March 2005 eNewsletter


ENGINEERED SOFTWARE eNEWS MARCH 2005	View the Newsletter Online Company Products Support Resources Our Clients Demo Contact Us Translation Nederlands French
Featured Topics:
First Product Offering Utilizing the PIPE-FLO Software Development Kit Available PIPE-FLO Feature of the Month Industry Insider FLO-MASTER Seminars TechNet Plus ESI Around the Globe
First Product Offering Utilizing the PIPE-FLO Software Development Kit Available
Engineered Software, Inc., is proud to announce the first product offering made available utilizing our new PIPE-FLO Software Development Kit (SDK), the Glosten Ballast Management System.
The Glosten Associates, a full service marine consulting firm located in Seattle, WA, created the Ballast Management System in response to the growing need for large merchant vessels to track the intake, outflows and movement of water throughout their ballast systems.
Due to environmental implications, it has become increasingly important for vessels to track the movement of water through their ballast tanks as they move from port to port. As these vessels travel around the world taking in and discharging water, non-native marine species can be introduced into the environment with potentially damaging consequences.
In the Ballast Management System, Glosten knew it had an innovative product idea. However, they recognized a major stumbling block in the process of taking the project from the idea stage to the production stage. They would need to determine how to track the water movement.
"We knew we could install flow meters, but they are expensive and notorious for not being reliable," said Kevin J. Reynolds, Senior Marine Engineer at The Glosten Associates. "We also thought about developing our own custom calculation algorithm internally."
The cost of both of these options quickly became prohibitive. According to Reynolds, "it would have taken us six months of development time to create the interface internally and using flow meters would have significantly increased the capital and installation costs of the product."
The PIPE-FLO SDK works in conjunction with the PIPE-FLO Professional program. As current users of PIPE-FLO Professional, Glosten was already using the program to design fluid piping systems in their vessel designs. Understanding the power of the program, they wanted to utilize its capabilities to meet their specific needs. They needed to seamlessly transfer data inputs to PIPE-FLO and allow PIPE-FLO to perform calculations and share that information with the Ballast Management System. Using the PIPE-FLO SDK, they were able to make this happen quickly, effectively and with limited expense.
"Without the PIPE-FLO SDK, the cost of the project would have been so great that we would have scrapped it in the design phase," Reynolds said.
"Using the PIPE-FLO SDK let us concentrate on the problem we were trying to solve because we didn’t have to invent a tool to track water internal movements," said Reynolds. "The set-up is simple. Procedures are reliable and straightforward. PIPE-FLO is the engine, our program starts the engine."
For more information about the PIPE-FLO Software Development Kit, please click http://www.eng-software.com/products/pipeflo/sdk/ or call toll free at (800) 786-8545.
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PIPE-FLO Feature of the Month Using PSV Files for Control Valve Selection
Prior to selecting a control valve for an application, the buyer must provide the valve supplier with information on how the valve will operate in the system. This information is typically supplied in paper form. Now with the availability of a Piping System View (PSV) file, control valve buyers can provide their valve sellers with a PSV file that provides all the information needed to specify a control valve.
For step-by-step instructions on how to use the PSV file for control valve selection, visit http://www.eng-software.com/kb/item.aspx?article=1336. For more tips and hints, visit our knowledge base at www.eng-software.com
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Industry Insider Real World Examples of PIPE-FLO Saving Time and Money
M3 Engineering & Technology Corporation: Using PIPE-FLO to design and troubleshoot complicated mining operation systems
M3 Engineering & Technology Corporation specializes in unique, technical challenges. One of the challenges that M3 faces is designing and troubleshooting large mining projects that have tremendously complicated systems with conditions that change over time.
The ability to analyze systems and simulate different operating conditions using PIPE-FLO has allowed M3 to save time and money in both system design and troubleshooting. In addition, the ability to change the model in PIPE-FLO to match current conditions assures that M3 will always have a clear picture of how the system was designed to operate. Once they have an updated version of the model, the company is able to compare this to what is happening in the field and make necessary changes.
"I have used PIPE-FLO on hundreds of projects over the past 15 years, and I have been able to save time and money by accomplishing what couldn’t be done manually or with spreadsheets," said Pat Dugan, Chief Engineer of the M3 Phoenix office.
To read the complete success story, visit http://www.eng-software.com/clients/m3/
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FLO-MASTER Seminars Jacksonville PIPE-FLO Training Sold Out!
The Jacksonville FLO-MASTER Seminar sold out weeks ahead of time! There are only a few spots left in the Raleigh and Houston classes, so sign up today or risk missing out on this fantastic training opportunity!
The seminars are two days, with the second day completely focused on real-world examples and hands-on use of the program. Examples will include advanced pump selection, variable frequency drive analysis, advanced controls, balancing a system, system expansion and building a system from scratch.
Upcoming FLO-MASTER Seminars:
~~Jacksonville, FL – March 17-18~~ SOLD OUT! Raleigh, NC – April 14-15 Houston, TX – May 12-13
Classes will fill up, and each class is limited to 12 participants, so sign up today!
To find out more about the upcoming FLO-MASTER Seminars click on http://www.eng-software.com/products/flomaster.aspx or call (800) 786-8545. The seminars qualify for 15 Professional Development Hours needed to fulfill Professional Engineers’ continuing education requirements in many states.

Pump Training Courses Offered by Noted Consultant and Author, Michael Volk.
Classes for engineers, maintenance technicians, and pump sales and applications personnel will be held in:
Long Beach, CA - March 22-24 Chicago, IL - April 26-28 Houston, TX - May 10-12 Oakland, CA - June 7-9
Visit www.volkassociates.com/seminars.html for more information.
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TechNet Plus Have You Upgraded to Professional 2004?
As a reminder, your TechNet Plus account provides you free program upgrades as they are released. If you have not upgraded your copy of PIPE-FLO Professional, contact your territory representative to receive your free upgrade. As a reminder, Professional 2004 contains many new features including:
NEW Tank Feature List View Improvements Improved Scroll & Zoom Tool Modify Pipe Specifications in Use NEW Tool Bar Features NEW - Hazen-Williams method Enhanced Pump Features Easier Control Valve Modeling Component Modeling
If you do not have TechNet Plus but would like to upgrade, contact your territory representative at sales@eng-software.com or by calling (800) 786-8545 for more information on how you can upgrade to Professional 2004.
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ESI Around the Globe
PIPE-FLO will be presented in the Netherlands during the Industrial Maintenance 2005 exhibition in Rotterdam from April 26 - 28. We will also be in Jacksonville for our FLO-MASTER Seminar and we look forward to meeting with current customers over the two-day class.
We had a great time exhibiting our PIPE-FLO 2004 and PUMP-FLO programs at the Texas A&M International Pump Symposium in Houston, TX from February 28 – March 3. It was wonderful to see many of you!
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