Estimating, Detailing & Printing Services

• Project Bids
  • Provide firm, competitive bids on all types of projects
  • Accept downloaded or emailed scanned design drawings for bid
• Advance Bill of Material
  • "Hand" take-offs
  • SDS/2 generated take-offs
• Shop and Erection Detail Drawings
  • CAD generated, "hand" checked details
  • List of specific SDS, Inc. specialties
• Field Bolts Lists
  • Bolt summaries
  • SDS/2 generated summaries, point to point, etc.
     
• Deliverable File Types
   
  • Plot Files (.plt extensions)
    • Plot files are the most common and preferred deliverable file format Steel Detailing Services, Inc. uses.  SDS, Inc. can submit shop and erection drawings for approval or for fabrication as plot files.  These plot files can be sent to any HPGL compatible plotter for printing.  Plot files print an exact copy of the original, including the correct fonts and line weights.  Plot files cannot be manipulated, just printed.  SDS, Inc. will generate and submit these files using the detail drawing number and the appropriate revision level as the filename with a .plt extension.  This is also our preferred method of receiving files from Engineers and Fabricators for the sole purpose of printing.  These can typically be dropped directly to a plotting system.  There are several universal programs available to assist in this process.  Govert Knopper's "GoPlot" Program works great if you don't already have one.  Please contact us with any questions.
    • If you use a Xerox digital printing system the FREE Xerox Accxes Client tools allows one click printing of plot files.  The Accxes-Tools software can automatically resize and rotate the .plt file to whatever drawing size you require, no matter what the original plot file specified.  The latest version of the Client Accxes-Tools software can be downloaded here.
    • If you use Oce' digital equipment, the FREE Océ Plot Director is a comparable to Xerox's Accxes-Tools.  Océ Plot Director´s user-friendly graphic interface will also provide convenient control of plot files including scaling and rotation.
       
  • PDF Files (.pdf extensions)
    • Portable Document Format (PDF) is the de facto standard for the secure and reliable distribution and exchange of electronic documents and forms around the world, with a ten-year track record. PDF is a universal file format that preserves the fonts, images, graphics, and layout of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it. Adobe® PDF files are compact and complete, and can be shared, viewed, and printed by anyone with free Adobe Reader® software.  The FREE Adobe Reader® software is available here.
       
  • DWF™ Files (.dwf extensions)
    • The DWF™ (Design Web Format™) file format offers a simple, secure way to share design data. It can be thought of as a container for a design or detailing package. In that package are various kinds of information published in a viewable & printable drawing set.  DWF provides full control of the design/detailing information. The information designed/detailed is exactly the information our extended team will see.

      DWF is flexible. It holds large amounts of compressed data plus all different kinds of design/detailing data. DWF is an open format that can be published by many different design applications. It's compact, enabling quick sharing and viewing. Using Volo® View or the free Autodesk® Express Viewer, anyone can review and accurately print DWF files without the creation software.  The FREE  Autodesk® Express Viewer can be downloaded here.
       

  • Tiff Files (.tif extensions)
    • These are files generated by scanning a drawing.  These are raster images, which can be viewed with almost any graphics program, even AutoCAD.  Aside from Plot files, Tiff files are preferred over DXF or DWG files, because they are raster images that can be printed without regard to font types and line weights, etc.  SDS, Inc. will accept Tiff files as contract documents for bid purposes.  Tiff files are also a good supplement to a hardcopy design set for detailing.
       
  • Drawing Files (.dwg extensions)
    • These files are the native file format from AutoCAD.  This is an extremely flexible file format to distribute.  Due to that flexibility, several important items need to be considered when submitting a DWG file.  Along with the drawing file itself, the appropriate fonts, Xrefs, plot style tables, and plotter configurations will be required to view and print the drawing accurately.  AutoCAD 2000i and later have simplified this process by added a utility called “etransmit”.  This is our preferred method of receiving files from Engineers and Fabricators for the sole purpose of making erection drawings if reproduced design drawings are not allowed.  SDS, Inc. can submit a DWG file to our clients as a supplement to a hardcopy drawing shipped the old-fashioned way, a plot file, a PDF file, or a tiff file.
       
  • DXF Files (.dxf extensions)
    • These are files exported by our SDS/2 systems or from AutoCAD.  These files can be read and manipulated by AutoCAD and other CAD programs.  These files may not view with 100% accuracy.  Due to line weights and font types, you may run into some overwriting.  SDS, Inc. can submit a DXF file to our clients as a supplement to a hardcopy drawing shipped the old-fashioned way, a plot file, a PDF file, or a tiff file.
       
  • CNC Files (various types)
    • CNC interface for main material and sub-assembly pieces, with any standard ASCII or DXF compatible CNC software (such as Peddinghaus, Controlled Automation, Metal Fabricating Systems, Vernon Tool Company, and Industrial Control). Or, if your company does not have a software interface with your CNC machines, we can generate punch card data for you.
       
  • EJE Files (.eje extensions)
    • File format used by E.J.E. Industries' Structural Material Manager software to help steel professionals - fabricators, suppliers, and detailers - manage structural steel lists.  It reduces the man-hours required to process the lists by requiring the operator only to load the EJE file containing the material items and then automatically doing the following:  (These files are produced directly from the AutoCAD file, this provides an extremely high level of accuracy!)

  • Weighs all steel, stainless and aluminum items.
  • Provides a total material cost for the job.
  • Tallies the shop and field labor hours.
  • Supplies bolt counts for each size bolt.
  • Provides item counts for each material type.
  • Reports a lineal total for each section size.
  • Prints shipping tickets and master shipping lists.
  • Prints a production-control history as a complete shipping status report or just a shortage report.
  • Computes surface areas and actual paint/primer requirements.
  • Sorts items into proper order by material type, section size, length and grade.
  • Nests lineal items into available stock lengths for an optimal cut, whether from in-house inventory, your supplier's stock or the best combination of both.
  • Nests plates into specified sheet sizes and draws a picture of the optimum layout.
  • Prints adhesive item labels based on the Sorted List, Nested List, Master Shipper or Shipping Ticket.

  • FabTrol KISS Files (.kss extensions)
    • The KISS standard was developed under the auspices of FabTrol Systems, in conjunction with several other software vendors.  FabTrol Systems continues to devote substantial resources to the project for the mutual benefit of everyone involved.  Nevertheless, the KISS standard has been put into the public domain and is offered freely to the industry.  It has been assumed that KISS will eventually give way to a broader standard, mostly likely the CIMsteel CIS/2 standard endorsed by the AISC's EDI, (Electronic data interchange), Review Team. 
    • The KISS format can transfer project specifications, bills of materials, sequencing data, labor requirements, and more. By exchanging such information electronically, steel software users can eliminate the need for repetitive data entry and significantly streamline their information management.   (As with the EJE files, the KISS files are also produced directly from the AutoCAD bill of material, again providing an extremely high level of accuracy!)