Automate
Shorten your engineering and design processes from several weeks to just a few days or even a few minutes and gain back your valuable time for new projects. The same advances that have enabled German Mechanical and Plant Engineering to establish itself as a global leader are also possible in the development and design departments, especially in the area of Electrical Engineering: Software controlling software – or a step toward Industry 4.0 using the WSCAD SUITE and the Add-on Automation Interface.
Consistent automation is achieved here on the basis of five sequential sub-steps that build on one another:
1. Project Structure
A consistent and well thought out structure of plants and equipment using structure identifiers from the outset simplifies and accelerates the development and design process immensely. Complete mechatronic parts lists can be generated fully automatically, and the matching of modules via ERP systems with the data from the mechanical CAD field can be quickly and conveniently accomplished. It is the marriage between electrical and mechanical engineering. The bridge to the electromechanical and thus mechatronic parts list is easy to implement by building small functions and functional units that match the mechanical modules on the one hand, while also being repeatedly usable any number of times on the other.
2. Standardize
The standardization of the product portfolio aims to compose an individual offer from many reusable modules. Product structures and project templates are designed for the engineering process so that they not only reflect all the established norms and standards of the market, but also save the entire knowledge of the company and make it available to all developers. Clearly formulated internal and external policies for suppliers and partners further simplify the design process. This saves time and ensures the accuracy of all created documents. Together, these measures provide a solid foundation for the automation that is built on it.
3. Reuse
Frequently recurring subcircuits and plans are stored in the form of macros. With the WSCAD SUITE, these function modules can be easily created individually for all disciplines: draw a subcircuit, drag a window with the mouse over it, assign a name and save. The macro can then already be placed repeatedly in plans any number of times. To ensure that the macro libraries do not get too big and confusing, the use of variables is recommended. A variable exchange is immediately applied to all plans across all pages and disciplines. This is fast and transparent, and nothing is forgotten.
4. Generate
Those who want to take the next step can generate plans using the Project Wizard. Just press a button and the small add-on to the WSCAD SUITE composes macros and variants for more or less complete plans, including documentation – ideally up to 100 percent. Weeks of planning work are thus reduced to a few days or possibly just a few hours.
5. Configure
The Automation Interface goes one step further: numerous product configurators such as SAP, ACATEC, SIEMENS Teamcenter or proprietary developments can pass all the data required for the engineering process to the WSCAD SUITE at the touch of a button. As if by magic, the complete plans as well as the documentation are created effortlessly. The entire process runs as a background process. The WSCAD software does not need to be started, and even the users themselves need not need to intervene or even be present during the creation of the plan. Plans created overnight or software controlling software – a step toward Industry 4.0 in engineering. In other words, configuring instead of designing. What used to be created in weeks now takes a few minutes. And engineers find time for more important tasks.
Several benefits go hand in hand with a consistently conceived and implemented standardization and automation. Take advantage of our knowledge in conjunction with best practices. We can help you to determine and establish the optimum level of automation for your requirements.
The advantages at a glance
- Consistent look and feel for all plans and documents, regardless of the designer
- Centrally stored engineering expertise for all developers
- Rapid development and design cycles
- Consistently high quality of work results
- Uniform templates and document structures
- Clearly defined master data
- Binding policies, both internal and external, for suppliers and partners
What we can do for you
- Record and analyze the current situation
- What can be standardized? And where?
- Optimal organization and use of macros and macro variants
- Generating plans at your fingertips with the Project Wizard
- Configuring instead of designing with the WSCAD Automation Interface
- Actionable recommendations and support for the implementation of the identified opportunities
