Solidworks Corporation

I have been using this at every company within the medical device industry every since i started working. the software is an extremely solid and effective tool in my needs to design any component or devices from simple parts to sophisticated large assemblies. the thought process within the software is also very intuitive and easy to grasp (especially compared to other packages such as 'CAD' software.). i have tried to use other packages (autocad, pro-e, 3D Studio,etc.) but always end up back at Solidworks for my needs. The package may not be as effective for super large scale assemblies such as planes (which pro-e may be why it is standard within aerospace), but i am not sure as my assemblies generally stay <200 components or so and solidworks more than fits my needs.
be warned: for complex models such as stents, there are many ways to model the parts in solidworks, but just like programming, there is generally one most optimal way to model it and it can allow you to get it done with a model that is less than 1mb or you can do a inefficiently and SW will chug along for 30-60min and either crash or you end up with a 500mb file. practice practice practice and before you know it you will be an expert and avoid these incidents as i can't iterate enough, it is a very easy and intuitive software.

Strengths: Easy and intuitive interface. Can quickly model a part (faster than many other software packages). Industry standard within medical device industry

Needs to improve: #1 complaint is compatibility - you cannot view other ppl's models unless you are at or newer version of the software, which causes for massive issues many times interacting with vendors and customers (i understand challenges in new features introduced, but SW can do a better job at this, but its probably aimed at forcing companies to pay for upgrades). You can't even save your model as a previous year version, best case would be to save as a standard/open-source format (ie. .stl, .x_t, IGES, STEP, dxf, etc) Cost of annual license support. Any of the pre-packaged features such as their simulation/fea are just about garbage, although it might be able to do a rod or bar...anything more complex, don't rely on it (go to ABAQUS, also owned by the same parent company as SW or other more sophisticated software).

Our experience with Solidworks has been excellent. Like I said earlier, their strength lies within their technical support team. They helped us immediately when a flaw in their software was exposed and prevented us from moving forward with one of our devices. This type of assistance cannot be measured and we are proud to have them as a vendor of ours.

Strengths: Solidworks is the leading 3D modeling software for medical devices. Their software is scalable and the options are endless. We have used Solidworks 3D CAD software for many years now for our medical devices. There was a time where we found a possible bug in their software, and their technical support team was on it immediately. They released a special version fix for us and helped correct the issue immediately so there was no stoppage in production.

Needs to improve: What may be a weakness to some may be good for others. The CAD software is quite complicated however those who know it, they use it well.

Great company. Some bugs that can't be explained such as printing which won't show some of the components. Big change in the user interface a few versions ago make it so you have to learn many feature locations / short cuts again. Many classes out there that will quickly get you up to speed on how to use the product in a week.

Strengths: Fairly early to learn even for first time users.
Strong features let you design just about anything
Lots of add ons to make the software even more powerful

Needs to improve: On the pricy side. Better to get share the seat licenses then dedicated for each user. Each add on cost $$ so get what you need but don't get something just because it is nice. Some bugs happen that we can't figure out. Work arounds are easy to incorporate. Many different versions, hard to make sure all documents are compatible with who you send it to.

Industry leading software for 3d modeling. It goes without saying that pretty much any company that is serious about 3d design uses solid works. We have been using them for years and have always had great things to say about the company, their product, and their service. We license their software to all of our R&D engineers and they offer us a reasonable pricing scheme. They tend to be one of the more expensive software packages that we license however they are very valuable to the design and product development of our our products. Their customer staff is always nice. They offer tutorials to teach our new incoming engineers on how to utilize the software to the max. I have great experiences working with them and absolutely recommend them to anybody.

Strengths: 3d modeling software

Needs to improve: none

Solidworks has been a great partner to help take our business to the next level. With their products and offerings, Solidworks has helped us focus on research and design and not fumbling around with CAD to get the design made. Not only is the design intuitive and easy to learn, it has many benefits such as being able to print directly to a 3D printer. It is things like this that makes our work more efficient and helps us compete with the big boys. Service at Solidworks is great, they are always willing to help when questions arise. The products can be a bit expensive, but the quality and time saving make up for it. Overall great company to partner with.

Strengths: 3D Modeling

Needs to improve: None

I'm a heavy CAD user both with Pro/E and Solidworks. Solidworks is very easy to use and can be picked up very quickly. Same can be said about their PDM system.

Their updates with new builds have been great, with lots of useful new tools.

Maintenance fee really sucks and also you can not resell your licenses if you ever want to get rid of them.

Strengths: Easy to learn. Very good customer support. Always coming up with new things to put into their software. Very easy sheetmetal package to use. Easy to implement Enterprise PDM. Very customizable. Photo rendering is cool. Free viewer for those who don't have Solidworks.

Needs to improve: Expensive maintenance fees (yearly). Large assembly management should be better. Supposedly end of life on Workgroup. Not backwards compatible.

Their tech support is pretty good and they provide many opportunities to keep learning on their software.

