MEP 27 - The New Feature that never happened

[DGSketcher]

Can someone from Graphisoft please step up and own the current abject failure to deliver the renewed MEP Modeller?

Today I joined the many others who have had to return to using AC26 in order to deliver on our MEP commitments.

We all pay out for GS to deliver improvements to AC, yet here we are 7 months later with a key feature broken & software we can't use. Can someone at least tell us what we can expect in terms of delivery of fixing this MEP debacle and when?

It's bad enough struggling with the 3D screen "grey outs", and the disappointment of new features that suddenly became experimental, but finding a fundamental tool is no longer useable... 🙄

[Camu]

And What about the other bug :

1.- There is no longer a MEP label which gives me the slope of my networks.

2.- If I make a personalized label it does not recognize the MEP when I click on it.

3.- Once the slope is entered on my MEP route, I subsequently have no way of checking whether I have set the correct slope, neither on the object itself, nor by label or other means.

4.- The reduction cones between 2 diameters can no longer be adjusted to the water line (see image); it is a reduction to the axis (plan, section).

As we can see in the image; the detour is on the ground floor( blue pipe and same for the red). If my route crosses the first and second floors, the representation of the elbows is transferred to these 2 floors; what is needed at the execution plan level. I therefore had to separate the paths by floor to avoid this inconvenience.

 For the MEP in red I would like the plan symbol to be displayed as a dotted line because it is a view of the ceiling and again it is no longer possible with this new version of MEP

[Robbie]

This is essentially a "me too" post, but I have struggled to express how much is wrong with the current MEP modeller until now, but reading through the previous posts sums it up fairly neatly:

- New pipe "routes" are absolutely a good thing, but they don't schedule in any meaningful way, so pretty useless for me (I'm aware individual pipes and bends do appear on schedules - see below)

- I can't for the life of me add any fittings/branches into an existing route in any way which makes sense. I constantly have to change the parameters in advance of placing, then often find something is fixed to one rotation axis and doesn't rotate to suit the segment. The previous MEP modeller (v24 era) would simply insert a fitting/terminal/branch or whatever at the correct position and rotation and create a new pipe length either side - much better!

- I think it was mentioned before, having "all relevant stories" does not show the cut items properly - this is super frustrating especially in runs with more than a single bend. It would be so much more useful to have the v26 cut plane show where pipe/duct risers are located.

- Also think it was mentioned that having an outer line type different from the inner was quite useful when jumping from "projected 3D" plan view to a "single-line" view, as we could style the objects such that the outer line became 'invisible'

- Did I mention scheduling? For me, the much-awaited feature was being able to schedule a 3D route length. I personally have long-awaited a generic 3D line object which appears in schedules, so I can create simple schedules of approximate lengths for pipes, ducts, wiring, etc. Like many, I have used beams and columns, the old railing tool, the new railing tool, morph and pretty much everything else which is available! Much of  the "MEP" that architects do is to simply to suggest routes, while services engineers will model their version in-place, the output of which can then come back in as a coordination model (I speak as both an architectural designer and services engineer). However, the old "beams and columns" way is still 100% better than what we currently have in this regard!

- Did I mention scheduling??? Even if we do schedule individual items, the work-around is to create a new parameter which checks the pipe/duct, fitting length and combines into an overall length parameter, but in such a way that "merge items" doesn't actually merge the items, so it's pretty useless unless I create a parameter for *every single* route.

Me too.

[Chris Grantham]

Can someone tell me if it's even worth trying in 27 at this point?   It seems as if there is quite a bit of discussion about it not being fully functional.  I am going to need to model some ducts and I don't have time to spin my wheels on a feature that does not work.  

[Bricklyne Clarence]

Full disclosure:-

I'm not an MEP tool user, but I have been following this thread so take what I say with a giant grain of salt until an actual user chimes in.

The current sentiment seems to be that it "works",.....but is fundamentally broken or buggy in ways that make its overall usefulness  in a full project questionable and risky.

It might also not be prudent to take that risk and make the jump just to use it because if you hit a wall and can't manage with it anymore you can't just simply save down to the previous AC version, for example and continue your MEP work there in AC26 since,......um.....the MEP tools in the two versions are not compatible, and you'll lose your AC27 MEP tool functionality in AC26.

If anyone else finds anything I'm saying incorrect please feel  free to chime in - I'm happy to be corrected, but that seems to be what the current situation is at the moment.

Sorry to say.

[Chris Grantham]

Thanks for the response!

[Robbie]

The routing bit is great, but if you plan to include tees/wyes or fittings, or document any of it, then I'd avoid for now.

[Chris Grantham]

I can't seem to find any wall diffusers only ceiling.  What am I missing?

[David Maudlin]

Chris:

It is in the MEP Library 27.

David

[Chris Grantham]

@David Maudlin I discovered it about a minute before you posted that. HA! I guess I had my blinders on.  Thanks for the reply!

[Milan]

Hello all!

I dont want to say that new MEP tool is bad, but I simply dont know how to used. It took me time to use it on previous versions, and now looks even more complicated. I was not able to make simple system of piping. And guide information is just superficial. Is there any detailed tutorial how to use this new tool?

Thanks,

Milan