by David N. Johnson

I have been involved in the Construction Industry for nearly 40 years. I finally figured out how to “Do It Better” a little over 2 years ago. How? By using the tools available to allow me to plan better.

I had the good fortune to hire a gentleman that is a Mechanical Engineer and had worked in Germany, the country he was born and raised, in the mechanical field. He began his training as a field installation journeyman in the Mechanical Building Trades and later completed his engineering studies. He is the son of a U.S. Armed Services Veteran and a German National mother.

Mike was anxious to see “How they do it in the U.S.”, and he began his tenure with Climatic in early April of 2007. He handled all of his assignments with ease and became a model employee. As we became to know one another better, we often discussed the procedures we follow to complete our work and the same for how it was done in Germany. Living my entire life in the U.S. and being used to the way we did things, I just figured that was just the way it was and who could possibly do it better than we Americans. Anybody out there who thinks this is the case, you are so wrong.

Mike introduced me to C.A.T.S. Software in the summer of 2007. I immediately was taken over by the product, even though it was presented in metric units, and all of the AutoCAD plates were in German. Mike contacted the President of C.A.T.S. Software in Germany and asked if they had considered offering a “Western World” version of the Software. Mike began a dialogue with the lead engineer at C.A.T.S., and it was determined that he would make a visit to our office where we would layout the software to professionals in our area. All parties at the demonstration held in our office were taken as I was with the product. The engineer returned to Germany, and discussed with the president the potential opportunity. Mike and myself entered into a partnership with C.A.T.S., as we were key to the Western Hemisphere’s product development. At this time with the exception of University use, we are the only contractor in the U.S. producing coordinated drawings using this powerful software product, which has been in use in Europe for over 25 years. In light of the recession that the U.S. has been engulfed in, and the slowdown in construction, U.S. sales have not been what we had hoped.

In the U.S., all construction documents are presented in the two-dimensional format, for bidding the project and for completing the project. Often on larger projects, and often not, threedimensional coordination drawings are required to be submitted by the “Duct Installation” Contractor. With proper preparation and consultation with the other subcontractors on the job, this project will more than likely be a success for all of the trades, including the general contractor as the project has been thought out.

In Germany and most other European and Asian countries, the Architect will produce the typical twodimensional drawings, as it is here in the U.S. The mechanical engineer will in turn generate a threedimensional model with regard for structural elements and all MEP components. They are using the same software that we are using in the generation of our drawings. This gives you the vision that they are doing things right to start with, not issuing “Mission Impossible” project drawings.

Since our implementation of the 3-D drawings on our typical commercial projects, the general contractor and all the subcontractors are on board with our process. They are finding that they do not now have to do something two or three times to get it in the right place. This increases profitability for all team members on the project, and who is not
excited about that?

David N. Johnson
President, Climatic Refrigeration & A/C, Inc.
Managing Partner, C.A.T.S. Software USA, LLC