Design Automation: Faster SOLIDWORKS Designs with Less Rework

For many manufacturers, creating custom products is a balancing act between delivering bespoke solutions and keeping engineering workloads under control. While every customer order may be unique, the design process often isn’t. Engineers regularly spend valuable time modifying existing CAD models, updating drawings and producing manufacturing documentation for products that are fundamentally similar.

These repetitive tasks not only slow down design cycles but also increase the risk of manual errors, leading to unnecessary rework and production delays.

Design automation offers a practical way to overcome these challenges. By automating routine engineering tasks, manufacturers can increase design output, improve consistency and give engineers more time to focus on developing new products and solving complex design challenges.

Why manual design processes create problems

Traditional engineering workflows often rely on repetitive manual updates for every new order. Typical activities include:

• Copying and modifying existing SOLIDWORKS models
• Updating dimensions and product configurations
• Creating bills of materials (BOMs)
• Producing manufacturing documentation
• Checking design standards and engineering rules manually

While these processes may work well for occasional custom projects, they become increasingly difficult to manage as order volumes grow. Even small mistakes can result in inaccurate designs, incorrect manufacturing information and costly revisions later in the production process.

The more time engineers spend checking and correcting designs, the less time they have available for product development, innovation and customer-focused engineering.

How DriveWorks design automation works

DriveWorks is a design automation solution built specifically for SOLIDWORKS. Rather than recreating similar products from scratch for every order, engineers define design rules once. DriveWorks then applies those rules automatically whenever a new product configuration is required.

By capturing engineering knowledge and turning it into automated workflows, manufacturers can generate accurate designs much faster while reducing reliance on repetitive manual work.

The result is a more efficient design process that improves both productivity and design quality.

Key ways DriveWorks improves engineering workflows

📸 Capture and preserve engineering knowledge

Every manufacturing business has valuable engineering knowledge built up over years of experience. Unfortunately, much of this information often exists in spreadsheets, emails, product catalogues or simply in the minds of experienced engineers.

DriveWorks allows this knowledge to be documented as reusable design rules. Once captured, these rules can be applied consistently across every new project, helping to standardise processes and reduce dependency on individual team members.

This also makes it easier to onboard new engineers and maintain consistent design practices across multiple teams or locations.

✏️ Automatically generate accurate SOLIDWORKS designs

Once engineering rules have been created, DriveWorks can automatically generate:

• SOLIDWORKS parts
• Assemblies
• Drawings
• Bills of materials (BOMs)
• Manufacturing-ready documentation

Automating these outputs significantly reduces manual CAD work while ensuring every design follows the same engineering standards.

Instead of repeatedly editing existing files, engineers can generate new product variations quickly and consistently.

⛓️‍💥 Reduce errors and minimise rework

Manual processes naturally introduce opportunities for mistakes. Whether it’s an incorrect dimension, a missed drawing update or an outdated BOM, even minor errors can have costly consequences.

DriveWorks uses rules-based automation to ensure every design follows predefined engineering logic. This removes much of the manual checking traditionally carried out using spreadsheets or checklists, helping manufacturers produce more reliable designs with fewer revisions.

Consistent design outputs also make it easier to maintain quality standards across every project.

⏳ Remove bottlenecks across the business

Engineering delays rarely affect just the design department. When engineers become overloaded with repetitive work, the impact can quickly spread to sales, manufacturing and production planning.

By automating routine design activities, DriveWorks helps engineering teams process requests more efficiently and reduces the delays caused by manual intervention.

Faster design generation means teams can respond to customer enquiries sooner, release manufacturing information earlier and improve collaboration throughout the business.

Does design automation replace engineers?

One common misconception is that design automation replaces engineering expertise.

In reality, the opposite is true.

DriveWorks is designed to support engineers by removing repetitive CAD work, allowing them to spend more time on higher-value activities such as product development, innovation and solving complex customer challenges. Engineering knowledge remains at the heart of every automated workflow, with DriveWorks simply applying that knowledge more efficiently.

Which manufacturers benefit from DriveWorks?

DriveWorks is used by manufacturers across a wide range of industries that produce configurable or custom products, including:

• HVAC systems
• Material handling equipment
• Transportation
• Architectural products
• Industrial machinery
• Custom manufacturing

Any organisation using SOLIDWORKS to repeatedly modify similar products can benefit from design automation.

Watch how Wozair streamlined its design process with DriveWorks

Find out how Wozair, a Visiativ customer specialising in heavy-duty HVAC solutions, is using DriveWorks to improve the way it designs and manufactures custom products.

After integrating DriveWorks with its SOLIDWORKS environment, Wozair automated time-consuming design activities, improved design consistency and accelerated the transfer of information from engineering to manufacturing. Watch the customer story to see how DriveWorks has helped the business work more efficiently while reducing engineering effort and operational costs.

• The second Tuesday of every month: Automate SOLIDWORKS
• The third Tuesday of every month: Simplify Complex Processes
• The fourth Tuesday of every month: Configure, Price, Quote

Try DriveWorks Solo Free for 30 Days

See how DriveWorks Solo can help automate your SOLIDWORKS design process with a free 30-day trial.

Your free trial gives you:

• Access to the complete set of DriveWorks Solo features
• A range of learning resources and step-by-step training materials
• The opportunity to discuss your automation requirements with a DriveWorks technical specialist
• A completely commitment-free trial with no credit card required

Start your free 30-day trial today and explore how DriveWorks can help you produce SOLIDWORKS designs faster, with greater accuracy and less manual effort.