Strengths: Solidworks seems to have become the industry standard for part and assembly modeling. Most vendors can use the files you create or at least convert them to the format they need. The company also provides training sessions to help you learn about all their available features and their training staff is excellent.

Needs to improve: Even though their software has come a long way over the years, there's still some bugs here and there. For example, some once in a while features will not resolve even though the same exact thing has resolved on a different file. Sometimes the colors go wonky when your parts get complicated.

I've been using Solidworks ever since I've been working the the medical device industry. Good program to work with but the initial cost to get the software is very expensive. The yearly updates require having to get reacquainted with the user interface.

Make sure that your suppliers and your company are using the same version of the product in order to minimize compatibility issues

Strengths: "Solid" modeling program that is one of the industry standards for medical device companies. This program allows the user to save files in different formats which can then be used to render prototypes using 3D printers.

Needs to improve: Yearly updates are expensive and take some time getting used to due to the rearrangement of icons.

Solidworks is a very powerful 3d modeling software that we use for modeling and designing prototypes. Their software is very easy to use and intuitive and we have never had any issues not being able to do the things that we want to do with it. For high volume businesses, the renewal licensing fee is fairly priced however the pricing scheme for smaller volume licensing would definitely be out of reach for some companies out there. Their staff is very friendly and they offer tutorial courses for users that are new to it and need to get up to speed.

Strengths: 3d modeling, software integration, customer service

Needs to improve: Price

We were looking to expand our 3d educational program and noticed that Solidworks offer training and software for educators. We looked into their software and currently debating on our next move. Our inquiries to Solidworks was met with the greatest of ease. Everything so far has been great. THey ah awesome communication and pricing. They even offered us a trial to see how things go along with other competitors software to help us decide. There was no pressure on their part, just straight class.

Strengths: versatility

Needs to improve: none so far

solidworks is a valuable 3d modeling software for parts and assemblies. not ideal for items that have 1000+ components, but decent for your average medical device. one downside, other than the obvious costs and licenses, is the incompatibility between different versions of solidworks. it’s a good idea to check with other vendors you may be sending the model to to ensure it can be read properly on their version.

Strengths: 3d modeling for parts and assemblies

Needs to improve: costly, annual licensing fee, version compatibility

Solidworks has allowed me to quickly document and iterate designs in both the medical device and consumer products industries.

Strengths: Solidworks is very intuitive which makes learning a breeze. It's expansive set of tools make molded part, mold, sheath metal, tooling, and weldment design straight forward.

Needs to improve: Surface modeling in solidworks is not quite as powerful as With Pro-E but I find very few applications in which this is a challenge

Solidworks has allowed me to quickly document and iterate designs in both the medical device and consumer products industries.

Strengths: Solidworks is very intuitive which makes learning a breeze. It's expansive set of tools make molded part, mold, sheath metal, tooling, and weldment design straight forward.

Needs to improve: Surface modeling in solidworks is not quite as powerful as With Pro-E but I find very few applications in which this is a challenge

SoldWorks is an indespensible engineering tool. The simulation capabilities makes R&D work very easy. I can very quickly see how mating parts will come together, ensure proper tolerancing and when i am done, I can send the file out to a prototyper and in a few days have a physical part in my hand.

Strengths: Very powerful 3D solid modeling and CAD software

Needs to improve: Very expensive

Coming off of Pro E, Solidworks was a breath of fresh air. Very easy to use and intuitive. The new standard for 3D software. I do not like having to upgrade every year

Strengths: Easy to use and powerful software. 3d modeling just got easy!

Needs to improve: I do not like that they update every year and then have compatibility issues. Seems like an obvious money grab

I have used Pro-E, AutoCad, Ideas, and Solidworks over the last decade or two, and SolidWorks is the most intuitive system. It allows for free-form or fully defined creation and is highly capable. There is a reason it has become the standard in medical devices.

Strengths: Solid Model Software

Needs to improve: can't view files created with a newer version with an older version of the software.

Solidworks offers great 3D modeling and simulation design. With its available API, programmers can customize the software and can apply automation and product data management solution,

Strengths: Great 3D modeling and simulation software partnered with their enterprise product data management solution makes this software package a complete suite. It also have its own API that can help company customize the software by programming.

Needs to improve: Expensive, Yearly licensing fee

Software is pretty much the standard in the industry so everyone knows and uses it. Once engineers learn this program, all others are easy to pick up since they all copy this one. Cost is to be expected with such wide spread acceptance. Would not use another.

Strengths: Great software, standards setting, all others copy what this software does

Needs to improve: none

We converted to SolidWorks about 3 years ago and it is now our primary 3D modeling software. After attending training, it has become easier to use and intuitive. It is easy to convert models to assembles and drawings. I especially enjoy the customer support and help sections on their software.

Strengths: 3D Modeling, Simulation, Drawings

Needs to improve: price

Solidworks is a great company that is used by many people for 3d modeling. They're not as good as some other companies when you need to assemble something with a lot of pieces. However, the licensing fee is crazy high for the product and is not compatible with everything.

Strengths: 3d modeling

Needs to improve: cost and compatibility