Generate any piping component from a text prompt — STEP, Plant 3D, and URDF ready.
AH
AutomationHire Engineering
·Updated May 2026·14 min read
Quick Answer
Describe any piping component — a DN80 Class 300 gate valve, a 45° long-radius elbow, a weld-neck flange — and Articraft generates a fully parametric 3D solid, an articulated assembly where moving parts actually move, and simultaneous exports to STEP (for AutoCAD, SolidWorks, Inventor), URDF (for digital twins), and a Plant 3D-ready catalog entry. Components that took a CAD engineer half a day now take under 20 minutes. UK specialists available from £90/hr or as fixed-price packs.
Every piping project runs on components — and every component, until very recently, had to be modelled by hand. A single Class 150 gate valve from a manufacturer data sheet: geometry, dimension table, port definitions, spec line, STEP export. Four hours of a mid-senior CAD engineer's time. Multiplied by 60 catalog items per project. Multiplied by 3 simultaneous projects.
That maths has changed. Articraft is an open-source agentic 3D system built on CadQuery (Python → OpenCascade geometry kernel). It takes a natural-language description and returns production-quality 3D geometry: parametric, dimensionally accurate, fully articulated where the component has moving parts, and simultaneously exported to every format downstream consumers need.
This page documents what UK specialists on AutomationHire can generate for you, how the workflow runs, what standards are covered, and how to brief a component generation project.
20 min
Avg. per component
10×
Faster than hand-modelling
5 formats
STEP, URDF, .pcat, STL, OBJ
From £1.8k
Fixed catalog packs
How it works — prompt to production component
1
Describe the component
Give a natural-language prompt with the component type, pressure class, material, connection type, and any manufacturer-specific dimensions.
2
Articraft generates
Articraft writes parametric CadQuery code, builds the 3D solid and articulated assembly, adds port definitions, colours, and validates the geometry.
3
Expert integrates
A UK Plant 3D specialist writes the .pcat spec entry and branch table, validates against your piping class, and delivers in all required formats.
Example prompt
"A cast-iron flanged gate valve, DN50 Class 150, OS&Y rising stem with spoked handwheel, bolted bonnet, yoke, and two horizontal flanged ports. ASME B16.5 flange pattern, face-to-face 198 mm per API 6D."
Output files generated
gate-valve-dn50-cl150.step — 3D solid, AutoCAD/SolidWorks/Inventor-ready
gate-valve-dn50-cl150.urdf — articulated assembly, stem travel 75 mm
gate-valve-dn50-cl150.pcat — Plant 3D catalog entry, ports mapped
The library below covers the component families UK specialists on AutomationHire regularly author using Articraft + CadQuery. Every entry supports full parametric variation — change the nominal bore, pressure class, material, or end connection and the geometry updates accordingly.
Pipes & Tubes
Straight Pipe / Tube
Plain-end, PE, BW, SW, screwed. Schedule 5 through XXS. Carbon steel, SS 304/316, duplex, HDPE, GRP.
ASME B36.10ASME B36.19ISO 4200
Jacketed Pipe
Inner carrier pipe + outer jacket with annular gap. Heating / cooling / trace-heated service. Annular ports modelled as separate bodies.
ASME B31.3Steam / glycol
Elbows & Bends
90° Long-Radius Elbow
R = 1.5D standard. BW, flanged, screwed. Mitre-cut geometry available for large bore. Equal and reducing variants.
ASME B16.9EN 10253-1
45° Short-Radius & 3D/5D/10D Bends
Custom bend radii for process, offshore, and piggable lines. Swept solid geometry. STEP-exportable for spooling software.
ASME B16.9ISO 5251
Tees, Crosses & Laterals
Equal & Reducing Tee
Equal bore or branch reducing. BW (ASME B16.9), flanged, threaded (ASME B16.11), or socket-weld. Run and branch separately dimensioned.
ASME B16.9ASME B16.11EN 10253
Wye / Lateral & Cross
45° laterals and 4-way crosses for process and utility systems. Full parametric port positioning. Equal and reducing bore.
ASME B16.9MSS SP-75
Reducers, Couplings & Unions
Concentric & Eccentric Reducer
All standard BW reducing pairs per ASME B16.9. Flat-bottom eccentric for pump suction lines. Any bore combination on request.
