News

Several new ABB junction box items from the ABB Switch Range Configurator have been published on MEPcontent! This means that you can download them as separate Revit families as well and use them in your BIM projects immediately! If you want to make sure to use the complete set of options available, check out the ABB Switch Range Configurator which makes it very easy to design, manage and configure complete sets of switch ranges to match your requirements. Including the ABB junction boxes to see how the switch ranges fit into their environment.

The ABB junction boxes are made of high resistant materials, suitable for demanding climate conditions including frost. The installer-friendly junction boxes have rigid and reliable connections to pipings and cable. The boxes can be installed in various different ways to a range of different materials.

Take a look at the range of ABB wall junction boxes here and download them for free as Revit families!

A short introduction: Trimble

MEPcontent is now part of Trimble. But who is Trimble?

Trimble is a US listed technology provider whose aim is to connect the physical and digital worlds. With core technologies in positioning, modeling, connectivity and data analytics, Trimble enables its customers to improve productivity, quality, safety and sustainability. Trimble offers software, hardware and services in more than 150 countries and is active in industries such as agriculture, construction, geospatial and transportation and logistics. Stabiplan is part of the MEP division of Trimble Buildings.

About Trimble Buildings
Trimble Buildings provides the widest breadth of technology solutions for managing real estate portfolios, optimizing building construction projects and streamlining workplace operations. Trimble solutions are tailored for each phase of the building lifecycle—from the initial survey to design, construction and operation.

Trimble connects the design data created in the office to on-site construction systems. Stabicad, MEPcontent and MEP apps for Revit expand the current portfolio of BIM software, which also includes Sketchup and Tekla. On the other hand, as part of Trimble, Stabiplan now also offers solutions for the building site. Examples of other Trimble solutions are LUCKINSlive an Trimble Building Data as well as Trimble's Constructible, a platform for best practices, expert articles and more.

LUCKINSlive
LUCKINSlive includes details of over 1 million individual items from hundreds of UK Electrical, HVAC and Plumbing manufacturers. The site is an invaluable reference source for Distributors, Contractors and Engineers who need a one-stop shop for product information.

Trimble Building Data
Trimble Building Data offers Managed Content for the MEP industry. You can find CADmep & ESTmep fabrication content as well as Revit SysQue content.

Constructible
Constructible is a purpose-driven approach to building construction – a process that coordinates and optimizes the entire design, build, operate lifecycle. Constructible’s thought leadership covers the AECO continuum, linking the work of each construction stage and helping to implement it within businesses.The articles and tips from Constructible can be found here.

Join Thursday's webinar to learn how to integrate the latest MEPcontent App within your design process and speed up your BIM cycle. The free Mitsubishi Electric System Designer App for Revit and for AutoCAD is a powerful tool allowing you to find the right Mitsubishi Electric Revit families and CAD files for heating and cooling units that you need. Directly from within your project environment saving you time in avoiding a search on the internet for the correct models. Filter the Mitsubishi Electric HVAC units on technical properties and use your desired air conditioners instantly.

During the live webinar on March 8 from 3:00 PM to 3:30 PM CET, we will demonstrate all functionalities of this free App:

• Find the desired product by filtering on technical properties such as Nominal heating capacity
• Save time by quickly searching for products on article number, description, model and series
• Get access to all products from Mitsubishi Electric related to airco systems
• Directly place equipment from within the App without having to leave your Revit or AutoCAD model
• Get access to up to date manufacturer data and content, light and compact in use

MEPcontent is particularly proud to announce the publication of the products of leading Italian manufacturer IVAR S.p.A., specialized in the development of plumbing and heating components and systems.

“IVAR embraces with enthousiasm the BIM philosophy and chooses MEPcontent as partner for the distribution of its models” says Francesca Gualeni, BIM specialist at IVAR. “The data in our models are compliant to the Extended MEPcontent Standard (EMCS) and can be used by all professionals involved in the project, as we guarantee high quality content. Thanks to the great navigability of the MEPcontent portal, engineers can easily browse through the broad range of families that we offer. IVAR is BIM READY with MEPcontent.”

You will find available as from now the BIM files of the MP PRESS FITTINGS - Line (brass press fittings), the MPL PRESS FITTINGS WITH LEAKAGE FUNCTION – Line (brass press fittings with leakage function in case of failed pressing), the IS-BOX (sanitary mainfolds for sanitary distribution) and the IVAR E·SAT DUAL, (innovative separated water satellite module with electronic control) and the CUBODOMO system. Download them now for free!

