What is it?

P&ID Apprentice is a productivity tool that uses your experts' decision rules to help the user generate a P&ID drawing while designing a continuous process system.

The P&ID Apprentice builds on the Microsoft Visio P&ID stencils, and makes the Visio shapes even smarter by adding your product data. Apprentice Systems can also create custom Visio shapes to represent additional components you might need.

The user can be prompted to provide information on use requirements when a generic shape is dragged and dropped on the page. A suitable part or subassembly is automatically selected from the database to meet the given requirements. If an appropriate part cannot be found, the Apprentice will tell you which requirement is not being met, and allow you to either relax the requirement or enter a new part in the database.

Ancillary components necessitated by an element of the design can be automatically added.

Validation of the correctness of components and connections can be done continuously or on demand, based on your preference. Either way, validation occurs before a drawing is released to a customer or for implementation, saving time and money down the line.

The P&ID Apprentice can also be designed to infer rules from existing and new designs, allowing the Apprentice to learn and adapt over time. And finally, the Apprentice automatically generates the necessary bills of materials and other detailed drawings to facilitate implementation.

Some Frequently Asked Questions

• What are the Visio P&ID stencils?

  Microsoft Visio has had a special focus on P&ID, and part of that commitment has been the creation of even smarter Visio shapes for this arena. This 'intelligence' is around how the shapes draw and connect themselves, making it easier than ever to draw a visually attractive P&ID. When connected to your database, the shapes can size themselves to reflect the dimensions of the part the Apprentice selects for the application.
   

• How are my rules embedded in the P&ID Apprentice?

  First of all, some basic knowledge is already built into the Apprentice. As for your own proprietary rules, you have a couple of options. You can purchase a Mentor, take some training, and be totally independent on entering and maintaining your knowledge. Or you can attend a knowledge capture seminar and have Apprentice Systems help you define and enter your rules. Further rule additions and changes can then be done over time on an as-needed basis.
   

• Can I add labor to my bill of materials?

  You can add labor (or anything else, for that matter) to any part, or to the act of connecting two parts. Either way, it can be reflected in the bill of materials.
   

• General FAQ's

Relevant Case Studies

Flowtronex