PIPE-FLO v12 Features Poll

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We are so pleased to have the newest release of PIPE-FLO available. Not only do our customers have new features and functionality, but the Engineering Support team for ESI also reaps the benefits. A poll from our team of engineers reveals four standout improvements that are worth mentioning.

#4 the Property Grid

Starting the top four features list is the newly conceived Property Grid. One third of our Engineers thought this was the feature they appreciated the most.

Take a closer look at the Property Grid:

The Property Grid brings all the system design and calculated information to the forefront making editing devices effortless. This new feature allows many more calculated results to be shown and the flexibility to customize the display of these results on the FLO-Sheet. The Property Grid has an added Property Tips area with helpful hints and links to the Help file.

#3 Messages Window

There is a tie for the #2 and #3 spots on the list. The brand new Messages Window received 50% of the Engineering Teams’ votes. This may be because our Engineering team deals mostly in the support of our users. That doesn’t lessen the value of this feature, because users will also see the benefits right away.

Take a closer look at the Messages Window:

The new Messages Window shows all calculation and design warnings for the piping system. This is particularly useful since PIPE-FLO v12 now allows users to draw an entire system without entering in design data. In earlier versions of the program, PIPE-FLO only reported the most severe warnings. Having the message window allows us to now report ALL the applicable messages for the system and allows us to provide some guidance as to the severity of the warning. In addition, linking it to the system colors and the Help File all provide the user greater visibility to both the applicable warnings and assists in troubleshooting the system.

#2 Sizing Device Improvements (Control Valve Calculation & Selection)

50% of our Engineering Team listed the improved device sizing functionality in PIPE-FLO v12 as one of their top picks. PIPE-FLO v12 has improved the workflow of selecting pumps, and allowed for more comprehensive control valve calculations. Our engineers appreciate having more results available upon calculation of systems, because they know it will improve a user’s understanding of the interrelatedness of components.

Take a closer look at Sizing Devices:

Having dedicated devices for performing sizing calculations make it clear to the user what the objective of the system modeling is. Through years of support, our Engineering Support team has noticed some of our users with existing, operational systems that have pumps or control valves still defined in a state for sizing (ie: pumps operating in the “size pumps for” lineup setting). Modeling an existing system with a running centrifugal pump in the “size pump for” lineup will not reflect the actual operation of that pump or your system.

Creating specific devices for sizing pumps and control valves allow for two things: The ability to readily see which items are acting as designed, and to focus the calculated data on what parameters are specifically needed for sizing.

#1 Group Select/ Group Edit

With over 80% of our engineering team voting, hands down the fan favorite new feature in PIPE-FLO v12 is the Group Edit and Group Select. With the time saved in initial design and editing systems, there’s little wonder why this features gets a resounding hallelujah from the team.

Take a closer look at Group Edit and Group Select:

Groups Select allows you to perform the Group Edit function. There are multiple ways to select items, (and for that matter, deselect) multiple items in your piping system project. Using the Control (Ctrl) Key, plus the selection tool, users can add or remove items from their selection on the FLO-Sheet. They can Select All using the menu or Ctrl + A as a shortcut. The List View window also allow users to select multiple similar devices such as pipes, and change all or some of the defining characteristics. This leads us nicely into the Group Edit feature. Groups of similar items can be redefined. For instance, maybe you want to change fluid zones for a group of pipes with a certain specification. Bam! You can! Change the surface pressure for all your tanks at a certain elevation? Yup! That too! All you need is to use the List View to sort your devices by any of the columns and then Ctrl + Click and you are creating your list to Group Edit.

Honorable mention include:

•    Draw a System Before Adding Design Data
•    Customizable Printed Report
•    More Shortcut Keys
•    New More Useful Help File
•    DataLink ODBC

For more information about these features and more, checkout the Engineered Software Knowledge Base at http://kb.eng-software.com/questions/467/PIPE-FLO+Professional+12+Release+Notes.

Let us know what you think of the new features in PIPE-FLO v12. Leave us a comment and check out the free PIPE-FLO v12 Demo Download here.