Bringing design and engineering into the enterprise to meet current demands on utilities

In the face of regulatory requirements, protected service territories, and the task-specific orientation of software development for more than 30 years, utilities developed various silos of responsibility. These silos, such as customer service, finance and accounting, operations, engineering and design, and generation, did not communicate well with one another because there was no compelling need for them to do so. Their software systems and the data/information they contained were separate.

With the overwhelming changes of the last 10 to 15 years, and the seemingly almost light-speed changes occurring in the 21st century, this organizational and technological structure has become nearly dysfunctional. In order to deal with the rapid-fire demands of new regulations and legislation, utilities must operate as integrated entities. Information from all departments must flow seamlessly to those responsible for making the daily decisions necessary to meet the demands of deregulation and it’s stall, environmental pressures, distributed generation, generation curtailment (real and threatened), as a result of the concern over global warming.

Engineering design was one of the silos that developed. As hand drawing of projects became obsolete, highly sophisticated design tools, such as Autodesk’s AutoCAD® software, became standard. Commercial Off-the-shelf solutions (COTS) built on top of AutoCAD by Autodesk, such as the Autodesk® Utility Design solution, added functionality such as engineering calculations and material orders. However, the design process remained somewhat of a silo to the rest of the organization.

Now, Autodesk, the leading engineering design software firm, has enabled the integration of this critical design work with other enterprise information systems through the integration of AutoCAD-based designs with Autodesk® Topobase™ software. Built on AutoCAD and using an Oracle® database, Topobase enables the computer-assisted design (CAD) information created by designers and planners to be maintained in a relational database. This database can serve as a reference for asset management systems, operations and maintenance, financials, customer service and other business systems – all the way up to computerized dashboards at the executive level.

Topobase is the latest addition to the Autodesk Geospatial Solutions suite for utilities. Autodesk Geospatial Solutions are built on software applications such as AutoCAD®, AutoCAD® Map 3D on the desktop, and Autodesk MapGuide® Enterprise on the Web, which shares a common open sourced data interface, as well as Feature Data Objects (FDO), and native use of the DWG file format. DWG™ technology plays an important role in the flow of information from design to build to records and to other departments in the enterprise, with design accuracy and intent maintained through these processes.

Flow of information in typical utility departments
A typical utility consists of several departments that have responsibilities related to various aspects of the utility’s business. These departments are all participants in the flow of information that starts from design through to construction and the maintenance and operations of network infrastructure and on to the business departments and systems.

These engineering-design-operational departments include:

• Systems Engineering – Process new engineering service requests from site developers and their engineering and architectural contractors for new residential and commercial building projects
• Design/Planning/Estimate – Process and deliver information regarding electric and gas usage to support planning for new distribution systems
• Construction – Support work order requests for inspections at new construction and rehabilitation of existing systems
• Mapping and Records – Maintain the records database that feeds into the asset-management systems and provides information to maintenance and operations and other departments.
• Maintenance and Operations – Repair and build service infrastructure
• External Contractors/Consultants – May provide design drawings and require data for planning, design, maintenance, and repair of facilities
• Customer Service – Manage information from enterprise customer information and financial data applications to support customer service inquiries

Network design and data management
A typical network infrastructure design and data management process using the Autodesk Geospatial Solutions includes the following activities:

• Analyze/Plan – the geospatial capability built into the solution enables organizations to use common geospatial functionality directly with existing network and business data to visualize information using desktop and Web platforms for planning and analysis.
• Design – Autodesk® Utility Design software is built on AutoCAD® Map 3D to quickly enable designers to produce network designs.
• Build – The Autodesk collaborative project-management solutions provide a content-sharing portal that streamlines the flow of design documentation and feedback during the construction phase.
• Records – Autodesk® Topobase™ application manages existing network data and proposed versions of designs. Topobase enables asset management and other departments and executives to reference the design intent and accuracy of the data stored within a centralized Oracle® database environment.
• Operate/Maintain – With DWF™-based map books and Web-based mapping technology using Autodesk MapGuide® Enterprise and Topobase Web applications, operations can receive enhanced views of asset information, improving efficiency and responses.

New options for managing design data
Autodesk® Utility Design software is an intelligent, rule-based CAD design tool. Built on AutoCAD® Map 3D, Autodesk® Utility Design software provides design tools with true rules-based automation. As a result, gas and electric work orders can be completed faster, more easily, and more accurately. Autodesk Utility Design enables designers and planners to quickly generate finished construction work orders for both gas and electric systems that include layouts, engineering data, bills of materials (BOMs), design scenarios, and estimated costs.

