12_Route Your Wiring: Creating Conduit and MC Cable Connections (7:12)

Overview

Use the Connections tool to create conduit and cable runs from a panel to a junction box, a junction box to a device, or device to device. It is for anyone detailing connections after devices are assigned to circuits and junction boxes are in place.

The process is the same for all three routes; only the selections change. Choose the connection approach and category, set the connection type and its options, then route each connection from the source of power to the downstream devices. You can build multiple routes before committing them.

What you'll learn

• How to open the Connections tool and choose between Least Conduit and Spider Approach
• How the feeder, branch and home run selection is stored in each connection
• How to set the Connection Type, Connection Size and Coupling Type
• How to add an optional cost per foot and install time per foot for the bill of materials
• How to route connections upstream to downstream and lock in each route
• How to find and resolve overlapping connections
• What information each connection carries in the Properties tab

 

Before You Begin

Assign devices to circuits and lay out your junction boxes before you start. With these in place, you can create multiple routes before committing them and connect most of a sheet without leaving the tool.

 

Part 1 — Open Connections and Choose an Approach

1. In the left-hand toolbar, click Connections.
2. Under Connection Approach, choose Least Conduit or Spider Approach.
3. Select the connection category: feeder, branch or home run. The video selects Branch.
4. In Connection ID, enter the home run or conduit ID if you are laying out a single home run.
5. Leave Connection ID blank if you are creating many connections at once.
6. Open Connection Type and select the type of run.
7. For conduit such as EMT, select the Connection Size (1/2 inch, 3/4 inch, 1 inch and so on).
8. Select the Coupling Type. AECinspire calculates couplings for you.
9. If you have a material budget per foot, enter the cost per foot.
10. If you have an install time per foot estimate, enter it.
11. Click Start.
12. Click the upstream object first—the object supplying power. In the video, this is a junction box. The selected object turns gold.
13. Click each downstream device in the order you want the connection to run.
14. Press Enter to stop the connection and lock in that route. In the video, this locks in three MC cables.
15. Start the next route by clicking the junction box, then the next device, to make an individual run to that wall.
16. Repeat until the sheet is connected. Each route appears in the list on the left-hand side.
17. Click Connect. The red lines of intent are squared off. Some follow walls and some may overlap.
18. To create another set of connections, click Create Connection. For example, after completing the home runs, use it to start the branch connections or feeders.
19. When you have no more connections to create, click Done.
20. Choose whether to resolve the overlaps now. You can skip resolving them at this stage.
21. To fix them, click Resolve. A list of the overlapping connections opens.
22. Start at the top of the list. Everything except the current connection is grayed out.
23. Drag the highlighted connection away from the overlap. It turns green when it no longer overlaps.
24. Work down the list.
25. Click Save. The connections are created.
26. Select one of the connections, such as an MC cable.
27. Open the Properties tab.
28. Review the information stored in the connection.

Approach	What it does	Use it when
Least Conduit	Daisy chains assemblies together, making a continuous connection from device to device	Devices run together in the wall
Spider Approach	Runs from a junction box to each device individually	Each device gets its own run, for example a unique MC cable to each one

 

Part 2 — Set the Connection Category and Connection ID

Note: The feeder, branch or home run selection is stored in each connection you create and used later for project reporting.

 

Part 3 — Choose the Connection Type, Size and Coupling

Connection Type options shown

EMT

Flex

Hospital Grade MC

Luminaire MC

MC Cable

PVC

Unspecified (for connections you are not capturing in the software)

Note: When you select MC Cable, the Connection Size and Coupling Type fields are hidden.

 

Part 4 — Add Cost and Install Time (Optional)

Note: These values are included in your bill of materials and can be extracted. They are not required to create connections.

 

Part 5 — Route the Connections

Best practice: Always connect from upstream to downstream, from the source of power out to the edge device.

Note: Until you click Connect, each route appears as a red connection line of intent.

 

Part 6 — Commit the Connections

 

Part 7 — Resolve Overlapping Connections (Optional)

After you click Done, a notice lists any overlapping connections, such as an MC cable entering and leaving a device along the same path.

Note: Resolving overlaps makes the drawing easier to read. You can clean them up now or at a later stage.

 

Part 8 — Review Connection Properties

Property	What it tells you
Length	Rounded length of the run
Type	The cable or conduit type
Layer	Which layer the connection is on
Elevation	The height of the run. In the video, the run leaves the junction box at 12 feet, routes over, then drops to the device at 18 inches; device-to-device runs sit at 18 inches
Circuit	The circuit the connection is feeding
Phase	The phase of the circuit
Wires	How many wires are in the run
Feed from / Feed to	The upstream and downstream objects

 

Quick Reference

What you need	Where to find it
Connections tool	Left-hand toolbar → Connections
Daisy chain devices in the wall	Connection Approach → Least Conduit
Individual run to each device	Connection Approach → Spider Approach
Feeder, branch or home run	Category selection after the connection approach
Home run or conduit ID	Connection ID (leave blank for bulk connections)
Conduit or cable type	Connection Type
Conduit size and couplings	Connection Size and Coupling Type (not shown for MC Cable)
Cost and install time per foot	Optional fields before Start; included in the bill of materials
Begin routing	Start
Lock in a route	Press Enter
Commit the routes	Connect
Make another set of connections	Create Connection
Finish	Done
Fix overlaps	Resolve on the overlapping connections notice
Connection data	Select the connection → Properties tab

 

Troubleshooting

Issue	Resolution
Connection Size and Coupling Type are missing	Expected when Connection Type is MC Cable. They appear for conduit types such as EMT.
Connection routes the wrong direction	Connect from upstream to downstream: start at the source of power and click out to the edge devices.
The route keeps adding devices	Press Enter to stop the connection and lock in the route.
Connections are drawn as red lines	These are lines of intent. Click Connect to square them off.
Connections overlap on the drawing	Click Resolve on the overlapping connections notice and drag each highlighted connection clear until it turns green.
Making one connection at a time is slow	Lay out your junction boxes and assign circuits first, then build many routes before you click Connect.
Not sure what to put in Connection ID	Enter a home run or conduit ID for a single home run. Leave it blank for bulk connections.