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What can I expect from Solidw*ks ?

H

Hein_

New member
Hello freinds,

Pro/E old timer here...

I have a composites molder buddy who is getting a lot of thin carbon composite part geometry out of SW. I've imported geometry via iges into my trusty pro2001 and modeled mold geometry. Then I send iges files to the CNC guy and he cuts tools.

Well, they asked me to start using SW so they can get native models. Seems there are some surfaces on my iges files that can't be programmed with their SW based CNC software.

I'm a long time Pro/E user and don't mind learning a new tool if it's not going to be a huge PITA and leave me wishing I had Pro/E functionality.

Looking at ~5K plus a workstation to get into SW. Can I spend that for a Pro upgrade that will make the data translation issues better and make the machining issues go away? I get a lot of surface gaps when I import their files. Often have to re-model the part to fix that.

This is my first post but I've been on Pro since the early days and have been living in a vacuum (regarding Pro/E functionality) for a few years. Been out kite surfing and building boards using Pro & Pro/Man, LOL. Not as into riding as much right now. So I am considering getting back to some paying CAD work. Gravy train could be coming to the station. But I might have to roll with SW to catch it.

Any and all insight is greatly appreciated.

Hein


Edited by: Hein_
 
SolidWorks is a great program, I started using it as late as version 2008, but I'm loving it. I can't say anything truly bad about if for the price, if I'm not mistaken you can get SolidWorks Standard for around 4000$

That includes: solid modeling, surface modeling, weldments, sheet metal, assembly, drawing and some mold tools and evaluation tools.

You've also got SolidWorks Pro and Premium;
Pro: 5500$ and adds rendering
Premium: 7000$ and adds simulation and routing

However - before you are to purchase SolidWorks, you could try working with .STEP files instead of .IGES, that can make a difference big time!
 
I like mechanica, but prefer Microsoft paint
smiley8.gif
 
I'll second the use of STEP files. We've had much better luck with STEP over IGES.

If you like the way Pro|E works, you'll hate SW. Like any 2 software packages, SW & Pro|E have different philosophies. After years of working Pro|E style, I get really frustrated working in SW.

For your $5K, maybe you'd be better off paying your 9 months back maintenance + a new year and getting current on Pro|E. You'll get WF5 and a whole lot of enhancements since Pro|E 2001. You'll also get the ability to import and export Parasolid files, which might yield even better results than STEP.
 
Thanks for the replies. Going to have a look at SW today and see how to pull some mold geometry from the part file. My daughter has SW experience so that will be helpful. I'll also contact PTC to see about getting on Wildfire. Anyone have any experience importing/exporting Parasolids out of Pro. How much better than Iges or Step? Gapless?

Enjoyed the power point, paint comments. I'm an ink on mylar man myself.

Have fun,
Hein
 
Go to SW, Hein_: you won't regret it. I have about 5000 hours on each (up to WF3 and SW 2009), and SW is a vastly superior product that is in far wider usage than Pro/E. I'm like you: I have no vested interest in hawking Pro/E, but I do want to get the most out of my time and money. That's one of the reasons I bought a SW seat in 1999.


Realize that SW evolved out of Pro/E: it was started in the mid 90's by the former VP of R&D at PTC, who envisioned a future for MCAD as a Windows application. The Board of Directors disageed with his vision, so he quit and took the best talent with him to start SolidWorks. I guess he was right: Unix is dead, but Windows is what just about everybody is running now. And PTC continues to lose market share, while SW is the hottest ticket on the block.


So SW evolved out of Pro/E. It's a Windows-based MCAD program that's fully compatible with many Windows applications (an MS Word is embedded in every file, for example). SW is easy to learn, and Help works. Pro/E can't lay claimto any of this. And SW has all of the surfacing capabilities of Pro/E now, as the surfacing DLLs from CATIA were added a couple of years ago (Dassault Systemes owns both companies). If you're like me, you will be comfortable with SW within a couple of weeks after you start using it. But you will find it much easier to run: perhaps that's why PTC has gone to such lengths to mimicSW (without much success) in Wildfire. And it uses the UniGraphics kernel, making it directly compatible with files from other popular CAD packages like UniGraphics and SolidEdge.
 
solidworks has come a long ways in over the years. it is exciting to see that tool grow in functionality... and with that they can utilize new techniques that other tools utilize.

There have always been people ranting about how much better one tool is over the other. It is the same people 10 years ago loving it when sw really sucked. You must be hanging out with really poor Pro/E users to think it is that much better...

I love getting dragged into this debate but really the administrators should move this thread to "rant and rave".

We have planned a preliminary presentation with Soldiworks 2009 and Wildfire 5.0 ... This IDSA event will use me on solidworks and a design engine employee on Wildfire 5.0 and we both go about designing the same object. If anyone wants to come out of the
audience to take the mouse out of my hand they are welcome....

I think in the end people who like SW will like it more because i will share modeling technique they know little about and those same people will be blown away at technique available in Wildfire.... a long list of things users will not be able to do in SW or will never need to do.

Maybe we can webcast the event so stay tuned. There will be plenty of beer so a MMA fight could ensue! That could happen when people get so frustrated.I'm open for names to the event. We did this a number of years ago and called it 'battle of the bands.'


http://www.design-engine.com/stories/battleofthebands.htm

In this article notice the part where I interview designers and ask them how much they think each program costs. 'perception of cost'

I like being the underdog and still wining.Its hard to do that with the functionality and speed of Pro/E... which is why i want to run solidworks in the demo.