To accurately plan and design new networks, designers often need to have access to existing network information that resides in the mapping and records database. Using Autodesk® Topobase™ Client software, the records team responsible for the quality of the data in the asset database can extract as-built data into DWG™ files that can then be sent to external contractors and stand-alone designers and planners who work on the designs while disconnected from the Topobase database. With the use of Topobase Client, designers and planners can work while connected to the database, retrieving existing network information and using Autodesk Utility Design software’s powerful design tools to create network designs quickly and accurately.

The following usage process illustrates one possible workflow between Topobase and Autodesk Utility Design applications in which Topobase contains existing network data, which is used as a reference in Utility Design:

• As a part of a new infrastructure-building project, project areas have been identified.
• The records staff uses Topobase Client to extract these areas into DWG format files and sends them to the designers for section designs.
• Alternatively, the designer/planner can directly extract the information needed from Topobase and use that data with Autodesk Utility Design.
• The designer uses Autodesk Utility Design tool palettes to quickly create electric network assets in a standardized manner.
• The engineering rules help ensure that the designs are validated at design time.
• The designers then use Autodesk Utility Design analysis tools to analyze voltage drop, flicker, and sag calculations, and simulate what-if scenarios.
• Finally, using Autodesk Utility Design BOMs, designers can generate cost estimates as well as detailed AutoCAD work order sketches.

Autodesk® Topobase™ infrastructure design and management solutions integrate CAD design information with a relational database, providing organizationwide access to spatial information by engineering, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), operations, and business teams. Built on AutoCAD® Map 3D, Autodesk MapGuide®, and Oracle® database, Topobase is an open solution with utility-specific data models and workflows that helps team members see the big picture and make better decisions, manage infrastructure assets more efficiently, and enhance data quality.

The submitted designs created in Autodesk® Utility Design software are usually merged with the records database after they are constructed. There is value, however, in moving proposed designs into a versioned state in the database so that the data is available across the organization over the construction lifecycle. Designs can then be moved into the as-built or live state when construction is complete.

In addition, these versioned designs that reside in the database allow for better what-if analysis and multiple design scenarios, while becoming the database of reference for design data. As a result, team members can perform analysis on proposed networks as well as those that are already built. Design proposals received from Autodesk Utility Design can then be merged into a version of the Topobase asset-management system and be maintained over the approval and construction lifecycle or be merged into the as-built database once construction is complete.

This integration of Topobase with the Autodesk suite of design tools provides options that have not previously been available to utilities. The following process illustrates another possible workflow between Autodesk Topobase and Autodesk Utility Design applications where design data from Utility Design is merged with Topobase:

• Using Topobase Client, the engineer opens the DWG file submissions and reviews the design. Since Topobase Client is built on AutoCAD Map 3D, which uses the DWG format as its native file format, the engineer sees the same data that the designers create.
• Using Topobase conversion tools, the engineer can selectively view and merge the data into an Oracle database.
• Doing so makes the design data available within an asset-management system across the organization and to operations.
• If construction is ongoing, designs are stored in a “version” of the database pending completion, after which they can be moved to the live database.

A variety of customized solutions and integration becomes possible because Autodesk Utility Design and Autodesk Topobase are built on powerful CAD and database software using industry-leading development tools and an open architecture that lends itself to customization and integration. In a scenario in which certain tasks might benefit from automation, such as the direct submission of designs from Autodesk Utility Design into Autodesk Topobase application, an integrated workflow can improve efficiency across the organization and can be purpose built for such situations.
The workflow processes described earlier are just two of several potential process scenarios in a utility organization. Autodesk Utility Design and Autodesk Topobase are built using AutoCAD Map 3D and can be extended to suit a wide range of specific workflows and processes.

Summary
Using Autodesk Geospatial Solutions, organizations can use the industry’s leading design tools to create network asset design data. With the addition of Topobase, the data then can be integrated with the rest of the enterprise. This makes it easier for utility executives to track, report, and adjust vital design and construction work into the future.

The design information is created using tools that are built on the state-of-the art AutoCAD Map 3D platform using the DWG format. As a result, design information, accuracy, and design intent are seamlessly carried into the processes of building, operating, and maintaining utility assets and further, as necessary. This enables utilities to be quick and effective in adjusting to meet the changing demands of the business and regulatory environments they face today.

With Autodesk Utility Design software, organizations have a standardized engineering rules-based design platform for creating network assets. With Autodesk Topobase, design application, information can be maintained in a centralized database, providing a database of reference for design data across the organization, enabling organizations to enhance cross-departmental efficiency and realize better return on investments.

For more information about Autodesk Topobase software, visit www.autodesk.com/topobase
For more information about Autodesk Utility Design software, visit www.autodesk.com/utilitydesign

Prepared for Autodesk by:
Warren B. Causey, Vice President
Sierra Energy Group, The R&A Division of Energy Central

Autodesk, AutoCAD, Autodesk MapGuide, DWF, DWG, and Topobase are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and/or other countries. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

© 2008 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.