MicroBIM Fire Simplifies Fire Sprinkler Design | Member Monday
The NFSA membership team sat down with Micah Davis of MicroBim Fire to discuss the company’s history, services, and role in the fire protection industry as a software for fire sprinkler designers.
MicroBIM Fire is a new NFSA supplier and manufacturer (SAM) member. Micah and his team are excited to be a part of the NFSA and are looking forward to attending the association’s conference in May to network and discuss the company’s services.
The History of MicroBIM Fire
MicroBIM Fire had its start in Australia around 10 years ago as 3D Fire Design. In just a few short years, it became the dominant Revit plugin on the continent and is still popular to this day. After this success, the company looked to expand its services into different markets, with the United States being one of its goals. To accomplish this, the company enlisted the help of Micah Davis, an experienced fire sprinkler designer in Jacksonville, Florida, to optimize its software for the U.S. market.
Micah knows the U.S. fire protection industry very well. He and the MicroBIM Fire team started by working on converting the system from metric to imperial, amongst other changes. Micah also worked to spread the word about MicroBIM Fire to contractors and designers.
But what exactly does MicroBIM Fire offer, and could it be a game changer for fire sprinkler designers?
A New Solution for Fire Sprinkler Designers
MicroBIM Fire is a Revit plugin that is optimized for fire sprinkler designers. It offers a wide array of features that make designing and stock-listing a breeze, to name just a few features. Micah offered the membership team a full walkthrough on the difference MicroBIM Fire makes.
Design
MicroBim Fire is designed to be as automated as possible. Naturally, there’s no replacement for an informed fire sprinkler designer, but MicroBIM Fire offers solutions that can make a designer’s life easier. One such tool is the auto-connection feature which offers solutions that will automatically connect sprinklers to pipe and pipe to pipe using multiple configurations at once. For example, the tool can connect branch lines to mains, pendent sprinklers to branch lines with flex drops, and upright sprinklers to branch lines on sprigs all at once without changing settings in between.
Additionally, the software also offers an auto layout tool that takes the ceiling height of a room, the walls, and other relevant variables that affect the spacing and automatically calculates sprinkler head spacing accordingly.
Calculation
MicroBIM Fire is also a great resource for hydraulic calculations. All users need to do is specify all necessary elements and let MicroBIM Fire do the rest. All calculations can then be exported to a PDF report that meets NFPA standards.
Coordination
Fire sprinkler designers know that conflicts with other industries are never fun, which is why MicroBIM Fire’s coordination solutions offer amplified conflict protection. Essentially, the coordination tools allow for the detection and tracking of clashes with other systems and offer automated solutions.
Stock Listing
MicroBIM Fire has a built-in stock-listing features that make fabrication and material lists fast and accurate. Once the project is designed, the designer can generate a report that can then be passed over to the fabrication shop listing with everything needed for the project. With multiple built-in quality control steps, the user can trust the output is precise. These reports can be exported as a .JOB (FireList), PDF, and/or Excel file.
What’s Next for MicroBIM Fire?
MicroBIM Fire no doubt boasts several features that will make designing fire sprinkler systems a breeze, but that has not stopped the company from innovating. At this time Micah explained that training materials are in production for users to better understand that software. Micah is also free to walk customers through the process and make implementation a breeze.
For more information on MicroBIM Fire, visit their website and book a demonstration today!