MagiCAD 2020 Update Release 1
1. Connection nodes between Electrical and HVAC systems
[Electrical]
Connection nodes allow electrical designers to collaborate with mechanical designers regarding the power demands and electrical connection needs of their equipment. Users are now able to search for mechanical objects that contain electrical connectors and create their own connection node objects into the corresponding places. The connection nodes are then handled in electrical systems as electrical objects. The nodes can copy and update Object IDs and electrical data from the mechanical objects and electrical designers can also receive notifications whenever a mechanical object has been moved or removed and edit their system accordingly.
2. Clearance Analysis tool for MEP elements, supports and hangers and structural elements
[Common]
Plan drawings can be color-coded according to minimum height from floor to lowest hanging MEP object based on clearance settings. The clearance analysis can be done in the active view or in a separate view and according to rooms, spaces and regions, or alternatively, based on a user defined grid.
Clearance analysis results can be viewed in a report or as a coloured plan. Objects that are hanging too low can be highlighted and located in a 3D section box. Users can define the expected minimum height, as well as a height level below which objects, such as radiators and switches, can be ignored.
3. Updating provisions to reflect changes in model or associated elements
[Common]
Provisions can now be updated when there are changes in the model that affect the provision properties, which considerably facilitates the provision workflow. Previously, if associated objects were moved, changed or deleted, the provision itself needed to be deleted and recreated in order to reflect the changes. When running automatic provisions, the new functionality allows users to show or preview changes and delete or update provisions.
Updating provisions—instead of deleting and recreating them—also keeps intact the links between provisions and voids in the Structural model. This helps maintain the workflow between different disciplines in coordinating provisions and voids.
4. Possibility to connect multiple segments simultaneously
[Ventilation, Piping, Electrical]
The Standard connection tool allows users to select multiple segments (ducts, pipes and conduits) to connect either with drag-selection or by clicking individual segments. Connecting multiple segments directly improves modelling speed and reduces repetitive work.
5. Adding MagiCAD calculation data to 3rd party Revit families
[Calculation]
Users can now enter calculation data to 3rd party Revit products. This enables reliable calculations to be performed for products that are not found in the MagiCAD product library. Pressure drop data can be added for most ventilation and piping product categories and sound data can be added for most ventilation product categories.
6. Support for localized calculation standards for electrical calculations
[Electrical]
The new version allows users to install calculation engines with localized calculation standards for electrical calculations. Localized calculation standards can be installed through the Check for updates function. After installation, the localized calculation standard can be selected from a dropdown menu in Settings in the calculation dialog. The first available localized calculation standards are the French NFC 15100 and UTE 15-500, and German IEC60364 and TR50480 standards.
It is now also possible to export a report of the electrical calculation results into a Word document. The report will be exported using the selected calculation standard.
7. Alignment functions and sizing method selection for pipe connections
[Piping]
The improved pipe connection tool offers additional functions for defining pipe alignment. Users can now define the exact height level of connecting pipes either freely or in relation to a selected reference object, for example when going below or above other elements. The height level can also be defined for an individual connecting pipe. The pipe connection tool also allows different sizing methods to be selected for main pipes and for connecting pipes.
8. Support for booster pumps in domestic water systems
[Calculations, Piping]
Booster pumps are needed if there is not enough water pressure to meet the required pressure and flow of domestic water devices. MagiCAD now supports booster pumps in domestic water systems and the pressure increase they produce is calculated with the dimensioning flow to the pump curve.
9. Pressure drop calculations without balancing
[Calculations, Piping]
Pressure drop calculation is used in early design stages to estimate the pressure drops of a network. There are three options for pressure drop calculation:
- Calculate the pressure drops with MagiCAD data uses the data of the installed products in the network. This option is closest to balancing.
- Use pressure drops defined in the dataset allows users to override the pressure drop information from the MagiCAD database and use the given pressure drop values.
- Use pressure drops defined within project settings only calculates the pressure drops of the ducts and fittings and then adds the pressure drops defined in project settings.
10. New line splitting options for Schematics
[Schematic]
The Schematics module includes new options for splitting intersecting lines. Depending on the type of the schematic drawing, it is possible to split intersecting lines automatically when drawing a new line. There is also a new tool for splitting intersecting lines manually afterwards. Unlike native Revit functionality, the Split tool in MagiCAD enables splitting the main line to several segments simultaneously by selecting multiple branch lines. This drastically saves time as there is no need to split each main line segment separately.
11. Improved Running index function
[Common]
The Running index function has both new and improved features. Users can select whether to use unique index numbers in different system types and spaces, or to allow the same index numbers to be used. It is now also possible to select different systems as a range for the automatic numbering. Additionally, running indexes can be added to connection nodes.
