GRAEBERT PARTNERS WITH ESRI AND RELEASES NEW GRAEBERT ONLINEMAPS PLUGIN FOR DRAFTSIGHT

PROVIDES ESRI ARCGIS ONLINE MAPPING PLATFORM INTEGRATION WITH LEADING CAD APP

Berlin – Graebert™ GmbH ( www.graebert.com), a leading developer of custom CAD software, solutions, and services and the co-developer of DraftSight®, the popular 2D CAD drafting product from Dassault® Systèmes, today announced the release of a new plugin that integrates the Esri® ArcGIS Online mapping platform with DraftSight.

Esri is the largest provider of GIS software and services in the market.  This new product, Graebert OnlineMaps Plugin for DraftSight, allows AEC CAD users to browse and reference any maps available in the Esri ArcGIS Online map base and integrate them directly into their CAD drawings.

DraftSight is a professional-grade, free CAD product that lets users create, edit, and view .DWG files.  With over 3.6 million downloads, the software is used by professionals, students, and educators. The Graebert OnlineMaps Plugin for DraftSight is an example of a set of new add-on applications intended to broaden the use of DraftSight within targeted user communities.  This AEC-targeted plugin integrates easily with DraftSight and is available for both the free and Premium versions.

Graebert and Esri Partnership Brings Innovative Technology to AEC Community 
The Esri ArcGIS Online product allows users to access a rich collection of basemaps, demographic maps, and image services within their organization, using the Esri Cloud. It is Software delivered as a Service (SaaS), and is ready to use with nothing to install or setup. Users will also get access to content shared by Esri, giving users and their teams around the world intuitive tools to create and publish maps and apps on demand. Some of this data is dynamic, that is, it changes on a frequent basis. The new Graebert Onlinemaps Plugin for DraftSight takes this into account, always ensuring that the most up-to-date versions of the maps are in your .DWG drawing.

David Totman, Esri Public Works, AEC, and Survey Industry Manager added, “This application is precisely what Esri had in mind with the ArcGIS Online mapping platform. We want the mapping community to be able to use all the maps available in ArcGIS Online in their design and drafting projects. We see this plugin as a major benefit to both our customers and other DraftSight users.“

Robert Graebert, CTO of Graebert GmbH feels this plugin is a signficant development for engineering CAD users, and commented, “The partner relationship between Graebert and Esri is new, but we expect great things to come from it. This plugin release solidifies our entry into the Engineering and Design space as an Esri partner. The Graebert OnlineMaps Plugin for DraftSight is proof that we are offering  great value to DraftSight users. We see this as a first step towards leveraging GIS technology in a  CAD environment.“
 
Using the Graebert OnlineMaps plugin with DraftSight
Installing and using the Graebert OnlineMaps Plugin for DraftSight is simple. The plugin self-installs in the menu at the top of the DraftSight screen. When the plugin is selected, information is requested about the map projection to be used. Once the map projection is selected, the user is free to browse for maps in the ArcGIS Online application. The map is then automatically positioned in a DraftSight drawing. The user may insert multiple maps and the underlay created will zoom and scroll with the drawing as the user works on his or her project. The plugin displays the most recent version of the maps, so that even if a selected map is actively being worked on, the most current version is always displayed.

Pricing and Availablility 
To access the plugin, visit  http://www.graebert.com/onlinemaps/ and download it at no cost. At this time, only Windows and the DraftSight V1R3.1 Release from January 2013 and forward are supported. Users can download the latest version of DraftSight at DraftSight.com.

About Graebert
Graebert GmbH is a leading developer of custom CAD software, solutions, and services. The company is recognized as a true innovator in the CAD industry and has over 30 years of technology expertise, project management and consulting experience. Graebert’s CAD systems were the first to support Windows, Mac, and Linux and can be used on both desktop and mobile devices. 

Graebert's product portfolio is anchored by ARES Commander Edition - powerful, DWG-compatible CAD software with 3D-modeling capabilities which is the basis of all Graebert OEM products. Graebert  specializes in custom CAD software and application development services. The SiteMaster™ line of "as built" software surveying solutions, as well as worldwide surveying services are included under Graebert's iSurvey™ brand. The company is headquartered in Berlin, Germany with additional offices in the USA, UK, China, India, and Japan. For more information visit  www.graebert.com  



Contact:

Rick Hessdorfer
US and Americas OEM and Partner Manager
Graebert GmbH
Email Contact
Phone:  978.494.2112
Skype:   rick.hessdorfer