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Thornburgh Engineering

Englewood, FL

April 2016


Thornburgh Engineering Saves Time and Eliminates Errors with Design Master Electrical and Design Master Mechanical

Tom ThornburghBased in Englewood, Florida, Thornburgh Engineering is a one-person firm run by Tom Thornburgh, PE. With over 55 years’ engineering experience, Mr. Thornburgh designs mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection systems for commercial and industrial projects.

Mr. Thornburgh has been a Design Master Mechanical user since 2005 and a Design Master Electrical user since 2006. He originally used both programs as a consulting engineer with other engineering and architectural firms. Currently he uses Design Master whenever possible, on nearly every project he works on.

Saves time and reduces errors

“I use the Design Master Electrical and Design Master Mechanical packages because they’re great time-savers and they eliminate a lot of errors,” Mr. Thornburgh states. “For automation of load calculations and for drawing ductwork, for example, Design Master Mechanical is fantastic.

“It’s the same with Design Master Electrical: you can add a bunch of receptacles to a drawing, quickly circuit the whole group and then automatically generate the line work—all in one fell swoop.

“Changes are so easy to make and so quickly done in both packages as well,” Mr. Thornburgh continues. “I appreciate that because in this day and time we often end up making a lot of changes to the designs.”

“Design Master Electrical and Design Master Mechanical are great time-savers and eliminate a lot of errors.”
Tom Thornburgh, PE

Supports newly required calculations

“Design Master Electrical also automates a lot of calculations that are now required in the state of Florida, such as voltage drop and fault current analysis,” Mr. Thornburgh points out. “More and more of the local plan examiners are requiring those things, so it’s great that they’re available as options within Design Master Electrical.”

Always have a solution

“The more I use the Design Master packages the more I learn about them,” reflects Mr. Thornburgh. “I’ve enjoyed dealing with Design Master support and don’t hesitate to call when something comes up.”

“They’re always very, very helpful and very quick to respond. Just last week I reported an issue and they sent a patch right back to me. They always have a solution,” Mr. Thornburgh reports.

Missing the boat

“I’ve been head of the mechanical departments for several large firms,” says Mr. Thornburgh. “I think many such companies are missing a bet by not using Design Master.”

“These firms tend to hire draftsmen to do their drawings. But with Design Master an engineer can create a drawing or make a change faster and easier than they can explain to a draftsman what they want, let alone have them sketch it,” Mr. Thornburgh notes.

Can’t imagine being without it

“The Design Master software was designed by engineers, and they knew what they were doing,” observes Mr. Thornburgh. “It’s just amazing what they’ve been able to do with AutoLISP.”

“I’m very pleased with the software—and it’s definitely a bargain. I can’t imagine being without it,” Mr. Thornburgh concludes.