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Using Pipe Flow Expert Software in Combination with BIM / Revit to Design
Water Supply Systems for Buildings
Conference Paper · January 2020
DOI: 10.23968/BIMAC.2020.004
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33
USING PIPE FLOW EXPERT SOFTWARE MIXED IN WITH
BIM / REVIT IN DESIGNING WATER SUPPLY NETWORKS
FOR BUILDINGS
Nguyen Minh Ngoc, PhD of Hydraulics Construction
Email: [email protected] , ORCID: 0000-0002-2664-5558
Bui Hai Phong, PhD of Computer Science
Email: [email protected] , ORCID: 0000-0002-0542-0069
HaNoi Architectural University
Abstract
The domestic water supply system is a complex structure,
including pumps, pipes, valves, taps and so on. In order to have an
optimal system, hydraulic calculations are required for the piping
system to ensure technical and economic requirements.
Currently, there are many software applications for water supply
network, but there are very few software for domestic water supply
design. Pipe flow Expert software fully supports tools used to simulate
indoor water supply systems, the software can visually simulate the
3D structure of water supply system based on 2D. It also applies
hydraulic calculations for both indoor hot and cold water supply
systems.
The simulation of the water supply system based on BIM
technology using Revit software shows the distribution of the pipeline
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system, construction equipment, but has failed to test the water supply
capacity of the system. Therefore, the coordination with Pipe flow
expert software helps to adjust pipelines and set up a water supply
system to ensure technical and economic factors.
The combination of Pipe flow Expert and BIM/Revit software
packages gives us a visual view from the calculation and determining
the parameters of the water supply network for the design,
construction and management of water supply works in buildings. It is
estimated that the process of applying BIM technology to the design
of water supply works helps to reduce nearly 40% of the design time,
which can reduce about 2% of the total investment of the project and
transparency in the network structure as well as more convenient in
the maintenance and management of water supply network in the
process of using, and at the same time integration with the
development of architecture and construction industry under the
direction of the 4.0 revolution in Vietnam.
Keywwords: Pipe flow expert, Revit, MEP, Water supply
system, BIM, software.
1. Introduction
The application of software technology to the design of water
supply systems is a great progress for the construction industry, which
helps to reduce design and construction time. at the same time clearly
analyze the system's responsiveness for use 2581314.
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The application of software technology to the design of a high-
rise water supply system is the parallel use of two combined software,
including Pipe flow expert software of Daxe soft.Co to serve the
hydraulic calculation to determine dimensions of pipes 9 and BIM
technology software are AutoDesk's Revit for design work.
The Pipe flow expert software is a specialized software for water
supply design, in which the high-rise water supply design is also
focused on developing with full equipment and pipes. This software
can simulate a water supply network for high-rise buildings under 3D
view on a 2D background by 45 degrees oblique grid. Therefore, it is
possible to clearly visualize the layout of the pipeline system, and in
addition to the design of the cold water system, the design of the hot
water supply network for the building is also possible. Meanwhile,
other water supply software is mainly calculated for out-of-home
networks, so it is not possible to simulate the difference in altitude
between nodes, not to simulate hot water supply, especially not to
simulate equipment systems of indoor water supply systems 9.
AutoDesk's Revit software is a software of the BIM (Building
Information Modeling) technology system that is widely applied
worldwide 17Error! Reference source not found.Error! Reference
source not found., this software helps to design an indoor water
supply network with an intuitive view, avoiding conflicts between the
pipes and other building components, and Revit helps material
statistics to be quickly and accurately, helping reduce lowest errors
and repairs in the water supply system 310Error! Reference source
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not found.. This is an issue that is currently not possible in 2D
drawing in AutoCad, but Revit itself does not have a hydraulic water
supply network self-calculation function, but the calculation plan must
be based on other software or Integrated tool in Revit. Therefore,
designing a water supply system for the building requires the use of a
combination of two software on hydraulic calculation and building
design.
As such, the combination of Pipe flow Expert (hydraulic
simulation) and Revit (water supply system design) software packages
is a powerful tool for water engineers, appraisers and investors. This
helps the parties clearly understand the entire process of designing and
executing the water supply system for high-rise buildings, while also
helping to reduce the design time and significantly reduce the
investment costs for the project 8.
2. Study method
BIM / Revit itself provides only a design function. However, the
platform does not support the ability to calculate hydraulic piping and
propose solutions that change according to design standards.
The specialized hydraulic calculation software itself (such as
Pipe Flow Expert) can only perform hydraulic calculations, giving
appropriate design parameters according to the designer's plan.
Although Pipe flow expert software provides 3D simulation function,
it is an independent design software, pipe size and layout based on the
approximate simulation of the implementation. Therefore, sometimes
the length of pipes and pipe diameters are not suitable for the reality.
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The steps to apply BIM in combination with specialized
software in water supply system design are as follows:
+ Step 1. Using BIM / Revit to perform the simulation design of
indoor water supply systems with the length and diameter of water
pipes to be pre-selected (based on experience or specialized
standards).