One person 'kent' mentioned that its not which tool is best but which user is best. I partially agree. sometimes however specific techniques are not functional techniques in the mid range modelers....yet.
Edited by: design-engine
 
Hello,


I've noticed there are a lot of SW guys here. I've posted on the sw forum about testing SW2009. We've got a test licence for three months and I should test SW2009. ( we want tostop withPro/E and change to SW2009)


Can anyone of you tell me what is the best approach to work "Top down" with SW2009 ( but not though the assembly => there are a lot of variations in our products ) . ( the firm is now working with skeletons )
 
Design-engine: your link is to an article from 2003. Things have changed a lot since then for many of the software packages mentioned in your article (except perhaps for the PTC products). I think you've got a typo in your last message: perhaps 'wining' should be 'whining' or (less likely) 'winning'. After all, PTC is NOT winning: SW passed it in installed seat count years ago. I'm not impressed that you are running a comparison of the two products without a SW guru running that software, but you're bringing in a ringer to run Pro/E.


Mieke-s: I haven't worked with skeleton or master models in SW, but I do know that creating and editing parts in the context of the assembly is much, much easier in SW than Pro/E. Creating variations and managing constraints is a snap in SW, unlike Pro/E: like so many features in SW, it's just a right-click away. As for design tables, you can utilize Excel spreadsheet files directly in SW, as it is a native Windows application (and Pro/E is NOT). And why is it your company wants to switch from Pro/E to SW? Inquiring mindswant to know.
 
the idea is to educate solidworks users to alternate modeling techniques, show usage of tools utilized with programs like Alias Studio only using SW. then blow them away at techniqes not possible in SW using Pro/ENGINEER. Most solidworks users (industrial designers) are blown away at my presentation. many speechless.

Then the presenters switch and I run Pro/E to do similar and even more impressive manipulation techniques to geometry using Pro/ENGINEER. People are usually left speechless. Most people use the same modeling techniques they learned in their first months using their software... like the manufactures showed them in VAR oriented training.That article is old... which is why its time to do it again. There are usually lots of high end SW users in the crowd but only a few come up and take the mouse out of my hand to demonstrate a technique they are familiar with. In the end everyone still uses their own software at a higher level.

Its time to take it up a notch for both SW and Pro/E. I'm board.What about that CAD tool Ironman used to design the rocket suit? Tell me that's 30 years years out?

winner/whiner/wiener ... haha.
Edited by: design-engine
 
Why ?==> it has been told that it is easier to integrate for axample with Axapta ( ERP )


With the top down through assembly .
When I take refs in my model through the assembly I keep having problems with parts thats depend on one another. ( I have to make a cut in part A depending on part B, but I have to make another cut in part B depending on part A )==> here I have the problem wich part I have to place first in my assembly.
 
Mind ripper - I'm going to ask you again, give me stats. Quote a source, any source, even a SW source that says anything you've said here. You portray that Pro|E is standing still, SW is gaining users faster, there are now more SW seats than Pro|E seats (years ago!), etc. I tire of you popping in the Pro|E forum only to spout off unsubstantiated SW propaganda. It's all your opinion or even your observation in your world, yet you portray it as unquestioned fact.

We have seen an increase in clients that run SW, but we've not seen a decrease in Pro|E. Not one Pro|E client has switched to SW. I don't know what's happening in the entire world in terms of SW seats vs. Pro|E. I know that as recently as 2007, PTC was reporting that Pro|E was growing faster than the overall MCAD market.

My experience with SW has been frustrating. I'm sure that it's at least in part because there's a different way of approaching things with SW than with Pro|E. I've become very proficient with Pro|E and very comfortable with how it works. I'm no Pro|E apologist, it's full of stupid interface and issues that should have been worked out long ago. But I can build anything I want quickly and robustly with Pro|E. I find that it's difficult to directly capture my design intent like I can in Pro|E and that if I do, changes cause my models to fail more often than they do in Pro|E.

mieke-s - I don't know if there is a good way to do Top Down design with SW. I've asked before and haven't gotten good responses either. To be fair, I haven't done a lot of digging. I love using skeleton driven top down design in Pro|E, in fact I wouldn't want to live without it. With it, I can change from focusing on component design to product design, capturing the intend of the entire product rather than simply one part at a time.

Another thing to keep in mind is that SW has very limited ways of managing the software and it's configuration across the company. Pro|e is highly configurable and you can manage options can setting across the enterprise. SW simply cannot do that. You can set the configuration up front at install, but that's it. Each user then has full control to choose different settings and even start parts.
 
top down in solidworks is 'insert' 'part' ... basically how proe did it back before 1997 with master merge.


Edited by: design-engine
 
design-engine


I hope you can webcast your event. I will be watching for it. I'm back using ProE 2001 and still like it,gave up onWF2 a while back. I'll probably upgrade to something this fall if I see something I like. How about this Solid Edge, is it any good, or is it something like Autodesks Inventor crap? I played around with SW about 2 years ago and thought it was a little too cartoonish looking, but I never really dug into it or learned much about it.
 
Hello Design enige : "top down in solidworks is 'insert' 'part' ... basically how proe did it back before 1997 with master merge."


Yes it works, But I'm not able to get it in a table.
For example I've made a " skeleton part" of a cupboard with different sizes.
I put this part in another part to make a model ==> but I don't seem to get a table of the model, using the table of my skeleton part.
 
its even more tricky to get the SW part to drop into a precise coordinate system. Non of my SW ID buds knew how to do it. And when I finally figured it out they asked me why it matters. Gezz!


by table you mean model tree?
Edited by: design-engine
 
Hello Design Engine,


By table I mean the design table ( so skeleton part has a design table, or different configurations )
 
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