SOLIDWORKS FAQ

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Standardize on SolidWorks for 3D CAD – Know why others did…

SOLIDWORKS has been the de facto Standard for 3D CAD. In production use since the last 2 decades, SOLIDWORKS has been chosen by over 2,40,000 companies World-Wide for one single reason – Ease of Use – that translates into unmatched productivity from day one.

What are the licensing models available with SOLIDWORKS?

  • SOLIDWORKS Desktop has two licensing models, namely, Permanent License and Annual License model
  • 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS is cloud-based on Annual License Model
  • Both SOLIDWORKS Desktop and 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS are integrated with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform

What are the benefits of investing in SOLIDWORKS?

  • Ease-of-Use that helps Engineers concentrate on their Designs in an intuitive manner
  • SolidWorks Costing enables meeting costing targets at the Design Stage
  • Rule-based Design for Manufacture using DFMXpress
  • Rule-based Design Automation using DriveWorks Xpress
  • API for Customizing SolidWorks to align with Business needs
  • Integrated FEA for Value Analysis and Value Engineering

Can SolidWorks handle very large datasets as in Machinery, Power Plants, and Heavy Engineering?

SOLIDWORKS is built ground-up leveraging native Microsoft Windows technologies that empower large design engineering teams to concentrate on their designs with dynamic memory management. Large data sets have been created in varied applications including Super Critical Boiler Plants, Railway Coaches, Special Purpose Machines, Off-Highway Vehicles, Forest Machinery, Oil and Gas Skids, Vapour Absorption Chillers, Compressors, and Material Handling equipment to name a few. The data sets run into thousands of parts and assemblies. Large Design Review in SolidWorks helps Design teams conduct reviews with Manufacturing and Customers in a Conference room with ease.

How easy is it to prepare a 2D Drawing in SOLIDWORKS for an AutoCAD© User?

AutoCAD users can easily transition to SOLIDWORKS Drawings using the AutoCAD© Command Simulator. Layer functionality, as in AutoCAD, is used by designers every day. Inserting AutoCAD© Blocks with links for automatic update helps use legacy data without modification, if required, saving hours, if not days. The bi-directional parametricity of SOLIDWORKS enables designers to update 3D models and 2D Drawings instantly for error-proof drawing release. Font substitution table is provided for SHX fonts of AutoCAD© to True Type Windows Native WYSIWYG Fonts.

How easily can SOLIDWORKS be used in a Multi-CAD environment?

SOLIDWORKS mantra has been a true collaboration. In addition to having the ability to import CAD geometries from varied contemporary CAD software such as Creo© (Pro/Engineer), Autodesk© Inventor, Siemens NX©, SolidEdge©, CATIA©. Additionally, neutral file formats such as IGES, STEP, Parasolid©, and ACIS are provided for data exchange. SOLIDWORKS 3D Interconnect enables designers to open CAD data directly from most 3D CAD formats, without the need to convert or save the data as a SOLIDWORKS file. This is the true integration capability of SOLIDWORKS in multiple-CAD environments.

Can SOLIDWORKS perform Finite Element Analysis (FEA)?

SOLIDWORKS provides a wide array of analysis capabilities integrated inside the 3D environment with the power to edit geometries and re-analyze seamlessly – a truly CAD-integrated FEA without any translation or update efforts when designs change. Also, simple Linear Static FEA for a part can be done in SOLIDWORKS Standard while complex simulations such as Dynamics, Non-Linear among others can be performed using SOLIDWORKS Simulation Premium without leaving the Native SOLIDWORKS environment.

How to manage Design Data with Workflow approvals, Data Security, and Rights Management with SolidWorks?

  • SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional is a true Product Data Management software that enables Design Data Management in a Secure environment with roles and responsibilities assigned to users and groups
  • 3DEXPERIENCE Platform can be used to manage data on the cloud while performing Revision Management, Change Management among others using Collaborative Business Innovator, and Collaborative Industry Innovator among other roles
  • 3DEXPERIENCE EnoviaWorks can be leveraged for Advanced Product Life Cycle Management

Can SOLIDWORKS be used to solve downstream Quality and Reliability issues?

  • SOLIDWORKS Simulation empowers Designers to predict failure modes and the expected life of individual components and systems. This helps address Reliability issues upfront, thereby saving Cost and Time, in addition to addressing Customer Expectations and Customer Satisfaction.
  • TolAnalyst in SolidWorks helps understand the dynamic interaction of Tolerances at the assembly level due to the Part level tolerances assigned. This ensures Design for Quality objectives are met before sign-off, thereby avoiding Quality issues downstream.
  • DFMEA documents can be encapsulated in the SolidWorks Parts, Assemblies, and Drawing Documents as a part of the template so that Design Processes associated with Risk assessment can be incorporated into the design stage itself. Design Binder captures the design intent and how Risk mitigation has been addressed.
  • SolidWorks Inspection helps ensure that Critical to Quality features and their dimensions/ attributes are captured for downstream inspection. This, again, is a risk mitigation mechanism that standards such as ISO emphasize.
  • Testimony to this is the hundreds of Medical Device Manufacturers who use SolidWorks to design and develop critical equipment and devices that address health regulatory norms.

I am an assembly designer how can I animate my design?

Yes, you can create an animation by dragging the time bar along the timeline to a point in time and then moving a component to a target location. The Motion Manager moves the component from its initial position to the position that you designate at a specified time.

If there are any automation tools included in SolidWorks?

Automation can help you save time and improve the efficiency of your design processes. In this introduction to automation, we cover three powerful automation tools included in SOLIDWORKS: Macros, Design Tables, and DriveWorksXpress. 

What is the purpose of DriveWorksXpress?

DriveWorks allows you to deliver custom products faster and with greater accuracy, without using complex macros, design tables, or configurations. DriveWorks Gives you: Complete SOLIDWORKS automation using the DriveWorks model generation and rules engine.

What is the use of a design table?

A design table allows you to build multiple configurations of parts or assemblies by specifying parameters in an embedded Microsoft Excel worksheet. The design table is saved in the model document and is not linked to the original Excel file. Changes you make in the model are not reflected in the original Excel file.
Note: To use Design Tables, you must have Microsoft Excel installed on your computer

I am a design engineer how to calculate the cost of custom operations in SolidWorks?

The SOLIDWORKS Costing tool helps you calculate how much it costs to manufacture sheet metal, machined, multibody parts, and assemblies as well as plastic molded, cast, 3D printed parts, and multibody weldments by automating the cost estimation and quotation process.

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