Beyond Steel and Concrete:
The Expanding Role of Tekla Structures in Multidisciplinary Design
Tekla Structures has earned a global reputation among BIM designers, and its influence is growing as a versatile platform for creating specialized tools across various construction disciplines. The platform’s open API is a key factor, making it surprisingly accessible for developers looking to customize solutions for specific tasks.
Why Tekla Structural Designer Stands Out
In South Africa’s mineral-rich Gauteng province, more than 150 mines produce about a quarter of the country’s minerals, primarily gold. These minerals are extracted from deep underground deposits and processed at surface plants, which require precise and efficient design—especially in piping systems. Marhinus du Plessis, a self-taught BIM expert, has spent his career designing these mineral-processing plants and saw early on how BIM tools could be leveraged in innovative ways to improve efficiency.
“Traditionally, piping was designed on a separate platform. But I realized we could integrate piping design into Tekla Structures and automate the process using just a few parameters. So I began developing a custom add-on using the Tekla API,” says du Plessis.
Years later, du Plessis co-founded ParaMatic, where he now serves as Managing Director. The company specializes in BIM solutions for Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP) design, built entirely on Tekla Structures. With clients not only in South Africa but also in Australia, Turkey, and the United States, ParaMatic’s platform has proven to be a game-changer in mineral-processing plant design.
“I’ve used about ten different CAD or engineering systems throughout my career, but Tekla Structures has always stood out. With ParaMatic, tasks that once took hundreds of hours can now be completed in under two minutes,” du Plessis explains. “The fact that Tekla is a database-driven platform where you can assign countless attributes to an object is incredibly powerful. These attributes can be used across different applications, whether for generating 2D drawings or running detailed reports. Plus, it’s extremely robust—I’ve seen teams lose hundreds of hours due to crashes on less stable platforms, but that’s never an issue with Tekla.”
“I’ve used about ten different CAD or engineering systems throughout my career, but Tekla Structures has always stood out. With ParaMatic, tasks that once took hundreds of hours can now be completed in under two minutes,” du Plessis explains. “The fact that Tekla is a database-driven platform where you can assign countless attributes to an object is incredibly powerful. These attributes can be used across different applications, whether for generating 2D drawings or running detailed reports. Plus, it’s extremely robust—I’ve seen teams lose hundreds of hours due to crashes on less stable platforms, but that’s never an issue with Tekla.”
Extending Tekla’s Reach in Construction
Tekla Structures is also being used to model both standard and custom-fabricated building components. ParaMatic’s development team has utilized the open API to integrate their clients’ component catalogues directly into the system.
“We maintain an online database that lists the dimensions of all objects. Our code reads that information and imports it into Tekla, allowing us to bring in more catalogues without manual modelling. It’s all automatically generated by the code,” says Francois De Jager, Systems Design Engineer at ParaMatic.
De Jager also praises the seamless integration between Tekla products. “Our draftsmen use Trimble Connect to access the model on-site and make necessary changes. Everything is updated instantly and seamlessly, with no need to import or export IFC files,” he notes.
ParaMatic is looking to expand its Tekla-based platforms to support additional use cases. They plan to add functionality for fire reticulation, plumbing, and wastewater management, with cable racking and ducting on the roadmap.
“There’s no limit to what you can achieve through the API. It doesn’t matter what type of construction you’re designing for—it can be done in Tekla,” concludes du Plessis.
Unlocking New Potential with Tekla’s Open API
ParaMatic’s success is part of a broader trend, where Tekla Structures is gaining recognition beyond its traditional applications in steel and concrete design. Thanks to its open API, industries that require specialized construction solutions can easily customize the software to meet their unique needs. It is a powerful platform for innovation across a wide range of design disciplines.
Are you ready to optimize your projects?
Contact BuildingPoint SA, to find out how you can customize your Tekla Structures software to meet your specific requirements.