An Expert System for Computer Generation of Cable, Conduit, and Tray Schedules for Industrial Power and Control Systems

Integrated Design Systems (IDS) are the wave of the future in the Engineering and Construction industry. These systems use powerful relational database programs to allow the data from a single entry point to be the source information for several forms of data output. The high costs of relational database software, network hardware and development of the expert system programing which links the system together, limits those who can take advantage of IDS. For those who desire the increased productivity and higher quality control of a single entry point system, but do not require the full functionality of a complete IDS package, this paper discusses the development of a system, based on common dBase commands, which automatically generates electrical cable, conduit and tray schedules from information within an existing electrical load list database.