Precast Concrete company goes for Paracad+

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Sep 14, 2000

Coltman Precast Concrete of Sutton Coldfield has reduced lead-times dramatically by introducing local, Lichfield-based CADlogic Ltd's powerful and easy-to-use 2D parametric CAD system paraCAD+

Coltman Precast Concrete Ltd of Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, has approximately 100 employees and designs, manufactures and installs precast concrete floors and staircases.

Precast concrete consists of steel reinforcing bar (rebar) cast in concrete.

Coltman produces wooden moulds prior to manufacturing its concrete structures such as stairflights.

Of its £8m turnover, £6m is prestressed concrete flooring.

Coltman has reduced lead-times dramatically by introducing local, Lichfield-based CADlogic Ltd's powerful and easy-to-use 2D parametric CAD system paraCAD+.

Richard Hackett, the Computer Systems Manager at Coltman, has developed customisation routines to tailor the CAD software product to the needs of the design department.

Previously days on end were spent at the drawing board, designing and calculating individual stairflights, for example, based on the general arrangement (GA) drawings which were in turn derived from architectural plans.

Now paraCAD+ is used to generate the GA diagrams.

The parametric routine has been defined such that the dimensions for the stairwells are entered from the architect's plans, and the calculation of the stairflight arrangement is performed by the computer to well defined criteria.

These drawings are used first as a visual check for all parties involved, to gather vital feedback from the Architect, Structural Engineer and so forth, and then as a master plan for the next stage in the design process.

This is where the paraCAD+ system really comes into its own, as all the parameters are called up in turn and complete fabrication drawings produced therefrom.

The whole design and calculation procedure at Coltman has thus been reduced from days to hours, with the result that the company's productivity and ability to satisfy customer needs has been correspondingly enhanced.

The rapid and efficient servicing of enquiries and orders is an absolutely critical factor in a highly competitive market with a commodity product such as precast concrete.

Coltman benefits technically from the interactive parametrics, associativity, high-level CPL programming language and database links in paraCAD+.

Via Microsoft Excel, paraCAD+ automatically calculates the volume and weight of concrete and, what is more, produces a cutting list for the reinforcing bar.

The system also incorporates a library of standard stairflights.

Coltman runs its CAD system on ten Pentium PCs across a Novell network.

Versatile Coltman is busy using paraCAD+ for the design and detailing of many and varied projects ranging from residential developments, offices and warehouses to hotels, health clubs and sports stadia.

Recent projects include Fairview Homes, Wimpey Homes, Ilkeston Town FC, Batley Rugby Club, The Lowry Centre and Gloucestershire Cricket Ground.