+ Step 2. Using the Pipe flow Expert software to simulate the
water supply system according to the size of the water supply
network, because the Pipe flow Expert software does not have the
function of determining the length of the pipeline itself, but must
directly enter the direction long pipe
+ Step 3. Selecting the calculation liquid, the calculated
temperature (can be calculated for both the cold water supply system
or hot water supply system) and conduct hydraulic calculations for the
water supply system. Then output the calculated results as a pdf file.
+ Step 4. Checking the water calculation results for the pipeline
system in the network, compare the calculation results with the
industry standards, thereby redefining the pipe size to be changed to
ensure technical standards and economic efficiency.
+ Step 5. Making changes to the pipeline on the simulation
model of the water supply system of Pipe Flow Expert, then
recalculate hydraulics for the water supply pipeline network.
+ Step 6. Revising the model of the water supply system
designed with BIM / Revit with data from hydraulic calculation in
Pipe Flow Expert software.
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+ Step 7. Printing and publishing drawings, data for approval,
appraisal, construction and management of the building's water supply
system.
3. Case of study
3.1 Project
Name of project: executive office of Chuong My industrial Zone
in HaNoi, Vietnam.
Features: The building consists of 3 floors and 1 roof, each floor
has its own sanitary system, including hot and cold water supply.
3.2 Original document
- Document of building architecture: 3D building model
designed by Revit - Architecture.
- Family system of water supply and drainage systems in Revit:
Elbow, T-Part, Reducer, Cap, water-storage tank and so on.
Figure 1. Operator perspective on Revit 3
4. Applying Revit to design the water supply system
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4.1 Copyright for Revit 2018
Using Revit 2018, registering for a 3-year copyright under the
Education system, registering and installing directly on the Autodesk
website and free to use 11
Figure 2. Copyright of Revit
2018 Education version
Figure 3. Revit - 2018 open
interface (MEP)
4.2 Using Revit 2018 for designing the water supply system
Using Revit by flowing:
+ Repairing about Families of water supply system, like toilets,
sinks, urinals, bathrooms, pumps and so on (Fig 4, 5). These families
can be found on websites, or they can be created individually for each
project.
+ Gathering documents and drawings about buildings
(architectural drawings and structures by Revit or AutoCAD drawings
about buildings).
+ Setting the viewing angles and use hydraulic calculation data
to determine the pipe size from Pipe Flow Expert software to conduct
simulations of the building's water supply network (Figures 6, 7).
Drawing pipes on the ground or draw in 3D simulation space
+ Set up a drawing frame (Figure 18).
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+ Statistics of the volume of equipments, pipings, etc. using the
Schedules / Quantities section (Figure 17).
Figure 4. Family system of sink
Figure 5. Structure of Family sink
Figure 6. Arranging water supply
network for the first floor
Figure 7. Layout of sanitary
equipment and water supply for the
three floors of the building
5. Checking pipe hydraulic calculations with Pipe Flow Expert
software
5.1 Introducing Pipe Flow Expert and simulating water supply for
building
Based on water demand of sanitary equipment according to
water standards, the method of selecting the supply network from
which to calculate and determine the water demand for equipment at
the nodes 6. Pipe Flow Expert software is used to simulate the
overhead water supply network in 3D structure based on oblique grid
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coordinates, thereby the layout of the pipeline at a high difference
between the nodes is shown.
Pipe Flow Expert's input data includes node elevation, piping
and water flow demand at the nodes. A simulation model of water
supply system for 3-storey houses is simulated the water supply
system as follows:
Figure 8. Pipe Flow Expert
software interface
Figure 9. Equipment of the water
supply system
Inside:
1: Manipulate file
2: Software parameter unit
3: calculating software
4: Water supply network devices
5: Cut, delete, etc.
6: Network simulation drawing
area
7: calculated liquid state
8: Reservoir specification
9: Pipeline specifications
Figure 10. Overall simulation of Figure 11. Simulation of 2nd
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the water supply network for a 3-
story building
Floor network with different
elevations
5.2 Run the simulation and export the calculation results
After simulating the water supply network on pipe flow expert
software with options such as:
- Type of calculation liquid: water, temperature 20oC.
- Types of pipes: Plastic pipes
Then run the model, proceeding to check the ratio of the
calculated node elevation and pipe length. Then edit and re-run the
simulation to get technical and economical results.
Figure 12. Results of hydraulic
simulation of the domestic water
supply network for the first time
Figure 13. Results of pdf file
simulating the domestic water
supply network for the first time
From the calculation results after running the 1st simulation
show:
- Most of the speed on the pipes satisfies the economic speed 6
(from 0.5 to 1.0 m / s). Particularly, there are 9 pipelines with velocity
greater than 1m / s but smaller than 1.5 m / s so still ensures design.
