What to use to draw electrical schematics?

[Rolacoy]

I am looking for software to draw simple electrical schematics. I do mechanical and electrical maintenance for several companies and it seems that OSHA is going to require many companies to have on file electrical schematics of the facilities. I want to be able to draw a simple drawing showing the loads and lengths of the electrical runs.

I would like to have a software package the is not too complicated but will do simple schematics. Any suggestions?

[JReese-NC]

Although I can't really say that it is right for you based on the amount of information posted but if you are considering Autocad Electrical you can download a free trial at the link below.

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?id=13846963&siteID=123112

Autocad Electrical is a pretty powerful package but depending on your drawing needs there is the potential for some setup depending on how much of the stock options you want to use or want to change.

[Rolacoy]

I was hoping that there might be an Auto Cad "light", I am afraid that Auto Cad would be over kill with it's drawing ability and cost. I have not used a CAD program very much. All I need is to be able to draw lines for each set of wires, add some symbols and dimensions. I don't need 3-D or the ability to draw any electrical parts.

Also is there a version that runs on a Mac, I could run it on a PC but I use a Mac most of the time.

[scottgensemer8984]

Try Microsoft Office Visio.

Several Engineers (much to the dismay of myself and others in IT) use Visio for schematics and for Panel Assembly engineering drawings. So you can do all of what you want.

You can also create "blocks" or "symbols" of electrical components in JIC, IEC, or whatever standard, and place them just as you would in AutoCAD Electrical or other "Heavy Lifting" software. I do not know if there are any standard libraries for this anywhere, but take a look.

Some companies add Visio as part of their office suite, so you might check with your IT crew.

I would think Visio has been ported to MAC.

Scott

[Icemanau]

For what it sounds like you are going to be using it for, Autocad Lite would be the best bet. Electrical would be overkill as it is more for constant use and has a bit more of a learning curve over plain Autocad.

The advantage of using Lite would be it fits the De-Facto industry standard rather than being some other type of file. The downside is that it still costs a fair bit of cash and does not have all of the functionality of the full version.

Regards Brad

[Rolacoy]

THANKS A LOT FOR YOUR ADVISE.

[Aaron.Warnke]

I haven't used it myself (prefer ACE), but google sketchup is free.