).



Adding this shape

does not involve any programming

You go through

some steps, and click the connection points

Adding it to a spec

13. When the next dialog box opens up, you click the Select

button. 14. Click Use (for the user folder).



Selecting the data

file Saving and returning

back to the drawing Bringing in the new

shape into a CADWorx drawing

15. Click the file you just created: Baffle_Box.Use, and click

the Select button. 16. Exit out of the dialog boxes: Click OK, then Save, which

will get you back to the drawing. 17. Set your size to 6, and the spec to A10 (or the spec you

added the new component to). Next youll test your custom shape in CADWorx. To bring it in: 18. Hold down the mouse button on the Create button, and

release on the button it was added to (in this case button one).



Connecting other

components to the baffle box (custom component)

19. Following the video, place the custom component on the

drawing. 20. Place components that connect to your custom component

(the baffle box) as described in the video.



Viewing the custom

component in the Isogen isometric

21. Then generate an Isogen isometric as shown in the video, and

review the results.



Opening the practice

drawing Opening the HVAC

dialog box

Modeling Cable Trays (HVAC) CADWorx has the ability to model cable trays. It contains

a variety of shapes you can place in the model, and you can also include material information in them as well.

1. Open the drawing called HVAC_Example.dwg. Its in the

C:\CADWorx_Video_Training\Examples folder.

In this drawing, youll place some cable tray shapes. 2. Click Plant, HVAC, Shapes.



Looking at some of

the available shapes Filling out data for a

shape

The system will open the HVAC dialog box, containing a

variety of shapes you can model. 3. Follow the video and select the Square Straight and fill out

the data.



Placing cable trays

into the model Filling out data for a

Tee

4. Place this shape into the drawing as shown in the video. 5. Fill out the Tee shape information and place it into the

drawing. .



Placing cable trays

into the model Generating a Cable

Tray BOM

The system also has a Bill of Materials option you can use. You should go through and test the Setup, to see the various fields you can bring into the material list.



CADworx has many

options when it comes to databases

You can run with or

without a live database

CADWorx supports

Access, Oracle, and SQL Server

A Bill of Materials

is a list for a single drawing

Working with Databases in CADWorx CADWorx has a number of options you can use when it comes to databases. For instance, it can: Run without a database Export out intermittently to a database Run connected to a live database. So these choices are typical of CADWorx you can work the

way that best suits your needs. Databases are used for several reasons: Using databases you can produce a global material list for a

project that is composed of multiple drawings. You can also change descriptive information in a database, and

have it update the model. Also, you can compare data in a P&ID data table to data within

a 3D piping model. CADWorx supports three Database systems: Access SQL Server Oracle Generating a Bill of Materials A Bill of Materials is a material list for a single drawing. It can be contained in the drawing, or exported out to Excel, Htm, Mdb, or as a Txt file.



Setting up a Bill of

Materials The BOM is easily

set to look the way you want it to look

To setup a Bill of Materials 1. Click Plant 2. Click Bill of Materials 3. Click Setup The Bill of Materials Setup dialog box will appear. This dialog lets you add new columns to the BOM from a list of various data items. You can set the width of the columns, the headings, their location in the BOM, etc.



Exporting out to a

database

Exporting Component Data out to a Database CADWorx has the capability of exporting component

information out to a database on an intermittent basis. If you dont want to run the system with a live database, but you still want to obtain a global material list, you can use this option. This gives you a lot of flexibility.

To export component information out to a database: 1. Click Plant 2. Click Accessory 3. Click Database 4. Click Export

5. Press (to select components) 6. Type: A for all. A dialog box will appear for you to select the database

type.



Choosing to use a

new Access database

CADWorx lets you

append and synchronize the database whenever you like

7. Following the video, set up a database like it shows. At a later time, if you export again to the database, it will

prompt you to Append/Synchronize. This allows you to update and synchronize the database with the various drawings you have in your project.

Working with a Live Database CADWorx also lets you work with a live database. A live

database means that a database program is running at the same time CADWorx is running. Each time you place a component in CADWorx, it will instantly write a record for that component in the database program.

