What is BuildersCAD / Intelliframer?

BuildersCAD is the single most powerful software available to automate and produce every aspect of your building design.  From Architectural drawings and 3D Models to full blown wall panel drawings and pre-cut framing lists, BuildersCAD does it all.  BuildersCAD power and flexibility is unmatched by any single software package at any price while it can be purchased for far less than the cost of Basic AutoCAD.*

Who uses BuildersCAD?  Architects, Home Builders, Lumber Yards, Wall Panel Shops and Modular Home Builders.  Any company that would like their drawings to be more than just lines will instantly benefit using BuildersCAD.  Intelliframer includes the BuildersCAD software and then adds complete user definable rules sets and stock tables for exact frame modeling and reporting.  Benchmark CAD has also created several advanced add-ons that automatically create and layout Wall Stacks and Floor Panels while driving several automated saws and plate marking systems.  See my FAQ page for some direct answers to many common questions.

Design  -  Model  -  Take-off  -  Fabricate  -  Automate

Design / Build / BIM & BuildersCAD

BuildersCAD has always subscribed to the concept that a floor plan should drive the 3D model and combined with a strong 3D roof engine, drive the Elevations and materials aspect for all math and takeoffs.  Today the new buzz in CAD is BIM or Building Information Model.  This is exactly what I witnessed 20 years ago with ICG.  (Buzz word not included)   Now with a new technology partner in @Last software’s Sketchup, BuildersCAD can take that 3D “BIM” model and drop it in a “near” photo-realistic environment for top shelf marketing and virtual tours of any 3D BCAD design.   At the same time, BCAD is tracking all square feet of surface, lineal feet of wall, volume of area and count of doors, windows and all fixtures to be reported at anytime.  As your model changes, so does your takeoff.  Recent additions to the software allow easy material takeoff extraction into programs like EXCEL and ACCESS to automate your business even further.  Benchmark CAD expert support and training can show you how to maximize the utility and power of the BuildersCAD software. 

Framing / Pre-Cut / Wall Panels 

BuildersCAD Intelliframer is the actual incarnation for the ICG I Framer Software.  The rules based expert framing software is currently being used to automate many of my customers that have very unique and demanding framing and output requirements.  From lumberyards doing exact framing takeoffs to highly automated shops using digital data created by BuildersCAD to automatically cut lumber and mark framing locations on plates, BCAD can do it all.  Other unique examples of BCAD users include Panel Shops that apply all siding and windows to all exterior walls, Modular Manufacturers who use the BCAD output to cut and template their entire prefab houses,  SIP Manufactures that design and output in BCAD for easy spline cutting and accurate jig setup,  pre-fab floor “cassette” builders that ship pre-built floor systems and a wall fabricator that uses a BCAD generated output  to drive overhead lasers to quickly and accurately layout wall board locations to name but a few.  Facilities range from lavish robotic setups with air-conditioned leather chaired glass enclosed customer observation lounges to a converted horse barn and even a cave.  (That’s right, an actual man made cave converted into a one-of-a-kind panel and truss shop.)  What they all have in common is a unique solution setup and implemented by Benchmark CAD to keep their productivity high and errors low 24 hours a day, seven days a week. 

When it all Started

Let's go back to 1988 when ICG teamed up with Sigma Design to form a Highbred of two exceptional products:  The award winning ARRIS Architectural Software and the ICG Framer.   Since that time, BuildersCAD has evolved to become a very powerful alternative software for those that expect more from their CAD system than just lines drawn as plans and elevations.  Most of today’s automated CAD software is based on the ground breaking technology and mammoth programming efforts that lie behind the scenes in the BuildersCAD software.  While many of these products may fill a niche market, none come close to the range of tools, power and utility that only BuildersCAD can deliver.  Benchmark CAD has built it’s foundation on knowing these tools and the industry inside out and bring that knowledge to every company that aspires to gain the most productivity out of their CAD investment.