IVAR Group
The IVAR Group represents a growing business that operates at an international level. Born in 1985 as focused company for the production of valves, over the years IVAR has concentrated on actively seeking and developing new products and reaching high quality standards, and now it has become one of the leading companies in the sector of plumbing and heating components. Currently the IVAR Group has branches in 13 countries and customers all around the world and its production is completely Made in Italy. The IVAR Group has a turnover of more than 150 million euros and employs over 400 people.

Power up your HVAC systems in BIM projects with Mitsubishi Electric! MEPcontent and Mitsubishi Electric launch a free Revit and AutoCAD App to help HVAC specialists to find relevant Mitsubishi Electric articles for their projects.

Using this App it is very easy for MEP engineers, designers and modelers to find, select and configure complete Mitsubishi Electric heating and cooling systems within a BIM project. Leaving your Revit or AutoCAD project is no longer necessary with the built-in Mitsubishi Electric plugin. By downloading this free App you get instant access to all Mitsubishi Electric products related to cooling and heating systems.

Save time by searching on article number, description, model or series and filter on technical properties such as nominal heating capacity. Once placed in your model, it is easy to share product specific data such as localized article numbers, GTIN or URL’s with purchasing- or management stakeholders. Directly order your required Mitsubishi Electric products from within the BIM project using an up-to-date Bill-Of-Materials.

The following product series are currently available in the App: Mitsubishi Electric City Multi, Mitsubishi Electric Ecodan, Mitsubishi Electric E-series, Mitsubishi Electric Lossnay, Mitsubishi Electric Mr. Slim. This App will be constantly maintained and updated, not only with the latest product information, but also with new functionalities to keep you up to speed designing HVAC systems. In the coming months the App will be updated with functionality to draw piping systems and place fittings with the correct sizes to easily connect units. Make sure to keep an eye on the MEPcontent App store, offering you the latest Apps for Revit and AutoCAD.

The MEPcontent Mitsubishi Electric System Designer App for Revit and AutoCAD can be downloaded for free from the MEPcontent store. Downloading and installing the App will take less than 2 minutes, no administrative rights needed.

Great news for BIM engineers, modellers and designers looking for Sabiana products, the Italian manufacturer published it's first products on MEPcontent.

Starting with BIM files for the Carisma CRC fan coil units, Sabiana and MEPcontent will create and publish more BIM files for cooling products in the coming months.

Publishing Revit families and CAD files on MEPcontent is an important step in the BIM journey for Sabiana. "Offering BIM files for our products is no longer a choice, it's a must" according to Luca Binaghi, Commercial Director for Sabiana. "BIM is an essential part of the workflow of our customers nowadays. Offering accurate 3D content, equipped with correct technical and product information is very important to us. MEPcontent is an important partner in our BIM strategy, offering both a BIM platform with a global reach and expertise when it comes to BIM for the MEP industry."

MEPcontent users can download the BIM files for Sabiana products for free from the MEPcontent platform. Keep an eye on the Sabiana product pages for new updates!

About Sabiana
Sabiana is an Italian company which conceives, designs and manufactures appliances for air-condition spaces where people work and live. The company builds equipment and systems to heat and cool any type of space: factories, offices, hotels, hospitals, shopping malls and houses. Always based on the most natural element in existence: water.

Ostendorf has partnered with MEPcontent to create a sanitary systems (or as others call it, sewerage systems) App for Revit. A great tool for MEP engineers who are familiar with the Ostendorf product lines.

The MEPcontent Ostendorf Product Line Placer for Revit plugin provides BIM modellers access to the Ostendorf Kunststoffe HT System, KG 2000 and KG System series water piping systems. Visit the MEPcontent store and watch the video to see the App in action. Create accurate schedules and select the product line, product group or system type of choice from within the Ostendorf product range. Draw your sewerage system and zoom in on the pipe socket, while connecting multiple fittings. Get the right Ostendorf coupling or end piece when working with the split elements and cap open ends Revit functionalities. Using the article numbers and GTIN on the schedules, you can directly order the Ostendorf articles from within your Revit project.

Free Manufacturer App

The MEPcontent Ostendorf Product Line Placer App can be downloaded for free on store.mepcontent.com. You can also find it on the Ostendorf website.

2018 promises to be an interesting year for BIM. New technologies will be introduced, trends from last year are now taking hold and increasingly more companies are benefiting from reduced failure costs and productive work processes thanks to BIM. For those who to raise BIM projects to a higher level, these are the 10 most significant trends to watch out for this year:

1. Modular construction & prefab
Reduce costs and accelerate the construction process: these are two major advantages of modular construction. Building elements are already prepared and assembled in the workshop before the construction commences. Prefab initially begins with prefab concrete walls and floors, however, increasingly more MEP elements are being prepared prefab. The Stabicad for Revit prefab module facilitates such a workflow. MEP engineers can now generate prefab drawings based on the information in the BIM model and incorporate the correct product information and instructions for the workshop. This means that components can be assembled quickly creating an efficient workflow from design to prefabrication and installation.

