Successful conversion from SDS/2 to Tekla Structures by Dowco Laval
Tero Laine, Business Manager, Dowco Technology Services Ltd.

When Dowco Consultants Ltd. acquired Corpus Steel in 2006, Corpus Steel was using SDS/2 for all their detailing. Actually, Corpus steel was one of the oldest and larger SDS/2 users in Quebec! Dowco Consultants on the other hand is the oldest Tekla Structures user in Canada. While it was not necessary for Dowco to have all Dowco detailers use the same software for all detailing immediately, the detailing and project management features of Tekla Structures made it clear that it would eventually be best for Dowco Laval also to switch to Tekla Structures.

The implementation of the whole office was done in three stages. When Dowco Laval started their first big project, 10 members of their staff were trained in Tekla Structures. Project work was started immediately by 7 of them. Everyone was pleased that the project went reasonably well considering it was the first project with the new software. There was no productivity loss…but obviously with people with years of experience in another detailing software, there were sometimes small struggles finding the same commands from both SDS/2 and Tekla Structures.

This experience helped to pave the way for further implementation. It transpired that one of the biggest mistakes moving from another software to Tekla Structures was in trying to stick to the exact same ways of working. It became evident that detailers were much better off taking a “fresh” approach to the new software. Tekla Structures capabilities overpower the competition, but only if you work the “Tekla” way: model is the heart of every project. Keeping the model accurate always ensures accurate output, whether it is drawings, NC files or reports. In Tekla, the idea is not to fake things on the drawing station, but to aim for a solid model, which contains not only all detailing information, but also lots of information for project coordination. Doing all the detailing and checking in the model also means less work on the drawing side, while you can rely on the fact that the out is always up to date.

Below some comments from Dowco Laval staff after using Tekla Structures:

"After 6 months training and working with Tekla Structures software, we have been asked to detail a new job by one of our customers with the option of doing it with SDS2 or Tekla (it was up to us to choose). So I informed my project managers of the new project and the 2 detailing options to choose from. Without any hesitation they chose Tekla for its friendly user approach." - André Lefebvre, Office Manager

"As a project Manager, Tekla is a powerful tool that makes reports, drawings lists; it keeps you in the loop of what is going on with the project in a very easy way." - Benoit Bergeron, Project Manager

"Macros are helpful and easy to use. They’re also easy to modify for big or small changes. Modification for Macros can be made in one shot, in many areas, even if macros are not exactly the same, by only having checks on what needs to be changed. Saves a lot of time when receiving revisions!" - Lise Arsenault, detailer

"Tekla Structures is user friendly. Detailing steel with Tekla Structures is very fast and efficient. Details reflect the true as-built model, which means less errors and more productivity. I am a satisfied user. Thank you Tekla!" - Simon Almeida, Detailer