KENNESAW, GA. — Steel Projects, a French company specialized in integrated steel fabrication systems has developed an interface between Tekla Structures BIM software, their WinSTEEL and WinSER PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) software, and Ficep's steel fabrication machinery. The new interface supports the overall BIM workflow and is another example of the possibilities provided by the Tekla Open API application programming interface.

Since the management of project-related information is challenging, the functionality to manage and track project status by simulating schedules and tasks in the 3D model was originally added to Tekla Structures to benefit construction site management. This new interface allows adding the fourth dimension — time — to the 3D model for steel fabrication, too.

All steel processing information for a project can be taken from the Tekla model, imported into the WinSTEEL software for the management and routing of steel parts to Ficep machinery, and then imported back to Tekla Structures software from WinSER for visualization and tracking of assemblies' fabrication status in 3D. All fabrication data is exchanged between the software in XML format. The visualization in Tekla Structures includes illustrative coloring for different stages of fabrication, and the color-coded model is easy to review and share between the project team over the Internet using a free Tekla Structures Model Reviewer application. The interface works from Tekla Structures version 15.0 and WinSER version 6.5 onwards.

"Scribing automation was our previous successful joint effort with Steel Projects and Ficep," said Saku Järvinen, marketing manager of the Steel Segment at Tekla Corporation. "With this new interface, we provide yet another extremely efficient tool for steel fabricators. The data previously only available in numbers can now be simulated to a very visual form and communicated to anyone that has an Internet connection."

"In addition to the many benefits that the new interface provides, we have improved the project communication of the drawing office and the fabricator," said Didier Bonnet, manager at Steel Projects. "Our customers can now easily and in real time see how their production is proceeding and match that information with the design and erection schedules."