DriveWorks is a configuration and automation software ideal for "similar but different" products. DriveWorks gives you the toolset to build your own automation for SOLIDWORKS Parts, Assemblies, and Drawings as well as supporting documentation (Proposals, Emails, Manufacturing data etc.). Once the configurator is built it can be shared internally or externally with desktop application, web, and even mobile access. DriveWorks’s scalable solution is an automation fit whether you need to generate slightly different tooling for each project or want to provide your customers a rich web-based sales configurator.
DriveWorks shows up as an add-in into the SOLIDWORKS Task Pane. It allows you to capture all of the elements from SOLIDWORKS Parts, Assemblies, and Drawings that you will control in your DriveWorks Project. Capturing means that those elements are controllable via rules and could change based upon user inputs.
In SOLIDWORKS Parts you can capture Dimensions, Features, Custom Properties, and even file formats you may save the generated model as (PDF, DXF, DWG, etc). In SOLIDWORKS Assemblies you can capture and drive instances and replacement models and in SOLIDWORKS Drawings you can capture sheet information, notes, annotations, and even view scales and positions.
The Rule Builder within DriveWorks enables you to drive the captured features, dimensions, patterns, custom properties, and much more with constants, variables, logic statements, and familiar excel-like functions. Tedious and repetitive changes to models can be written into the DriveWorks project reducing the number of errors and freeing up engineering resources to work on more custom designs.
The Form Designer in DriveWorks is a powerful tool that allows you to build a user interface your project. You can create multiple forms, guiding your end user through the different inputs needed to generate SOLIDWORKS models and supporting documentation. Form Controls range from simple text input boxes to complex and dynamic drop lists; even linking to external databases. You can also setup your forms to adapt to the screen size being used. Whether on a Desktop, Tablet, or Phone you can create a consistent and branded end user experience.
DriveWorks is a scaleable tool that offers an increased return on investment the more you automate. To get an idea for what kind of ROI DriveWorks could offer you, check out the DriveWorks ROI Calculator .
As you expand your product automation, tools like DriveWorks Pro let you share the configuration abilities with anybody that needs them. This means your entire engineering team, sales team, or even customers can easily configure the products they need.
By starting small on your automation journey, it lets you get small wins, leading to a rapid return on your investment. Get started now and start automating!
DriveWorks Solo
DriveWorks Pro
Drive Dimensions, Features and Custom Properties
Drive Color, Material, Textures, and Advanced Feature Properties
Drive Instances and Replace Components (with existing files or dynamically driven files)
Create additional model file formats (STEP, STL, PDF, DXF, JPEG, etc.)
Full control over new model file names and locations
Run SOLIDWORKS Macros
Generative design – create new features on the fly (configurations, insert components, mates, etc.)
Create a drawing for each part and assembly
Create multiple drawings for each part and assembly
Create additional drawing file formats (PDF, DXF, DWG, JPEG, etc.)
Control Drawing Sheets, Views, Annotations, and Layers
Run additional tasks on the fly (Auto Balloon, Arrange Dimensions, Rescale and Position Views, etc.)
Create XML Based Documents
Fully customizable document creation (from Word, Excel, XML, etc.)
Send HTML emails with attachments
Immediate generation of SOLIDWORKS models and drawings
Real Time Preview (On Demand) – updates model while specifying
Automatic generation – unattended generation of outputs
Basic Form Controls (Text Box, Numeric Text Box, Drop Down, Spin Button, Check Box)
Enhanced Form Controls (Hyperlink, Label, List Box, Option Group, Picture Box, Slider)
Advanced Form Controls (3D Preview, Child Specification List, Data Table, Date Picker, Frame Control, Macro Button, Upload Control, etc.)
Multiple form creation with dynamic navigation
Support for responsive forms (allows re-positioning of controls when used on screens of different sizes)
Use tabular data to calculate rules
Create internal data tables
Use dynamic data from ODBC Data sources in rules (SAP, Oracle, MySQL, SQLServer, etc.)
Pull and Push data dynamically to and from SQL Server Databases using SQL or Windows authentication
Web Service integration – communicate with any web service OR use DriveWorks as a web service
SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional (Automatic check-in of models, drawings and documents)
3rd party system Integration
Online Configurator and DriveWorks 3D
Find out how Span Tech uses DriveWorks to automate their engineering process to get more out of their SOLIDWORKS. By capturing the design intent and creating a user-friendly environment, they were able to:
WEATHER GUARD Uses DriveWorks to Accelerate Sales Cycle
Ride along and discover how WEATHER GUARD took their vehicle upfitting business to the next level with DriveWorks Pro. By adding a live configurator their website, they've seen:
PS Doors Gets More Done with DriveWorks
Enter the world of DriveWorks with PS Doors and learn how they changed their entire design process. By doing more with less, PS Doors has forever revolutionized their business by:
Learn more about DriveWorks and how YOU can optimize and scale your business. With DriveWorks automation, you could:
DriveWorks projects can be ran through the DriveWorks add-in to SOLIDWORKS, a standalone desktop application, and through the web.