A new integrated circuit process simulator, SIMPL-1, has been developed which generates the physical cross-sectional view of the devices directly from the graphics layout using a corresponding process information file. The main purpose of this simulator is to give rapid on-line visual feedback to the circuit designer as to the topographic features being created during layout. For this application, SIMPL-1 is based on rectangular shapes and simplified process models and runs in a few seconds on a VAX11/780. It is generic in that it can run from any CIF plot using an arbitrary process file constructed from standard process elements.