Solid works and Sheet Metal Manufacturing
Solid works is a computer-aided design (CAD) program that has been developed and distributed by D assault Systems Solid Works Corp. This software is currently employed by as many as 100,000 different companies around the world for a variety of R&D, production and design functions, but Solid Works and sheet metal manufacturing is where our main interest lies.
Solid Works and sheet metal manufacturing go together like fish and chips. By using this multi-purpose computer-aided design software the possibilities of moving from design to manufacturing right away are excellent.
Put simply, Solid Works is a three-dimensional modeling package with the capability to supply a “virtual environment” for trying out designs before being manufactured. This can save engineering firms a lot of unnecessary time, effort and expense. The engineer doesn't need to wait for a prototype to be manufactured, thus time is saved as well as the cost of man power and materials.
Building a model using Solid Works is a pretty straightforward job. In relation to Solid Works and sheet metal manufacturing, generally a 2D representation would consist of geometric lines, arcs, conics, and splines. Extra dimensions can be added to the plan to define the size and placement of the geometry. Relations are used to determine properties including parallelism, tang ency, perpendicularity, and concentrically - however many of these attributes are not used for basic sheet metal fabrication. Using Solid Works in this way guarantees that the initial trial has a better chance of success as the dimensions in the sketch can be adapted independently, or by relationships to other parameters of the sketch, and adjustments can be programmed easily and efficiently.
Design intent is important in production too. Intent is how the designer of the part wants it to adapt to alterations and additions. When you consider that updating a design can often mean redoing the entire project (on computer) this is an essential feature. Solid Works will keep to any other features of a design that have been programed in. For instance, if you were to draw a suitcase with a handle that is eight inches long and raises three inches from the case, changing anything other dimensions, such as the size or height of the briefcase, does not affect the status and criteria of the handle. As a result, adaptations can be made more quickly than with other computer-aided design software.
Parameters can programmed to establish design intent. Parameters could be either numeric or geometrical parameters. Numerical parameters include details such as line lengths or circle diameters. Geometric parameters might be concentric, tangents, parallels, horizontal and vertical lines etc. One advantage of using Solid Works is in that numeric parameters can be associated with each other. The use of relations is a major part of what allows for the recognition of design intent.
When your design has been saved, it is cataloged and can be reopened at any time, altered, re sized, added to or even be used as the basis for a new design or added with another file to form an assembly drawing.
These few tools alone add to the value of the software program in relation to Solid Works and sheet metal assembly. For custom jobs, having a filing system already in place for all completed work and the option to quickly and effectively alter the designs to meet personal needs is an advantage. For new jobs the the speed at which you can sketch, render and generate a prototype helps to ensure design efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Marc Anderes is the Vice President of Operations of Maloya Laser that is dedicated to <A href="http://www.MaloyaLaser.com">Laser Cutting</a> and Metal Manufacturing with state-of-the-art <A href="http://www.maloyalaser.com/capabilities_equipment.php">laser technologies</a>, servicing machinery, aerospace, medical, scientific and transportation requirements.
