Introduction to AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018

Introduction

This book introduces you to AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018, which is used to create Piping and Instrumentation diagrams and design a 3D Plant model quickly. AutoCAD Plant 3D is the product of Autodesk. It was first released to help process and power industry in the year 2007. It also includes AutoCAD P&ID. This software is designed to create Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams, and then design 3D Plant model based on the P&ID. A P&ID (Piping and Instrumentation Diagram) displays the connections between the equipments of a process and the instrumentation controlling the process. A P&ID is created using standard symbols. In AutoCAD Plant 3D, you can create P&IDs using symbols related to various standards such as PIP, ISO, ISA, DIN, and JIS-ISO. You can create 3D Models using predefined and user-defined parts. You can then relate the 3D model to the corresponding P&ID. After creating the 3D models, you can use them to generate Orthographic, elevation, and section views. You can also create Isometric drawings, which can be used to manufacture.

AutoCAD Plant 3D is based on AutoCAD User-interface. However, the intelligent 2D/3D symbols and the connected Database are main features of this application. You can use this database to generate reports, create annotations, and so on. When you change the attributes of various symbols, the annotations are updated automatically.

In AutoCAD Plant 3D, you create everything inside a project in order to make your design consistent. You can create a project on a Standalone workstation or a Network. Creating a project on a Network synchronizes your work with your team members. You can also use the validation tools to check any errors inside the project.

Starting AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018

To start AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018, click the AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018 icon on the Desktop. Alternatively, click the Windows icon at bottom left corner, click the down arrow in the Start screen, swipe or scroll to the AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018 section, and click the AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018 icon.

An Overview about Projects in AutoCAD Plant 3D

AutoCAD Plant 3D is a project-based application. It stores each and every object in the Project database. The Project Manager palette helps you to access the project files from the database and work inside a project. You can examine the Sample Project to get an overview about the project workflow. Click Sample Project on the initial screen to load it in the Project Manager. The Project Manager consists of many drawing types namely, P&IDs, 3D piping, orthographic drawings, and isometric drawings. Also, there are some additional files such as spreadsheets. The program arranges all these data in different tabs on the Project Manager: Source Files, Orthographic DWG, Isometric DWG. On the Source Files tab, the P&IDs, 3D Piping, and related files are arranged in a folder hierarchy. The Orthographic DWG tab contains the plan view and elevation drawings. The Isometric DWG tab contains isometric and spool drawings arranged in folders. The orthographic and isometric drawings are created from the 3D Model.

Tutorial 1

In this tutorial, you start a project and then create a P&ID (Piping and Instrumentation Diagram).

Creating a New Project

The first step in the design is to create a project. The project has a set of files and standards.

Start AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018.

On the initial screen, click the New button under the Project section.

Enter TUTORIAL PROJECT in the Enter a name for this project field.

Specify the location of the program generated files and supporting files.

Click the Next button; the Specify unit settings page appears

Select Imperial to define the units for project drawings.

Click the Next button; the Specify P&ID settings page appears.

Specify the directory to save the P&ID files.

Select PIP as the P&ID symbology standard to be used.

Click the Next button; the Specify Plant 3D directory settings page appears.

Click the Next button; the Specify database settings page appears.

Select the SQLite local database option if you are working on a standalone workstation.

If you are working on a server, select the SQL Server database option and configure the server settings.

Click the Next button; the Finish page appears.

Click Finish to create a new project.

If you want to open an already existing project, then select Open from the drop-down on the Project Manager (or) On the ribbon, click Home > Project > Project Manager > Open Project.

On the Open dialog, browse to the location of the project and select the .xml (extendable markup language) file. This file stores all the information of the project. It is recommended that you should not edit or rename this file.

Note that you can open only one project at a time. If you want to open another project, then you need to close all the files related to the currently active project.

In AutoCAD Plant 3D, you need to use the Project Manager to open or create a file. You avoid using the New and Open icons of the AutoCAD application.

Creating a New Drawing

Once the project is created or opened, you can create new drawings using the Project Manager. The Project Manager helps you to create new drawings with all the standards built in it.

Right-click on P&ID Drawings, and then choose New Drawing.

The New DWG dialog appears.

Enter Tutorial1 in the File name field.

The PID ANSI D - Color Dependent Plot Styles.dwt is the default template. You can select any other template by clicking the Browse button next to the DWG template field.

Click OK to create a new P&ID file.

The default screen of the Plant 3D file appears as shown.

By default, the color scheme of the user interface is Dark. You can change it to Light if you prefer a bright user interface. To do so, right click and select Options. On the Options dialog, click the Display tab and select Color scheme > Light from the Window Elements section. Click OK to change the color scheme.

See the lower section of the Project Manager. You can view the details, preview, and work history of the currently opened file.

Also, notice that Tool Palette appears at the right side of the screen. You can change the tools displayed on the Tool Palette. Right-click on the title bar of the Tool Palette to display a shortcut menu.

If you cannot see the P&ID PIP tool palette, click P&ID PIP on the shortcut menu.

Changing the Workspace

A Workspace is the arrangement of tools and options used for a specific purpose. By default, the Plant 3D Workspace is activated in AutoCAD Plant 3D. You can change the Workspace to PID PIP by clicking the Workspace Switching down arrow at the right-side on the Status bar, and then selecting PID PIP from the flyout.

Viewing the Drawing Properties

To view the drawing properties, right-click on the drawing file and select Properties; the Drawing Properties dialog appears.

Change the properties on the Drawing Properties dialog, and then click OK.

If you want to open an already existing drawing file, then expand the P&ID Drawings or Plant 3D Drawings folder and double-click on the drawing file. You can also right-click and select Open.

If two or more people are working on a project, then only one person can edit the drawing file at a time. If the other person wants to open the file opened in another workstation, then he/she can use the Open Read-Only option.

P&ID Symbology Standards

The design process in AutoCAD Plant 3D starts with a P&ID (Piping and Instrumentation Diagram). It helps you to understand the process very quickly. While creating a P&ID, you add data to the