Designing Water Supply and Sewer Systems in NanoCAD
Contents
nanoCAD ВК provides specialized tools for engineers designing hot- and cold-water supply and sewer systems. During design, engineers can use an existing database of real equipment manufacturers and develop projects in both 2D and 3D, obtaining the required calculations and specifications.
nanoCAD ВК is a specialized solution with a familiar interface for water supply and drainage engineering. It also includes standard CAD functions. As the project develops, engineers can generate equipment specifications, hydraulic calculations, and other required outputs.
Because the software performs calculations as well as drafting, it can automatically generate a 3D model, an axonometric diagram, and a complete equipment specification. The product targets the CIS market and supports calculations under SNiP and Kazakhstan's SP standards. Using model parameters from its database, nanoCAD ВК calculates required pressure and maximum water flow and automatically selects pipe diameters, water meters, and valves.
Interface
nanoCAD ВК has a familiar, intuitive interface, reducing the time needed to introduce and use the software in an organization.
Intelligent elements
The main objects in nanoCAD ВК—including valves, plumbing fixtures, meters, and pipes—are intelligent elements. For each one, users can choose among product grades, brands, models, types, and profiles of similar products or materials.
Working with the database
The nanoCAD ВК database includes a wide range of equipment from Russian and international manufacturers, including ZETKAMA, Gallaplast, Ballomax, NANOPLAST, and Professional PE pipes. The source text states that it contains more than 7,000 thousand items.
Manufacturers regularly expand their ranges and add new equipment to the databases, which users receive free of charge after release. Users can also add to or edit their own databases, including entering parameters outside standard values when required by a customer. The database tools are straightforward and do not require lengthy training.
Rooms, risers, and floor plans
With its broad feature set, nanoCAD ВК works well with nanoCAD СПДС, ArchiCAD, and Revit.
Room data can be exported for subsequent numbering or manual or automatic boundary detection. Information about floors and rooms is available on the Building/Object Model tab, where properties can be edited across the entire project. Riser information is available in the Interfloor Connections Wizard.
Calculations and creating a 3D project model
The software's primary calculation is hydraulic analysis under SNiP 2.04.01-85 or SP 30.13330.2016. Calculations can be run at any point to obtain intermediate or final results, taking elevations into account. A built-in validation wizard identifies errors and omissions, while the engineer decides whether to change the inputs. nanoCAD ВК automatically selects the required pipe diameters and corresponding valves.
A complete 3D model of the water supply and sewer systems is generated as the project is developed in nanoCAD ВК. The workflow resembles conventional CAD drafting: the designer works on each floor separately and assigns it a floor number. Meanwhile, the software analyzes information from all floors and builds the engineering-system model. The project can be switched to 3D at any time with one click.
A recent version added the ability to offset a pipeline from its design axis to produce a more realistic model. When a pipe runs along a wall or load-bearing structure, users can set two values: its offset from the wall on the plan and the actual pipe-to-wall distance. The route can therefore appear in a different position on the drawing than in reality, making the axonometric diagram clearer and the generated 3D model more accurate.
Documentation formatting
nanoCAD ВК is developed in Russia and primarily targets the Russian market. It comes configured to produce working documentation under GOST standards, including axonometric diagrams. Foreign CAD systems do not always generate these diagrams according to GOST, so this approach helps avoid documentation review issues.
nanoCAD ВК is included in the nanoCAD Engineering BIM suite, which contains:
nanoCAD ОПС — security and fire alarm systems design
nanoCAD СКС — structured cabling systems
nanoCAD Отопление — heating systems
nanoCAD Электро — design of power electrical equipment (ЭМ), interior lighting (ЭО), and exterior lighting (ЭН)
Data consistency
nanoCAD ВК uses a dedicated Project Manager to coordinate project data. All drawings, specifications, and other documents belong to the current nanoCAD ВК project. This supports accurate water and wastewater calculations and specifications. Equipment schedules always reflect the current water supply and sewer model.
Specification templates can now be configured, making it easier to produce the documentation required by the user.
Documentation
The dedicated Project Manager in nanoCAD ВК shows the project's current status throughout development and updates dynamically. Simply place the equipment on the plan and refresh the project; the information is updated and added automatically. This reduces design errors. The Project Manager can be customized with templates to suit individual workflows.
Room schedule
Room schedules are important because they can be shared with other organizations. This saves time when several engineers work on the same project. Schedules can be exported to Word, Excel, or another system.
Drawing lists, calculation data, document registers, and work quantity schedules are produced under GOST standards and made available to the user.
Hydraulic calculation
The hydraulic calculation is generated automatically and added to this section. The results can also be exported to Word and Excel.
The core of nanoCAD ВК is a 3D model of the water supply and sewer systems. However, designers usually work on separate floor plans rather than directly in the 3D model. How can they create a model that supports accurate calculations and drawings?
nanoCAD ВК addresses this by allowing the designer to work on individual floor plans. On each plan, a floor area is created and assigned a floor number. The software builds a 3D water supply and sewer model from these plans and accounts for elevation differences in hydraulic calculations.
The software can offset a pipe from its route axis on a plan to reflect its actual position. When a pipe runs along a wall, users can specify both the route's offset from the wall on the plan and the real pipe-to-wall distance.
This allows the planned route to differ from the pipe's physical position, improving the accuracy of the 3D model, calculations, equipment schedules, and axonometric diagrams. The result is documentation compliant with applicable standards.
IFC format support
nanoCAD ВК supports the IFC format, enabling project data exchange with other engineering applications and the creation of a unified BIM model.