SIGNAL HILL, CALIF. — 1st Pricing, a Southern California-based e-commerce and Technology Company, released a plug-in that links its 5D building information modeling (BIM) technology to Autocad Architecture 2010 — nearly doubling the available window images for the CAD program. According to the company, this is the first technology to fully integrate BIM into the design process — one that automatically creates a detailed bill of materials with pricing and an online shopping cart — called "5e" by the company. 1st Pricing has created a standardized platform that seamlessly links to CAD programs and e-commerce portals with supplier or distributor prices. This allows the purchase of specified materials online. Visit the 1st Pricing website to download the free plug-in.

"The 1st Pricing plug-in allows architects and designers to access real-world, commercially available products in their designs. The plug-in automatically accesses external databases for product detail — from availability to line item pricing to performance ratings — even green ratings. You can even access design details and elements without opening the CAD program — it is all available online for everyone involved in the building process." said Douglas Lopez, founder of 1st Pricing and a licensed general contractor. "1st Pricing can show which brands are available in a given zip code so a manufacturer can be specified on the plans. We can identify green building materials to encourage and simplify sustainable building practices. It is a search engine specifically designed for CAD."

1st Pricing provides precise detail to all downstream consumers of the information and provides the decision maker detailed information in order for them to make better, more informed decisions.

With the click of a button, the 1st Pricing technology accesses multiple external databases through an internet portal and can pull the brands that are available in the region. Additionally it can provide green information, Energy ratings, RFID or provide comparison pricing of multiple brands to fill out a detailed bill of materials with all related content on demand, making for easy fulfillment from a local building material distributor. Changes and updates are made within seconds so that everyone is on the same page. In the CAD industry, the supply chain component is often referred to as the "fifth dimension of CAD" or "5D" or, in the case of 1st Pricing technology, "5e" for e-commerce using the best practices of 5D.

Today, the Company is focused on building materials for residential construction but plans to add commercial building products. In the near future, 1st Pricing expects to provide pricing on virtually every building product used in residential construction while bridging the gap for subcontractors by including labor quotes.