FAQ

CODAFORM is a standalone visual CAD authoring tool for creating custom parametric components for AutoCAD Plant 3D™. You build the geometry visually, define parameters and relationships, configure connection points, and let CODAFORM generate the Plant 3D™ Python component for you.

No. CODAFORM removes the need to write Plant 3D™ Python manually. You still need to understand the component you are creating and, for advanced components, the principles of parametric modelling.

No. CODAFORM is a content-authoring tool. Components are created in CODAFORM and then used inside the customer’s own licensed AutoCAD Plant 3D™ environment.

No. CODAFORM is a standalone application created specifically for authoring Plant 3D™ parametric content.

CODAFORM is not limited to a predefined component library. Users can combine primitives, modelling operations, parameters, relationships and connection points to create valves, fittings, instruments, specialty piping components, supports, structural components, manufacturer-specific products and project-specific content. They can also create and save their own custom primitives, building a reusable library of company-specific building blocks for future designs.

Yes. Dimensions can be controlled through parameters and relationships so geometry responds when values change. One definition can therefore represent multiple sizes or configurations instead of requiring separate static geometry for every size.

Yes. Use the Parameter Graph to visually create custom parameters that control your model’s geometry, dimensions, positions, and relationships. This visual approach makes even complex parametric setups easier to understand and manage.

Yes. Connection points can be defined as part of the component so the generated result behaves as Plant 3D™ content rather than only as static 3D geometry.

Yes. CODAFORM generates Python-based custom content intended for AutoCAD Plant 3D™. The goal is not to replace Python with a proprietary runtime, but to generate the required Plant 3D™ content without the user having to code it manually.

No. CODAFORM is intended for the users who create and maintain content. A company may have many Plant 3D™ designers but only a small number of CODAFORM creator licences. The generated Plant 3D™ content can then be used throughout the organisation.

The customer owns the content created for its own organisation, subject to the final CODAFORM licence agreement. CODAFORM is designed to let companies build and maintain their own Plant 3D™ libraries rather than depend exclusively on externally supplied content.

No. Once a component has been generated and published, it can be used in Plant 3D™ without CODAFORM. No CODAFORM installation or active licence is required to use the generated content.

Your existing generated Plant 3D™ components remain fully usable. An active CODAFORM licence is only required to continue creating new content or editing existing CODAFORM projects.

Yes. This is one of the main intended workflows. Several content creators can build reusable components for a wider Plant 3D™ organisation, allowing the company to develop its own catalogue around its standards, manufacturers and project requirements.

In many cases, yes, particularly where a component benefits from being parametric. STEP or block geometry can still be appropriate for unique or highly detailed static equipment. CODAFORM is aimed at controlled engineering geometry, configurable dimensions and reusable parametric product families.

No. Each workflow has its place. STEP can be useful when exact manufacturer geometry is required, and blocks may be sufficient for simple static parts.

Parametric Python becomes particularly valuable when components need to support multiple sizes or configurations. Instead of storing separate static geometry for every variation, one parametric definition can generate the required geometry as needed. This can significantly reduce drawing file sizes, improve model performance, and make large Plant 3D™ projects easier to manage.

It also allows the geometry to be designed specifically for plant engineering rather than carrying unnecessary manufacturing detail from imported CAD models. In our own testing, equivalent Python-based content produced substantially smaller drawing files than the corresponding block-based workflow.

So the advantage is not only flexibility — it is also lighter, more scalable and more manageable Plant 3D™ content.

CODAFORM is primarily an authoring platform, not a subscription library of manufacturer components. Its purpose is to let organisations create exactly the content they need and build their own internal libraries.

For simple components, the learning curve is relatively low. Advanced content still requires an understanding of parameters, dependencies, dimensions and geometric relationships. CODAFORM removes the programming requirement; it does not replace engineering knowledge.

Guide access is planned for paid customers and trial users. See the public documentation while Guide is being prepared.

Yes. CODAFORM is planned with a 14-day evaluation period so users can test the workflow before purchasing.

Codaform supports all Plant 3D™ versions.

Activation and sign-in require internet. Trial use is online only. Paid licences allow up to seven days offline between online checks, capped by licence expiry.

No. CODAFORM does not send project files, component definitions, engineering data, or generated Plant 3D™ content outside the customer’s workstation. All authoring and generated content remain local to the user’s environment.

Codaform installs a separate, version-matched bridge plugin for integration with Plant 3D™. When you export a component, it writes the generated Python component and publishes the selected component sizes and associated catalogue/specification entries to the connected Plant 3D™ environment. Live Link separately sends scene geometry to the connected drawing; it does not publish catalogue or specification content.

The content created with CODAFORM is owned by the purchaser in accordance with the agreed licence terms.

No. CODAFORM is designed so that parametric and engineering knowledge is sufficient to create Plant 3D™ components without manually writing Python code.