2. Internet of Things
Smart thermostats and intelligent ventilation systems have already been the standard in the MEP industry for some time now. The intervention of major technology giants like Apple, Google and Samsung in this market ensure that our home are becoming even more smarter. However, it is expected that the Internet of Things (IoT) is also going to change the work of installers and modelers. Take, for example, the advantages that IoT offers when it comes to releasing BIM data to prefab workshops, suppliers or modelers. Modeling and ordering is becoming a lot easier thanks to cloud apps like the ABB Switch Range Configurator or the Rexel Wholesale Connector. Thanks to up-to-date data, designing can be done directly using ready-to-order products that can be delivered directly to the building site. It may not yet be immediately apparent, but the Internet of Things is going to profoundly change transform the work installers.

3. Augmented/VR Reality
Last year, we already wrote about the emergence of Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR and AR) in the MEP industry. Virtual Reality, which enables you to examine extensive 3D models through glasses like the Oculus Rift, is extremely suitable for giving project presentations to the client. Augmented Reality, which merges the reality with virtual images through, for example, Microsoft HoloLens, is very promising as a training tool or for conducting clash testing on site. Take, for example, the possibilities for remote management through a technician wearing AR glasses on site and an expert in the office. This may still be a pipe dream for many, but when products in construction projects are coupled with the correct data, anything is possible. The developments of this visual technology are also worth keeping an eye out for in 2018, because there are yet more great applications in the pipeline.

4. Order directly from the model
More and more installers are realizing that there is more to BIM than offering 3D insight. Enhancing BIM models with data makes a model even more valuable, provided it is used in a clever way. There are an increasing number of companies that benefit from cooperation between manufacturers, suppliers and BIM software developers. New installation engineering products are constantly becoming available for sale as BIM objects, including current product data such as article numbers and dimensions. Thanks to this information, products can be ordered directly from within the model. Examples of such applications are the MEPcontent Rexel Wholesaler App and the link between Stabicad for Revit and Syntess ERP software. A great advantage of such tools is that duplicating work is no longer necessary and the ordered items correspond 1-to-1 with the products used in the model.

5. Mobile cloud applications
The cloud collaboration trend, which is mainly reflected in the use of mobile cloud applications in construction, will continue in 2018. Real-time data from the construction and design process can be simultaneously viewed by different people at different locations. All that this requires is an Internet connection. The Trimble Connect app is a great example of such a platform where partners can collaborate in the cloud from the design phase right through to delivery. Engineers can gain access to the relevant and current information via the tablet, smartphone, PC and the Microsoft HoloLens. This way, BIM models can be easily shared with the building site and reporting from the building site reporting can be effected quickly to facilitate a productive collaboration.

6. BIM to the building site: 3D laser scans and drones
2018 will bring more possibilities than ever for enhancing BIM models with current information. For example, working with point cloud: a point cloud can be created by conducting a 3D laser scan at the building site. This scan contains all accurate 3D dimensions of the building site. This data can be used as a basis for the BIM model in, for example, Revit. This would be particularly useful for complex projects in which it is difficult, if not dangerous, to measure project components by hand. In combination with drones, which are increasingly being used for construction projects, this is promising technology for delivering accurate BIM models.

7. Pick & Mix or All-in-One?
More and more products can now be adapted to the user's personal requirements. We now see this trend continuing through to the MEP industry: modelers are free to choose the tools that they want to work with. For example, an engineer that, for instance, is mainly involved in installing valves, does not require an expensive software packet with all the trimmings. He/she can download apps to suit his/her tasks and can cancel his/her subscription when and if the work so demands. On the other hand, there is the introduction of all-in-one packages and Suites that offer lots of combined software functionality. Engineers therefore have a huge range to choose from giving them access to all tools. Two different models that both offer the user the advantage of a wider range and flexibility to choose which tools best suit their method of working.

8. BIM goes green
It is well known that BIM ensures improved chain cooperation and internal efficiency. But the sustainable advantages that BIM offers plays an ever increasing role. By taking materials and energy properties into account already during the design phase, buildings can be built more energy efficient. This has advantages both during the construction phase, whereby, thanks to BIM, prefab and modular constructions can be applied, and during the operational phase. In the latter phase, huge savings can be made on energy costs and CO2 emission by using the right product and material. Also interesting is the circular economy, an area in which companies like Royal BAM experiment; in the design phase simulating all of the dismantling of a building, to ensure that a building can be demolished or recycled with minimum effort and loss.

