Reducing Wire Scrap and Trial-and-Error with Eplan Pro Panel

Wire scrap often starts before the cabinet reaches the shop floor. When wire lengths are estimated instead of calculated, routing is not based on the actual 3D path, or production information falls out of sync with the design, panel builders pay for it in extra material, rework, and time.

Wires get cut long "just to be safe." Cable ducts become overfilled. Design changes force teams to re-check what production needs.

Eplan Pro Panel helps solve that problem by routing wires in the 3D digital twin and using maintained project, component, connection, and routing data to calculate wire lengths, evaluate cable duct fill, and derive wiring information before production begins.

The result is a more reliable wiring process with less trial-and-error and clearer data for purchasing, wire processing, and assembly.

The Problem: Wiring Data Is Often Too Disconnected

In a traditional workflow, wiring decisions may depend on 2D drawings, manual measurements, spreadsheets, or a technician's experience. Even when the electrical design is correct, production may still need to determine how each wire gets from source to destination and how much wire to cut.

That creates avoidable scrap and rework: extra safety margin gets added to wire lengths, wires are re-cut when estimates are wrong, cable ducts become crowded, and teams spend time checking whether wire lists still reflect the latest design. Wire preparation may also happen at the cabinet instead of ahead of assembly.

The better approach is to establish routing in 3D and derive wiring data from maintained project information before production starts.

What Eplan Pro Panel Does

Eplan Pro Panel is a 3D engineering software solution for control panel enclosures and switchgear. It connects the physical cabinet layout with the electrical project data so routing can be planned before production.

Specifically, Eplan Pro Panel helps define:

1. Component placement
2. (Component) Wire Termination Points
3. Routing paths
4. Calculated wire and cable lengths
5. Cable duct fill
6. Detailed wiring reports
7. Manufacturing data for production

When the underlying project, component, connection, and routing data are maintained, engineering, purchasing, and production can work from a more reliable shared basis instead of separate estimates and manually assembled lists.

Step 1: Start with Schematic Data

The process typically begins in Eplan Electric P8, where engineers create schematics that define devices, connections, terminals, wires, cables, and project documentation.

That same project data becomes the foundation for the 3D cabinet layout in Eplan Pro Panel. Complete device, component, and connection data provide a stronger basis for downstream routing calculations and wiring reports.

Step 2: Define the 3D Conditions Behind Every Wire Length

Inside Eplan Pro Panel, engineers place the enclosure, DIN rails, wire ducts, and electrical components in accurate 3D space. Wire length depends on where the source and destination sit and which physical path the connection follows through the cabinet.

Components can use manufacturer data, including data available through the Eplan Data Portal, to support realistic dimensions and connection information. Once the physical layout and routing path network are defined, wire calculations can use the modeled cabinet geometry instead of shop-floor estimates.

Step 3: Route Wires and Cables in 3D

Eplan Pro Panel can define routing paths and rules, route connections through the cabinet, calculate wire lengths, and evaluate cable duct fill. Routing data can include:

• Source and destination points
• Routing paths
• Wire and cable lengths
• Colors and cross-sections
• Cable duct fill information
• Bundling and routing organization

This is where scrap reduction becomes practical. Instead of cutting wires long "just to be safe" or remaking wires because the first length was wrong, builders can work from calculated routing data based on the 3D path.

With maintained project and routing data behind those calculations, teams have a stronger basis for wire preparation than estimation alone.

Step 4: Generate Wiring Reports and Material Information

From the routed model, Eplan Pro Panel can derive detailed wiring reports and production documents, including parts, cutting, and wiring lists. Depending on the maintained component and project data, reports and material information may cover wires, cables, terminals, labels, ferrules, and related materials.

Because these outputs come from the same project and routed 3D model, they can give purchasing, wire processing, and assembly a more consistent view of production requirements and reduce manual list-building across separate documents.

The key is data quality: reports are most useful when component, connection, and routing information is maintained and reviewed before release to production.

Step 5: Recalculate Routing Data When the Design Changes

Panel designs change. Components move, devices are added or removed, and routes are adjusted. Eplan Pro Panel can recalculate wire lengths and routing paths based on the updated physical layout, while cable duct fill can be re-evaluated against the revised routing.

Related reports and production exports can then be regenerated and reviewed from the current project data. This helps reduce manual reconciliation while still allowing teams to review updated reports and production exports before release.

Step 6: Prepare Wires Independently of Panel Assembly

When reliable wire data is available, wire preparation does not have to wait for the cabinet to be fully assembled.

Data from Eplan Pro Panel can support downstream production equipment, including Rittal Automation Systems. The Rittal Wire Terminal WT C10 can use project-specific wire data to cut to length, strip, crimp, and label wires. Wire preparation can therefore run in parallel with cabinet machining or assembly.

This is one of the clearest production benefits: wires can be prepared in the required quantities and lengths while other cabinet work is still underway.

Step 7: Connect the Data to Guided Wiring

The same digital foundation can also support Eplan Smart Production on the shop floor, where workers can receive step-by-step wiring guidance with 3D visualization of individual wire routes.

This gives production a clearer way to use the wiring data created in engineering while keeping Eplan Pro Panel and the routed digital twin at the center of the process.

The Big Picture: Less Scrap Starts with Better Wiring Data

Reducing wire scrap is not only about cutting more carefully on the shop floor. It starts by replacing estimates with better wiring data before wire processing and assembly begin.

With Eplan Pro Panel, maintained project data and the routed 3D digital twin can support calculated wire lengths, cable duct fill checks, detailed wiring reports, and advance wire preparation. That means fewer manual estimates, less trial-and-error, and a more repeatable wiring process.

Want to reduce trial-and-error in your panel wiring process? Contact Eplan to learn how Eplan Pro Panel can help your team create panel designs with wiring data that is ready for production.