Bricsys, a global provider of engineering design software based in Belgium, said it has launched a new all-in-one application that supports 2D drafting, 3D modelling, sheet metal design, and building information modelling (BIM).

Announcing the release of the newest update to its innovative CAD system, the Belgium firm said BricsCAD V17 brings the power of BIM to Bricsys' engineering design software .dwg.

It is unique as the only CAD system in the world to base all these design functions on the industry-standard .dwg file format, said the company in a statement.

BricsCAD V17 is available for Windows, Mac and Linux.

For mechanical designers, V17 offers an intuitive direct modelling workflow, seamless read/write of industry standard MCAD design files and assemblies, and the third release of the world’s best Sheet Metal modelling and unfolding system, it stated.

"At Bricsys, we know that countless new features do not equal productivity. When you use a CAD tool, it’s about your workflow; it’s all about getting your designs documented so that you can bill for your work, build that building, machine those components or fabricate that assembly," explained a company spokesman.

"Today, you can work in BricsCAD using familiar 2D drafting tools – tools that work in a familiar language that you know well. In all three editions of BricsCAD, you can load and run your existing LISP routines directly," he stated.

According to him, BricsCAD V17 greatly strengthens the customers' ability to create and design in 2D and 3D.

A leading player in the engineering design software sector, Bricsys is headed by Erik de Keyser, an architect and long-time CAD entrepreneur, who has been developing CAD software for more than 20 years.

Bricsys has its own development centres in Belgium, Romania and Russia, and works with third-party applications developers throughout the world. Today, more than 1,500 applications are ported to BricsCAD.-TradeArabia News Service