By Steven Butler, industry strategy manager, MEP & Fabrication, Autodesk

If you’re reading this at the office, then you won’t have to look very far to see the impact that mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) design has on internal environments.

Look around you. How’s the lighting in your area of the building? How about the temperature? Does it strike the right balance between “not too hot” and “not too cold”?

These are just some of the ways MEP helps provide a balanced internal environment and a comfortable space for occupants. Of course, proper MEP design doesn’t just benefit the building occupants — it also benefits the environment by reducing a building’s energy footprint, and decreasing carbon emissions.

Given the importance of MEP, Autodesk has forged strategic business relationships with global providers who can extend the functionality of Autodesk Revit building design software to provide a full MEP solution tailored to the needs of specific markets:

• NYK Systems, based in Japan, develops a product named Rebro that is targeted at contractors and specializes in detailing, construction modeling, and documentation. As an Autodesk Solution Associate, NYK Systems will enable both parties to provide a more comprehensive offering across the project life-cycle for the Japanese market.

• Izumi System Planning, based in Japan, develops an MEP design, calculation and analysis solution called STABRO. As an Autodesk Solution Associate partner, Izumi will provide building information modeling (BIM) centric workflow for MEP engineers and designers in Japan, connecting modeling with regionalized systems calculation, analysis and design.

• ALPI, based in France, develops an electrical design solution for engineers and contractors called Caneco BT. As an Autodesk Industry Partner, ALPI will strengthen the electrical component of Revit MEP by offering design and documentation tools to meet regional requirements.

“These vendors know their particular markets very well, and they bring a lot of local knowledge to their solutions,” said Gary Wyatt, Senior Industry Strategy Manager, Autodesk. “Teaming up with them allows us to provide MEP engineers and designers with a full BIM-oriented solution instead of a point solution. As a result, more people will be able to take advantage of BIM to create smarter, better designed buildings around the globe.”

For more news on what Autodesk is doing in the MEP space, including additional vendor partnerships, visit:

• ALPI Software
• NYK Systems
• Izumi Systems
• Autodesk Partners