What is Eplan?
Eplan is the world's leading software for industrial electrical engineering design. Developed by German company Eplan Software & Service, its main product Eplan Electric P8 allows you to create, document and manage all the electrical engineering of industrial projects — from power schematics to control cabinet wiring.
Unlike generic drawing tools like AutoCAD, Eplan is a data-driven engineering platform: all components are intelligent objects with properties, automatic bills of materials and real-time error checking.
What does Eplan Electric P8 include?
- Power and control schematics: power, control, instrumentation and communications circuits
- Cabinet and control panel design: 2D and 3D layout of components inside the cabinet
- Automatic documentation generation: bills of materials (BOM), cable lists, terminal lists, assembly drawings
- Component database: library with millions of components from real manufacturers
- Design verification: automatic detection of errors and inconsistencies
- Revision management: change control and project versioning
Eplan vs AutoCAD Electrical: key differences
| Feature | Eplan Electric P8 | AutoCAD Electrical |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | Data-driven engineering | Technical drawing |
| Automatic BOM | Yes, real-time | Partial |
| Error checking | Automatic | Manual |
| 3D cabinet design | Yes (Eplan Pro Panel) | No |
| ERP/PLM integration | Advanced | Limited |
Why is Eplan the industry standard?
- Time savings: studies show Eplan reduces design time by up to 70% compared to traditional tools.
- Documentation quality: automatically generates all required documentation, eliminating manual errors.
- Standard at large companies: Siemens, ABB, Schneider, Bosch and most European machine builders work with Eplan.
- Manufacturing integration: Eplan Pro Panel connects directly to machining centres for automated cabinet manufacturing.
At Bluemation we use Eplan Electric P8 for all our electrical design projects, ensuring complete, error-free documentation fully integrated with PLC programming.