About Us
Ray Computer Services, Inc. (RCS) is a Tulsa, Oklahoma based company that produces and distributes a software package called RCSWin, which is used in the mechanical design of shell and tube heat exchangers. RCS has been around for 35 years, and is a proven leader in the shell and tube industry. Don Gabbard was the founder and owner of RCS until he passed away in 2014. RCS began as a small set of in-house calculations and programs that Don wrote while employed at a local manufacturing company. Over time, the list of capabilities and features grew to the point that it was a fairly robust application, and Don convinced them to let him market his product and begin selling it. Don continued to expand the capabilities of RCS while also marketing the software to numerous other mechanical designers, fabrication shops, and engineering contractors. RCS has operated out of multiple different locations over the years, but has always been based in Jenks, which is a suburb of the Tulsa, Oklahoma area.
When Don first began the company, he realized he needed a name, so he came up with the RCS acronym based off of his childrens' names: Rachel, Chris, and Stacey. Soon after, he realized it needed a more professional sound, so he used his middle name, and kept the same acronym, and Ray Computer Services was born. RCS was first created in the DOS days, and when the conversion to Windows took place, RCS became RCSWin, and that name has stuck ever since. Over the years, RCS has been operated out of multiple different offices and locations, but has always been based in Jenks, a suburb of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Over time, the capabilities and features within the RCS software grew to include more and more aspects of the design process. This included an expansion of the types of calculations offered, but also included an expansion into areas other than just calculations. One of the biggest selling points of the RCS software is the ability to generate a complete set of fabrication detail drawings based of off the design. These drawings are available in both a native format that can be viewed within RCS, and more importantly, as DXF files that can be exported and opened directly in any CADD program. The ability to rapidly produce a complete set of drawings is one of the biggest selling points of the RCS system. Below is a brief summary of some of the main features of the RCS software. Browse to the Capabilities and Features page for a more comprehensive overview of RCS's abilities, including screen shots and detailed information.
- Mechanical design calculations per ASME Section VIII Division 1 and TEMA for all major components, including cylinders and tubes, heads, cones, nozzles and nozzle reinforcement, flanges, floating heads, UHX tubesheet calculations, supports, exchanger weights, center of gravity, and numerous other details.
- Interactive graphical editor that allows users to move and relocate various components on their design.
- A full scale 3D graphical model of the exchanger, both as a solid (external) model, and a complete 3D internal model.
- Ability to generate a complete set of detail drawings for fabrication of each exchanger, which can be exported to any CADD program
- Bill of Material program that can build a complete BOM off of each design.
- Estimating program that is extremely detailed and customizable, which generates both estimated costs, and estimated hours for any given design.
- Graphical input screens for flanges and floating heads that allow the user to pictorially specify each dimension. Very useful for matching existing geometry on a duplicate exchanger.
- Inquiry and Purchase Order programs that can build inquiries and POs off of BOMs from any design. Parts from multiple designs can be combined into a single inquiry or PO.
- CNC drill file creation from any tube layout. CNC drill files can be customized and templates can be set up to conform to various different drill formats.
- Access to material properties for any material defined within ASME Section II Part D, as well as the ability to manually enter physical properties for any material desired.
- Ability to select from a list of defined gasket types, or add any other type of gasket to your database, which can be kept and accessed as needed.
- Interface with HTRI. RCS can import data from an HTRI .DBO file and use this geometry as a basis for an RCS design. RCS can also link directly with HTRI using the HTRI automation server. This is a bi-directional interface that allows users to read from HTRI Xist files and write back to them as well. Note that this requires both an RCS and HTRI license to be present on the same machine.
- Many of the calculations available for a full design are also available as standalone utilities, without having to specify an entire exchanger. This is a very useful feature for running calculations on parts and pieces, such as replacement shells or channels, or doing a quick check on the required thickness of a cylinder or tubes, etc.
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