- Only 2 pipelines (P1 and P112) are water supply pipes from the
tank to the 3rd floor with relatively high velocity (4.06 m / s and 2.78
m / s), so it is necessary to adjust the pipe size.
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Figure 14. Running the 2nd water supply network with pipe size
adjustment P1 and P112
After running the pipe size adjustment solution (P1 pipe replaced
40mm diameter with 63mm and P112 also replaced 40mm diameter
pipe with 63mm pipe) showed that the flow velocity in the pipe is low
( pipe P1 has a velocity of 1.66m / s and P112 tube has a velocity of
1.16 m / s). It is advisable to accept the option of resizing the
calculated pipe.
Use this second hydraulic calculation plan to serve the indoor
network level according to the Revit 2018 software.
Correction plan for water pipes and water supply design
drawings using Revit software:
Figure 15. Overview of 3D water Figure 16. Installing water tank,
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supply system in a 3-storey
building
inlet pipe into the tank and inlet
pipe into the system
Figure 17. Statistics of three-
story house pipeline
Figure 18. Frame drawing and
scale as required by the printing
6. Effective application of BIM technology and hydraulic
calculation software in water supply system design
6.1 Benefits of BIM
+ Improve the consistency and accuracy of the file: The level of
articulation between the project views on the drawings is very high.
Solve most of the design conflicts, making the construction process
continuous 247.
+ Notation system is strictly and uniformly managed: Manage
the symbol system according to a unified system.
+ Shorten the time: Period of design will be shortened to the
maximum when necessary specialized data and library 14, easy and
quick editing, improve the design document synchronization. ,
maximizing productivity, streamlining design and ensuring sufficient
data for workflows 2.
+ Easy coordination: 3 parts of Revit including Architecture,
Structure and MEP work together to create products or complete
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project files. Accelerate projects from design to completion with a
single design.
6.2 Effectiveness in using specialized software and BIM
+ Accurate description of the water supply system structure:
The equipment details described in BIM / Revit are analyzed and
described in Pipe flow Expert, while also taking into account the
energy loss factors for with equipment in hydraulic calculation of
water supply networks. The method of calculating losses of Pipe Flow
Expert and Revit is the same, together using the calculation formula of
Colebrook-white to calculate the losses.
+ Checking each other synchronously about the size and length
of the pipeline of the water supply system: The pipe length is
determined in detail in Revit, then put these data into Pipe flow Expert
for analysis, so ensure accuracy of calculation data and pipe
parameters of real system.
+ Rapid analysis and immediate repair of system structure:
Changes in hydraulic analysis of Pipe Flow Expert are pinpointed and
instantaneously repaired in Revit.
+ Reduce analysis time and accurately control the water supply
system: Synchronize analysis of the water supply system by 2
software. This helps to control the system easily and has enough data
to ensure the feasibility of the water supply system
+ Minimize errors during construction: Conflicting errors, the
size of pipelines and system accessories are determined more fully,
with few changes that slow down the construction progress.
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+ Clear material statistics and accurate estimation of
construction costs
7. Discussion
Pipe flow expert software is highly effective when applied in
hydraulic calculations for indoor water supply facilities, with detailed
description of the equipment and 3D simulation of the structure of the
water supply system. The software enables to edit designs quickly,
and calculate designs for both hot and cold water systems.
Revit 2018 Software with Education license for 3 years is very
convenient for applying BIM to teach and research in Universities. At
the same time, in the work the benefits of BIM are expressed through
the design of indoor water supply, with detailed system layout, clear
statistics, which have shown that Revit has helped improve the design
capacity, clarify the details of the work, especially the pipeline system
on the ground with different elevations.
Revit is strong in building design, but is not effective in
hydraulic calculations. Should this study apply the application of Pipe
flow expert software to calculate and adjust the work design according
to different options, then revise the design on Revit 2018, to ensure
the design work The design is completed, improving work efficiency
and clearly in the design of indoor water supply works.
The research process shows that the design time of indoor water
supply and drainage works decreases by 27.7% on average, the time
of data statistics decreased by 87.05% 12. It shows the benefits of
applying BIM, but in terms of BIM cost, it only decreases by about
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2.02% 14 of the project's investment value because the costs of
applying BIM are quite large. But the cost reduction of more than 2%
of the total investment cost is also a great profit for the project owner.
According to the BIM development roadmap in Vietnam, by
2021 15 BIM technology will be popular and required to be applied in
most projects, so BIM research is really necessary for the
development of BIM. water supply sector in particular and
construction industry in general. From now on, BIM should be
considered an essential component of the project.
In order to apply BIM in the design of water supply works, there
must be a combination of specialized disciplines in architecture and
structure, so it is required when applying BIM as a combination of
different disciplines. So the method of teamwork. Applying BIM, it is
necessary to train links between 3 synchronized subjects together.
BIM should be considered as a compulsory subject in the
training program for engineers in construction, water supply and
architecture to put the first steps in the application of the 4.0
revolution in the field of construction.
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