Manufactuers items

[Noahma]

Well. I know a few companies such as Kohler offer their product line in 2d and 3d models for use. I just found out after digging through the Viking website for viking ranges and ref.'s they now offer almost every item they produce in both 2d and 3d cad files. Now how does this help us ACA users? Well, you can combine the 2d and the 3d model into a nice Multi-view Block so you have the whole shebang in one block.

 

Think It will take me a month or so to create the entire thing into multi-view blocks, but it will leave me with tons of choices for using when doing my projects.

 

http://www.vikingrange.com/consumer/library/documentation.jsp?id=cat40032

[LifeoRiley0]

Greenheck (exhaust fans) also has a decent library of CAD files available for download. I think they are only in 2D though. They also have Revit drawings.

 

 

http://www.greenheck.com/drawings/

[MaxwellEdison]

I think I've gotten blocks from Kraftmaid as well...yep, I did.

 

I just wish I could get some 3d blocks from Simpson Strong-Tie. We use their brackets quite a bit, but I always find myself reproducing a bracket from their inaccurate 2D files. I suspect that the .dwg files are just quick exports from whatever program they use to design the steel forms...but some of these are just bad. Boundaries not closed, dimensions inaccurate from view to view...it's scary.

[Ollie8974]

Maxwell,

That is the correct link to Simpson Strong tie follow that link. When the home page opens look on the left hand side there is a menu. The first item is Download 2009 Catalog that is a PDF copy of their catalog, about half way down is the title, AutoCAD Menu Software. That is the CAD version of the strong tie hardware. Click on that and follow the directions.

 

Merillat Cabinets, Wolf ranges, Kohler, Pella Windows, amoung others have down loadble CAD files or CDs.

[MaxwellEdison]

'Preciate it Ollie, but been there, downloaded that. That contains 2D blocks, not the 3D ones I fight to make from their inaccurate 2D drawings. Or has this changed and the CAD menu now contains 3d blocks not available on the site?

[Ollie8974]

These all appear to all be 2D drawings. With the three views of the brackets I would think you should be able to make a 3D block. I am just getting started in 3D. I dont know about the inaccuracise of the drawings they all look good to me. All I care about is a visual represantan of the bracket. The engineer calls out the specification of what bracket to use. I use thenuse that bracket number in the drawing.

[MaxwellEdison]

The 2D drawings look okay, but if you take the units from fractional to decimal you can see that the thickness can vary from view to view, and often times do not match up with the gauge of steel called out. If we were only making plans, I'd probably just go with the 2D blocks and call it a day. But since we model everything in 3D and often times show bracketing in isometric details, recreating the blocks in 3D has just become SOP. On the plus side, this gets us in the mindset of using the same brackets as often as possible as there is a real cost associated with using a new one. I don't think anything else in their catalogue will be as bad as making a dynamic block out of their VPA3 variable pitch I-Joist bracket...that one was painful.