9. 3D printing
3D printing technology made huge progress in the construction sector last year. Using the technology, which has long been considered a gimmick for nerds, the first house was fully 3D printed in 2017. The technology has great potential for creating extremely accurate building elements in a relatively short time and with minimum material loss. Thanks to accurate digital product and project data (for example, in the form of 3D components on MEPcontent), 3D printing can be useful within a BIM process in a variety of ways. For example, for quickly making prototypes for sharing with construction partners or for manufacturing components and prefab material. This technology is going to develop much further and is certainly worth keeping an eye on.

10. 4D, 5D and 6D-BIM
At present, there are only a few installers who think beyond 3D-BIM. That, however, is going to change in 2018; the first companies are already progressing towards 4D, 5D and even 6D-BIM. In the case of 4D-BIM, are talking about the visual representation of the construction schedule. This, for example, can be achieved using the Autodesk application Navisworks. However, 5D-BIM (cost calculation) and 6D-BIM (life cycle management) will offer much added value for larger projects. 5D-BIM and 3D-BIM adds two properties to 3D-BIM: costs and materials. In addition to the standard design parameters, details such as geometrics, aesthetics and thermal and acoustic properties are now incorporated in a project. This allows engineers to see how a decision affects the costs of a design in an early stage. 6D-BIM primarily focuses on the long term whereby data for maintenance and sustainability will be added at an early stage. Thanks to such improvements in the area of collaboration and data usage, installers will also maximize the return on their investment in BIM.

The VTR thermostatic control unit for hot water circulation installations from ESBE is now available as Revit family on MEPcontent. Using only thermostatic components (non-electrical) the unit is completely independent and provides very easy installation, with connections and check valves included.

All ESBE products have three clear features in common: they use less energy, they enhance comfort and they improve safety; in systems for heating, cooling and tap water.

A new generation of flue gas systems from Ubbink can now be downloaded for free from MEPcontent. Watch the video and see how easy it its to model the flue gas system in Revit.

Rolux exterior Wall System ensures a low recirculation of flue gases which minimalizes costs risks. Recirculation is a common issue with gas flue terminals where outgoing (wet) flue gasses get back into the system through the fresh air- intake. This can cause disoperation or even damage to the condensing boiler resulting in maintenance costs.

Due to its enhanced terminal top design, the Rolux system ensures a low circulation of flue gases, while still allowing sufficient air intake for optimal boiler performance.

Download Revit families for Rolux ducts and fittings for the Exterior Wall System 80-125 here and starting using them in your BIM project right away!

February 13th is the next date that you should be saving in your calendar if you are a passionate MEP engineer or BIM specialist. During our half an hour webinar, starting at 15:00 PM, we will be discussing the topic: Electrical Schematics for Revit.

With a special offer for those who attend the webinar.

And it is more than just a topic, during this webinar a new app will be shown, the Stabiplan Electrical Schematics app.

The Stabiplan Electrical Schematics app will enable you to create a schematic for all your Revit systems. Simply choose the panel of your Revit system and a comprehensive schematic of it will be generated, containing information about the (sub) panels and all connected elements.

Benefits when using the app
• Quickly and effectively create schematics for your Revit electrical systems by choosing one or more panels
• The schematic will display detailed information for your (sub) panels and its connected elements
• Support for all Revit electrical systems
• The panel and its connected elements are mapped to the correct project levels
• Detailed information about the connected elements will be displayed, for example: family name, space name and space number

Save the date: Feb. 13th, 15:00-15:30 PM CET. Sign up for the webinar here.

New Hattersley product lines for valves have been added to the MEPcontent Product Line Placer for Valves App for Revit! The Valves App lets you easily find the valve you need based on technical properties, place it on pipes in your Revit project, while always working directly with localized and up-to-date manufacturer specific products. If you didn’t already do it, you can download a free trial of the App here.

The valves product lines available in the App contain numerous articles equipped with properties and dimensions that allow you to place the valves dimensionally stable in AutoCAD and Revit MEP.

Hattersley is a recognised leading manufacturer of valves that offers a full range of gate, globe and check valves in both iron and alloy materials, as well as ball and butterfly valves. These are often preferred for their weight and space saving. Hattersley also excels at providing a range of balancing solutions, for constant & variable flow systems.

Along with Hattersley, the MEPcontent Product Line Placer for Valves contains product line information from manufacturers: Oventrop, Belimo, Econosto, TA, Victaulic and Watts Industries and the number will grow in the future.

Start saving time and download a free trial of the MEPcontent Product Line Placer for Valves now!