After a four year break, the Design Master User Conference is back! The event will be held at the Cincinnati Airport Marriott on September 15 and 16. It is a chance to learn more about how to use our software, meet the Design Master staff, and network with other Design Master users from around the country.
There will be an informal reception and registration on the evening of Wednesday, September 14. The conference will last all day on Thursday, September 15 and half the day on Friday, September 16. There will be a total of 9 hours of classes on the two days. There will be two rooms of sessions, one for Design Master Electrical and the other for Design Master HVAC and Plumbing.
The cost for the conference is $495. The first twenty registrants will save $200 and can register for $295. Rooms are available at the hotel for $139 / night.
Learn more about or register for the Design Master User Conference.
We released the new versions of Design Master HVAC 7.0, Electrical 8.0, and Plumbing 3.0 on March 7, 2011. The main new feature for all three programs is improved 3D-BIM support for working with architects using Revit. All three programs can now export IFC files that allow you to do 3D collision detection with other disciplines that are also using 3D modeling software.
New HVAC Features: The 3D-BIM feature includes hangers for ductwork and easy-to-model 3D mechanical equipment. This release also includes a new pressure drop report.
New Electrical Features: The 3D-BIM feature adds conduits and cable trays as well as support for vertical clearances above panels. This release also includes the ability to size equipment based upon MCA and MOCP, and an improved voltage drop report.
New Plumbing Features: The 3D-BIM feature adds 3D modeling and hangers to pipes.
Autodesk released AutoCAD 2012 on March 22. The current versions of Design Master HVAC, Design Master Electrical, and Design Master Plumbing are all compatible with this new version of AutoCAD. If you migrate your settings from your previous version of AutoCAD, everything should work correctly. If you run into any problems with our software during the upgrade process, let us know and we will be happy to help you out.
Our customer story for April 2011 is APEX Engineering, an electrical engineering firm in Centreville, Mississippi.
Design Master is so easy to use, it’s fun! We’d be hard-pressed to run our business now without it.
–W. Chelsae Knight, PE
Each month, we highlight a feature from each of our programs. Our goal is teach you something new about what our software can do.
These are brief overviews of the features, not detailed tutorials. If you have specific questions on how to use them, let us know in the article comments, on the forums, or by sending us an email.
HVAC: Duct Sizing Options
Electrical: Generators, Transfer Switches, and UPS’s
Plumbing: Customizable Pipe Types
In the March 2011 newsletter, we asked our customers whether they use multiple arrowheads on combined homeruns or not. Read about the results of this survey.
This month’s customization poll asks about how receptacles should be drawn. We expect there to be strong opinions on this one. Take the poll and let us know how receptacles appear on your drawings!
