Augmenta, a company automating building design for the construction industry, has announced the Electrical Design Module, the first generative design solution for its Augmenta Construction Platform (ACP). The module addresses the needs of electrical contractors and engineers, enabling them to accelerate the time it takes to estimate and create fully constructible, code-compliant electrical raceway designs by automating the entire process.
While today’s shop drawings typically only model the main runs of an electrical distribution system, the Augmenta Construction Platform can create fully detailed designs for entire projects in hours instead of weeks or months. Using Generative Design, the Electrical Design Module for the ACP delivers accurate, National Electrical Code (NEC) compliant, detailed 3D raceway designs, complete with a bill of materials.
“The Electrical Design Module for our Augmenta Construction Platform is the first of several solutions we are developing to automate building design,” said Francesco Iorio, CEO and co-founder of Augmenta.
“We’re tackling the toughest design challenges in the construction industry, and plan to also provide solutions for plumbing, mechanical, and structural engineers and contractors. Our ultimate goal is to deliver an integrated solution that eliminates the time consuming and error prone processes of designing systems, and sharing and coordinating those designs across trades.”
Using Generative Design and AI
The ACP leverages machine learning to speed up the design process. This approach enables automated designs of constructible buildings based on the requirements identified for a building and the applicable building codes. The Electrical Design Module was developed in collaboration with Interstates, an innovative electrical contractor based in the U.S.
“In a very short period of time, we saw how dramatically Augmenta’s approach to automated design can reduce the cost of the design process,” said Josh Gillespie, BIM/VDC director at Interstates.
“It enables us to decrease the risk of inaccurately scoping time and cost estimates while drastically reducing the time it takes to complete estimates for bids. This gives us additional time to present fully considered design alternatives, thus positioning our company as a strategic partner to our clients, which include general contractors, engineering firms, developers, and owners.”
