PypeServer Customer Profile: Andy Junglen of RJ Mechanical
Learn how PypeServer’s advanced nesting feature invcreased efficiency by automating part cutting for RJ Mechanical.
“Before PypeServer, we would have to stop and start the Vernon for every part we are cutting whereas now the machine will seamlessly move through the cutting of a whole stick of pipe without stopping.”
CASE STUDY
Q&A interview: Andy Junglen, Project Manager at RJ Mechanical.
RJ Mechanical eliminates manual CAD detailing and automates pipe profiling using PypeServer.
What kind of work does RJ Mechanical do?
RJ Mechanical is a Design/Build HVAC+R and plumbing contractor. We do in-house Design/build as well as plan and spec jobs.
What’s your role at RJ Mechanical and what’s your background?
My role at RJ Mechanical is a Project Engineer. I am involved in projects from start to finish by coordinating our work with other trades, designing plans, generating LOD 400 fabrication plans, and doing jobsite layout. I graduated from North Dakota State University in 2019 with a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and have been working for RJ Mechanical ever since.
What does your typical workflow look like?
First, we build the whole project within Revit® using real-life fabrication parts and equipment from Trimble SysQue®. From there, we create spool sheets which are sent to our shop for fabrication. As we create spool sheets, we also directly export each cut piece of our spools from SysQue to PypeServer. Within PypeServer, we can then Auto-nest our cut pieces onto a stick of pipe to generate the least amount of waste possible. Once we have a full stick of pipe nested, we send it to our Vernon machine which makes all of the cuts continuously, without stopping. The cut parts are then labeled per the spool sheet that they coordinate with and are then sent to our fabrication stations where they can be welded together.
What made you consider PypeServer in the first place?
The main motivation for us to consider PypeServer was the ability to streamline our workflow from Revit straight to our machine. I saw the opportunity for huge time savings when we are getting a project ready for fabrication if we could send our parts straight from Revit to our machine, rather than designing it once, doing a bunch of annotating and dimensions, and then having our shop technicians “re-design” the part in the OEM cutting software that came with our Vernon. The other motivation for us to purchase PypeServer was its auto-nesting capabilities.
How was the PypeServer installation process, how well does it work with your Vernon machine, and what was the learning curve like?
The PypeServer installation process was very simple and PypeServer works great on our Vernon Machine. I believe there is still some room for improvement to make it work slightly more efficiently on the Vernon’s, but overall, the software performs as promised, and definitely saves time. There is a slight learning curve to PypeServer. It’s a pretty powerful software with a lot of functions, but once you get the hang of it, it’s very easy!
How has your workflow changed with PypeServer?
Before PypeServer, all of our spool sheets needed more detailed dimensions and annotations so that our shop technicians could manually input these dimensions into the Vernon so our pipe parts could be cut. PypeServer’s part importer saves time both on my end and the machine operator’s end by essentially eliminating both of those processes.
We also had to manually nest parts on pipe before PypeServer which was very time consuming, whereas now we can nest a full stick efficiently in just a few minutes. Finally, before PypeServer, we would have to stop and start the Vernon for every part we are cutting whereas now the machine will seamlessly move through the cutting of a whole stick of pipe without stopping.
Have you seen any savings in time, labor, or materials with PypeServer?
All of the benefits from the above answer have allowed us to save on time, labor and materials, and allows our professionals to do their specialized job more efficiently, without wasting time cutting pipe.
Was PypeServer worth the money and how long will it take to pay for itself?
We have only used PypeServer on a few jobs so far, but I can already see a quick ROI. I don’t think we have used PypeServer on enough jobs yet to say exactly how long it will take to pay for itself, but I believe it won’t take very long.
Do you have anything else you’d like to say?
We are one of the first companies to implement PypeServer with a Vernon machine and I expected there to be some challenges. I’ve been working closely with Kelly Dillon and the PypeServer team the past few months to work through some of these challenges and I’m more than happy to say the software now works very well on the Vernon machines. Kelly and his team are committed and have been very helpful during this process. I believe they will continue making the software even better!
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