This method lets you work with the project while in the

drawing, and also from within the database. You can switch back and forth if needed. For instance, you can also modify descriptive information in the database, and it will update the component information in the model when it synchronizes (you can do this with an intermittent database also).



Setting up a live

database Choosing the Live

Database Type and location

To Run the System with a Live Database 1. Click Plant 2. Click Accessory 3. Click Database 4. Click Setup This brings up the Live Database Settings dialog box.



The live database

will start up each time you launch CADWorx

Exporting out

drawing data to an external database

You can do this for

multiple drawings, and build a global material list

5. Click the Access button, and 6. Click the Create Table button. 7. Choose a location on your system for the database.

The location is not important in this example, since you are

just seeing how this works. These steps actually just set the system up. The live

database takes effect when CADWorx is restarted. It will stay in effect until it is switched off, using the same dialog box you just worked with.

Example of Exported Database This next section shows the kind of data that CADWorx

puts in the database tables. In this example, youll export out drawing data to an

external database. You can do this from multiple drawings into the same database, if needed. That way you could compile a database that contains all the material information for a number of drawings, and produce a global material list.

1. Click Plant, Accessory, Database, Export.



You select the

components You set the type and

location of the database

2. Press (to select components). 3. Type: All (to select all the components in the

drawing. Youll then tell the system you want to make a new database

since this is the first time to run this command. Later, if youve modified the drawing, and you want to

update the database to show the changes, you will click the append/synchronize button.

4. Click the Browse button and choose a location to place the

database. If you have a folder on your system where you would like to place it, thats fine. If not, you can place it in your training folder: C:\CADWorx_Video_Training\Lessons

5. Then you click the Save button, then click OK. At that point the system will look at each component in the

drawing and write out the external database.



Viewing the

database using Access

Exporting the Steel

data

6. Start Microsoft Access and go to the database you just

created (see the video as an example). 7. If you open the Pipe table, youll see the data that the

system has written out for the piping components.

8. The video will discuss the database and its contents. You can also export the steel data. To do this: 9. Click Plant, Accessory, Steel, Database, Export



Exporting drawing

information out to a database

Using the

Append/Sync option

In this case, since the database exists, you will choose the Append/Sync button.

10. Follow the video and send out the steel data.



Viewing the Steel

data table using Access

CADWorx exports out the data for the steel members,

including lengths, weights, and part numbers. The following figure shows a portion of the tables (not all

of the steel information is shown).

11. Watch the video to see the discussion about the

information carried in the steel data tables. Creating or Rebuilding a Drawing from a Database You can also rebuild an entire drawing from its database.

This is another way to use database information to update or create data in the drawing.

To build a drawing from a database: 1. Click Plant, Click Accessory, Click Database Import.



Importing database

information into the drawing this generates new components or updates existing components

You can compare

data in the P&ID to the data in a piping model

If you start a new drawing, using a template, and execute this

command, the system will draw piping components from the information it gets from the database.

Comparing P&ID Data to the Piping Model CADWorx can compare the valves in a P&ID to the valves in

the piping model, by using database tools and cross checking them.

In this lesson, youll be comparing the valves in the P&ID

sample drawing against the model example. 1. Open the drawing called Partial_Model_Example. Its in the

C:\CADWorx_Video_Training\Examples\Project_Database folder.



The portion of the

piping model that will be used to compare the valves in the model to the valves in the P&ID

The P&ID that will

have its valve data compared to the piping model

2. As you watch the video, it will cover how the P&ID needs to

be created, in order for the data tables to be linked and compared.



The P&ID has to be

created in CADWorx P&ID using certain procedures

When you type

PIDView in CADWorx, the system will bring up a box showing the P&ID valves and the valves in the model

You can link valves

and check consistency

The P&ID has to be drawn in CADWorx P&ID using the

same specs and line numbers. Also the P&ID will need to have the Process Assign command run across the process lines (see the video for how this is done).