ASME B16.9EN 10253-2
Couplings, Half-Couplings & Unions
Socket-weld and threaded per ASME B16.11. Victaulic-style grooved couplings (roll-grooved, cut-groove). Union body with male/female threads.
ASME B16.11MSS SP-83
Flanges
Flanges — all ASME B16.5 types
Weld-neck, slip-on, blind, socket-weld, lap-joint, threaded. Class 150 through Class 2500. RF, FF, RTJ face. Bolt circle and hole count parametric.
ASME B16.5EN 1092-1DIN 2527BS 4504
Orifice Flange Pairs & Spectacle Blinds
Orifice flange pairs with tapped pressure tappings (flange-tapped, D & D/2, corner). Spectacle blinds and spacers. Figure-8 blinds per ASME B16.48.
ASME B16.5ASME B16.48ISO 5167
Valves — fully articulated assemblies
All valves are generated as articulated multi-body assemblies: the handwheel rotates, the stem rises or rotates, the obturator (gate, disc, ball, plug) moves with it. URDF exports carry joint definitions for simulation and digital-twin use.
Gate Valve (OS&Y / NRS)
OS&Y rising stem with spoked handwheel, bolted bonnet, yoke. Or non-rising stem (NRS) for buried service. Solid wedge, flexible wedge, parallel gate. DN15–DN600.
API 600API 603BS EN 1171ASME B16.10
Globe Valve
T-pattern and Y-pattern bodies. Rising stem with handwheel or actuator-mounted. Bellows-sealed variant for fugitive-emission service. DN15–DN300.
API 623BS 1873ASME B16.10
Ball Valve (Floating & Trunnion)
2-piece and 3-piece body. Floating ball (DN15–DN100), trunnion-mounted (DN50–DN600). 3-way L-port and T-port. Lever, gearbox, or actuator operator.
API 6DBS EN 17864ISO 17292
Butterfly Valve
Wafer, lug, and double-flanged. Concentric, single-offset, double-offset (high-performance). Disc rotates ±90° with stem in articulated assembly. DN50–DN1200.
API 609EN 593MSS SP-68
Check Valve (Swing, Tilting Disc, Lift)
Swing check with hinged disc (articulated, gravity- or spring-reset). Tilting disc for low-pressure-drop. Lift check (piston or ball). Dual-plate wafer check. DN15–DN600.
API 594BS EN 12334
Control Valve & Actuator Assemblies
Globe-body, cage-guided, rotary (eccentric plug, ball segment). Pneumatic diaphragm or cylinder actuator as separate body with spring-return geometry. DN15–DN200.
Y-body strainer with removable screen element (perforated or wire-mesh). Basket strainer (duplex or simplex). Screen open area and mesh modelled. Blowdown valve boss included.
MSS SP-98BS 6681
Safety & Relief Valves (PSV / PRV)
Spring-loaded safety relief valve with inlet and outlet nozzle. Full-lift and low-lift variants. Lever-operated test mechanism. Rupture disc assembly. Inlet/outlet sizes independent.
API 520 / 521API 526ASME Sec. VIII
Expansion Joints & Bellows
Single and double bellows with tie-rods. Axial, lateral, and angular movement modelled as parametric travel. Gimbal and hinged variants. Flanged or butt-weld ends.
EJMA standardsBS EN 14917
Need a component not listed here?
If it's a piping or engineering item, we can generate it. Describe what you need and a UK specialist will confirm scope and turnaround within 24 hours.
“We had 34 cast-iron valve bodies to model for a water-treatment extension — historically a 6-week CAD job. The AI-generated pack came back in 9 days, every component STEP-ready and spec-integrated. We ran one validation pass and went straight to isometric check.”
— Senior piping designer, UK water-sector EPC (anonymised)
How to brief a component generation project
Component type and class — e.g. DN100 Class 300 trunnion-mounted ball valve, ASME B16.10 F-F
Material and trim — e.g. A216 WCB body, A182 F316 trim, RPTFE seats
Connection type at each port — RF flanged, BW, SW, threaded
Operator / actuator — handwheel, lever, gearbox, or pneumatic (supply pressure and fail position if actuated)
Manufacturer data sheet — PDF or STEP from vendor if available; we model from scratch if not
Required output formats — STEP only, STEP + URDF, or full pack including Plant 3D .pcat
Quantity — single component, a size series, or a full catalog pack
Target CAD platform — Plant 3D version, SolidWorks year, or other
Start with a single component — delivered within 48 hours
Paste your component description, attach a data sheet, and a UK Articraft specialist will quote the same day. No minimum order.
