Create more shapes, more ways with new 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS

3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS provides a new layer of tools, accessible in a familiar CAD environment, making it easy to prepare and optimise designs for additive manufacturing. By taking advantage of this design freedom, SOLIDWORKS users will now be able to produce complex geometries, light-weight parts without compromising strength, and apply surface texture to deliver functional or aesthetic benefits. Within the additive manufacturing environment, complex structures can easily become a reality, while enabling rapid product development, reduced time to market, and lower total cost of operation.

Capitalising on the rapid advancement of additive manufacturing - many analyst reports estimate industry revenue will top $20B by the year 2020 - customers are now shifting from rapid prototyping to mainstream production. Despite the projected rapid growth, designers are not fully exploiting additive manufacturing capabilities, simply because the way to get there is either not accessible or too difficult to navigate. 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS provides an integrated approach that streamlines preparation and optimisation stages from design to manufacturing. To effectively design for additive manufacturing, designers must shift their mindset from what they know of traditional manufacturing processes, and employ the right design tools - making design an integral part of the manufacturing workflow.

Designers using 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS will be able to maintain design integrity by working with native CAD solids without the inconvenience of converting them into STL, or toggling between several software programs to accomplish all tasks. The software also optimises for light-weighting by creating lattice-based structures rapidly, as well as applying surface textures. Quality printed parts are assured by using real-time analysis for best-fit positioning and orientation of the part. In addition, the use of automated analysis and setting of support structures helps designers ensure surface quality and prevents part distortion. By employing automatic features such as tray setup, and estimation of material usage and build time, preparation time is faster.

Re-defining the design and manufacturing process

Vyomesh Joshi, president and chief executive officer, 3D Systems says: "We are excited to partner with Dassault Systèmes and help customers experience the reality of 3D printing through the new 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS offering. This collaboration enables SOLIDWORKS users to create more shapes, more ways, and accelerate product development cycles while lowering costs. We are offering designers a true competitive advantage while re-defining the design and manufacturing process."

3D Systems brings more than 30 years of additive manufacturing experience and innovative technologies to SOLIDWORKS users. The new 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS provides a direct path from SOLIDWORKS users' designs to additive manufacturing - allowing them to become more competitive and to expand the types of projects they can design.

Gian Paolo Bassi, CEO, SOLIDWORKS, Dassault Systèmes says:"We've seen a tremendous increase in the adoption of additive manufacturing. As a result, we collaborated with 3D Systems to provide SOLIDWORKS users with the tools to help them design specifically for additive manufacturing, which requires a different set of operations and rules than more traditional, subtractive manufacturing. Available with all SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD subscriptions, 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS allows designers to be able to optimise their design for additive manufacturing, check for manufacturability without any waste of time and material, and attain a competitive advantage in the market."

Available exclusively to SOLIDWORKS customers, and included in their annual subscription, the standard edition of 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS is now available via download. Additional add-ons with advanced lattice design, lattice optimisation tools, and a new 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS Professional edition are available through SOLIDWORKS' VAR network. For more information on - or to download - 3DXpert for SOLIDWORKS, please visit the 3D Systems website, or the SOLIDWORKS website.