Multi Disciplinary Penetration

You can create a penetration to define a hole at any point where one or more pipes, steelwork sections pass through a panel, a wall or a structural member.

Each type of penetration is a selectable catalogue item (or an instance of a design template) whose dimensions are parameterized in such a way that they can be derived automatically from the dimensions of the component which passes through the hole. You can modify the final dimensions by specifying clearance distances to allow for any special requirements of the local design geometry.

For multiple penetrations, where several items pass through the same hole, the overall geometry of the hole can (with some restrictions) be derived automatically by merging the individual requirements of the penetrating items.

The types of penetration which you can create (which determine your ownership rights to the penetrating and penetrated items) depend on the design discipline in which you are working:

• From the Pipework Application, you can create only Piping Penetrations.

• From the HVAC Designer Application, you can create only HVAC Penetrations.

• From the Beams & Columns Application, you can create only Section Penetrations.

• From the Panels & Plates Application, you can create both Piping Penetrations and Section Penetrations.

• From the Walls & Floors Application, you can create only Wall Penetrations.

The element types used to represent the penetration are as follows

• The point along a pipe at which it passes through a penetration is represented by an Attachment Point element (ATTA) owned by the appropriate Branch.

• The point along a section at which it passes through a penetration is represented by a Fitting element (FITT).

• The point at which a penetration is positioned through a panel is represented by a Compound Panel Fitting element (CMPF) which owns a separate Subfitting (SBFI) for each associated penetrating item.

• The point at which a penetration is positioned through a structural section or a wall is represented by a Compound Fitting element (CMFI) which owns a separate Subfitting (SBFI) for each associated penetrating item.

These new elements will appear automatically in the Explorer as you use the application.

When you create a penetration, the application sets up cross-references between the ATTA or FITT and the CMPF/SBFI, as follows:

Items Associated with a Single Pipework Penetration

Items Associated with a Single Steelwork Penetration

Items Associated with a Multiple Pipework Penetration

To proceed, select Utilities > Pipe Penetration from within the Pipework Application, Utilities > HVAC Penetration from within the HVAC Designer Application, Utilities > Steelwork Penetration from within the Beams & Columns Application, Utilities > Penetrations from within the Panels & Plates Application or Utilities > Penetrations from within the Walls & Floors Application. In each case you will enter the corresponding Penetration subapplication, as shown by the appearance of a new menu bar, which runs concurrently with the main application from which you entered it.

Note: Because penetration design involves setting references to both the penetrating item (pipe or steelwork section) and the penetrated item (panel or steelwork section), you need read/write access to all relevant databases in order to use this facility. This is particularly significant for penetrations of pipes through panels, which involve two distinct design disciplines. Check with your System Administrator if this causes you problems.