3. Type: PIDView . The system will add a dialog box next to the drawing

showing the valve data in the P&ID and the model. 4. Click on a valve in the P&ID area of the table, and it will

appear in the window at the bottom of the table.



You can zoom into

valves in the model by clicking it in the data list (as shown in the video)

5. You can click on a gate valve in the model section of the table, right click and click zoom.



You can click a

valve in the P&ID section, right click and zoom into the corresponding valve in the model

When youve

identified the valve in the model that corresponds to a valve in the P&ID, you can do a Link on them

Linking valves will

allow you to check consistency between the P&ID and the model

The system will zoom into the corresponding valve in the model.

6. Click on the other Gate Valve, right click and zoom to it. 7. Once the proper valve is identified, you can link the P&ID

valve to the model valve (see video for how this is done).



You can insert a

valve from the P&ID data right into the piping model

You can also insert a valve from the P&ID data right into the model.

8. Click the valve you want to insert in the P&ID list. 9. Right click, and click Insert in Model (see video for how this is

done). You can then place the proper valve right into the model.



It is important to

organize your model in a way that improves productivity

Each discipline will

have its own sub folder

You will make

extensive use of External Reference files (Xrefs)

Project Administration Managing the Model

When working on a model that is relatively complex, it is

important to set up a good organizational structure. What you should do is set up a project folder, with each

discipline having its own folder under the project folder. For instance, in this course, you will have a project folder

called Area_35. Underneath it are the various discipline folders.

You could have other folders also, depending upon your

project and your work process (Clearances, Buildings, Underground, etc.).



There are a series of

discipline master drawings

There is a Project

Master drawing It is important to

have one person in charge of the model

CADWorx is

completely scalable. There is no project size limit for a well organized design

Then you place your discipline drawings within these sub

folders and you can divide the work among a number of users. Each user then works on his or her assignment, and Xrefs in other drawings as needed.

There will be a series of Master drawings for each

discipline. These master drawings will have all the individual

drawings Xreffed into them (see video for recommendations on this).

There will be a Project Master drawing with the discipline

master drawings xreffed into it. View the video for a discussion of these topics. It is important to have a single model coordinator that

controls these files. This way it can be managed effectively.

There is no limit to the scalability of CADWorx projects, if

they are well organized.



Sheet Sets are a

great time saver in producing drawings

CADWorx can

easily create clipped views with its View Box command

Paper Space views

are live views. Using them, if the model changes, all your details change

Using Sheet Sets Sheet sets automate the creation of views (standard and

clipped) in Paper Space viewports. Paper space views are preferred since they are live

views. If you change the model, the view will update. This way you have no surprises.

You can also annotate and dimension on the paper, with

associated dimensions. Then if the model changes, the dimensions will also change.

The first part of the video shows View Boxes, which easily

set up clipped views (these are also covered in the earlier piping lesson four, and also in the structural skid one lesson).

Watch the videos for an easy introduction to how Sheet

Sets work.



Named views are

easy to call up from the View tool bar

A clipped view

created with the CADWorx View Box command

Sheet sets really

save time if you have a number of views (drawings) to produce

When you create these clipped views, they can be easily

accessed from the View tool bar. Using Sheet Sets, these views can be dropped into layouts

(Borders) with scaling and labeling automated and made easier.

The video makes use of a sample sheet set that is supplied by

AutoCAD. This makes it really easy to do.



In this example,

youll use a sample sheet set supplied by AutoCAD

Youll set up some

project information as you go through the wizard

Youll specify

which model files you want to use for your drawings

Follow the video to see how this works.

You will quickly be producing scaled and labeled views for your drawing production.

When you work with the Sheet Set Manager, you will set up some information about your project. This will help later because the system will build you a drawing list automatically.

Youll then tell the system the model files, which contain clipped or standard views you want to use.



. You can choose a

border You fill out a

drawing name and number

Then you drag and

drop views into your layout

Its very quick and

easy after you do it a time or two

Then youll choose a sample layout.

A few clicks later and you will be dropping in views with scaling and labeling. Its a great time saver.

Watch the video and its easy to follow all the steps.

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