About Articraft — the technology behind the generation
Articraft is an open-source agentic 3D asset generation system built on CadQuery, which is a Python API over the OpenCascade Technology (OCCT) geometry kernel — the same kernel used by FreeCAD and several commercial CAD packages. It was developed for large-scale articulated 3D dataset generation but its output characteristics — dimensionally accurate parametric solids with articulated joints — translate directly to engineering component authoring.
What Articraft produces for each piping component:
A parametric solid model authored in Python (CadQuery). Version-controlled, reproducible, and can be parameterised to generate a full size series in one run.
An articulated assembly where moving parts are separate bodies with defined joint axes, travel limits, and parent-child relationships.
STEP AP214 / AP242 at OCCT native precision — true B-rep surface, no mesh approximation.
A URDF file with link inertials, collision geometry, and joint limits for ROS, Gazebo, Isaac Sim, or a client's digital-twin platform.
Mesh exports (OBJ + MTL, GLTF, STL) from the same geometry for downstream visualisation.
The Plant 3D .pcat integration layer is written by the UK specialist — mapping the STEP geometry into Plant 3D's spec format. That step adds 30–60 minutes per component and is included in the catalog pack rates above.
Frequently asked questions
Can Articraft generate components to exact manufacturer dimensions?
Yes, when a manufacturer data sheet or vendor STEP is provided. The specialist reads the published dimensional tables and builds the CadQuery model to match face-to-face, bore, flange OD, bolt-circle, and overall envelope exactly. The code is delivered alongside the STEP so you can verify every dimension.
How does the Plant 3D .pcat integration work?
The .pcat file maps the 3D geometry to port definitions (size, type, end condition, flow direction), dimension parameters, and spec-line entries. The UK specialist writes this using the Plant 3D Content Builder, referencing the STEP geometry ports. It requires your Plant 3D version to be specified (2024, 2025, or 2026) as the content builder format differs between releases.
Can I get a full size series rather than just one bore size?
Yes — this is one of the primary advantages of parametric CadQuery generation. Running the script for DN25 through DN200 (8 sizes) in Class 300 produces 8 STEP files, 8 URDF files, and 8 .pcat entries in a single generation run. Pricing for series is substantially lower per-component than single-piece orders.
What is URDF and why would a piping team need it?
URDF (Unified Robot Description Format) is the standard format for articulated assembly definitions used in ROS / Gazebo simulation and industrial digital twins (Siemens Industrial Metaverse, NVIDIA Omniverse / Isaac Sim, Ansys Twin Builder). If your client is building a plant digital twin, they need articulated valve assemblies in URDF so operators can simulate open/close cycles in the virtual model. You can ignore URDF entirely if you only need STEP for CAD.
Can you generate non-standard or proprietary components?
Yes — Articraft generates from a description, not a library lookup, so novel or proprietary geometries are feasible. We have generated bespoke instrument bodies, composite-lined fittings, jacketed spool pieces, and skid-level sub-assemblies from client data sheets. The only requirement is that the geometry can be described parametrically.
How accurate are the components for stress analysis?
The STEP geometry exported by Articraft + CadQuery is a true B-rep solid (not a mesh approximation), so it imports cleanly into FEA tools (ANSYS, Abaqus, Simcenter). Wall thickness, bore, and external envelope are parametric, so ASME B31.3 minimum-wall calculations can be baked into the generation script. Internal details like weld preparations and casting-grade thickness variations should be confirmed against the manufacturer's DXF if fatigue or pressure-vessel certification is required.
Do you work with OpenPlant or SmartPlant as target systems?
Yes. The STEP geometry is CAD-system-agnostic. For OpenPlant (Bentley), the integration layer writes OpenPlant Component Builder catalog XML. For SmartPlant 3D / Smart 3D (Hexagon), it generates the material catalog entry and reference data in the Smart 3D format. Specify your target system when you submit the brief.
Do I need to be a UK business to hire through AutomationHire?
No — AutomationHire matches UK-based verified providers with clients globally. The provider pool is UK-vetted; the client base is international. Most engagements are fully remote.
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