Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP

Designed specifically for mechanical and plumbing professionals who want to work with real manufacturer content from start to finish, Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP offers state-of-the-art tools and true manufacturer content right inside AutoCAD MEP.  There are many benefits to the EastCoast MEP solution, most notably seamless project coordination, increased productivity, and fabrication accuracy.

For any professional familiar with AutoCAD, Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP is easy to use and learn because it is integrated into every function, feature and capability of this industry-leading CAD program. For out-of the-box drawing, the EastCoast drawing template is provided, which includes property set definitions for pipe, ducts, and fittings, labels and tags, Paper space and Model space setups, and popular preset pipe and duct routing preferences.

Part and Standards Catalog Management
Part Manager, the user interface to EastCoast piping manufacturing content and sheet metal specifications and standards, allows easy access, organization, and management of all the parts, fittings and shop defaults being used for each specific project or sub-system.

Use Part Manager to easily build catalogs of fittings.

Manufacturer-specific content is stored in a platform independent SQL server database, ensuring that everyone can use the most current set of parts and equipment. The system supports the creation and use of custom fittings, rule and formula-based specifications and allowances, and other shop standards as defined in the organization, with easy filtering to view and use only the specific part catalogs needed for a particular project.

EastCoast CAD/CAM works with manufacturers to ensure that the parts content includes the newest equipment and fittings available from industry manufacturing product lines.

Precision Editing Tools
As you build and edit a system, the details of these real manufacture parts are selectable from within the AutoCAD MEP dialogs, property and tool palettes, and grips editing commands, giving you the ability to draw with true duct and pipe systems that follow industry standards.

Create pipe runs using real manufacture parts.

Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP provides a full selection of editing commands to that are tailored to sheet metal and piping industries. These commands work right alongside and are fully compatible with standard AutoCAD MEP commands, providing an integrated solution that works seamlessly for mechanical and piping system design and fabrication. You can draw your predefined routing preferences, working fast and accurately in fitting selection and placement in the drawing. Additional features include scheduling and inventory control reports (within the drawing or export to spreadsheet), custom attributes entry that is fully visible in catalogs and schedules, and login security to manage user access to the content database.

Spools that Support Fabrication and Assembly
Generated pipe and duct spool drawings provide the 3D visualization, dimensioning, tagging, and scheduling you need to move forward into production. Spools are fully customizable to a customer’s shop standards, with comprehensive reporting and scheduling capabilities that can include data for labor estimating systems. In support of multi-discipline pre-fabrication, customers can create spools with both mechanical and HVAC content. Future releases will include support for electrical content as well. 

The isometric view of a duct spool drawing shows design layout, numbering and schedule information.

Additional features include spool revision tracking, easy part number updating when changing the view of a spool, and support for the Trimble Total station to download to handheld devices.

Generate Accurate DuctMaker or Vulcan Pickoffs
After drawing with manufacturer standards and defaults in Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP, generate pickoffs for use by EastCoast’s CAM cutting software, DuctMaker, where the final preparation and delivery to a customer’s choice of cutting tables and machines occurs.  Support also includes pickoffs for the Quickpen Vulcan CAM system. You can visually track pickoffs in a drawing by adding a legend that groups pickoffs by color.

Software Requirements

• AutoCAD MEP 2012. Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP leverages the power of AutoCAD MEP, which can be purchased directly from EastCoast CAD/CAM, an EastCoast Authorized Reseller, or any Autodesk Authorized Reseller.
• Microsoft SQL Server. Included with Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP is this free, industry-standard database, which provides the storage for EastCoast manufacturer-specific content.

Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP is available as a complete package for pipe and duct drafting, or in individual duct, pipe or fabrication components to suit any shop’s custom needs. Follow these links to read more about the benefits and workflow of Fabrication for AutoCAD MEP.