CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive

17 January 2008

Implementation Investments

U.K. Design Consultancy Gets 'Creactive' with SolidWorks Software

U.K. consultancy Creactive Design is using SolidWorks® 3D CAD software to accelerate development of everything from solar lanterns to phone kiosks and commuter rail cars. Recently, a device designed in SolidWorks by Creactive for Thermo Fisher Scientific has set a standard for compact spectrometers that identify trace elements in liquids for a variety of industries.

Based in Cambridge, Creactive is a design consultancy with eight engineers and eight designers who develop products for the consumer, medical, telecommunications, industrial, and transportation industries. It standardized on SolidWorks software to speed design cycles, reduce prototyping time and costs, and better communicate design information with clients.

"Presenting customers with options is critical to success for design consultancies," said Hans Petersen, a Creactive partner. "SolidWorks allows us to work quickly enough so that we can create a broad range of concepts to present to our clients, increasing the chance they'll see a solution that meets their needs. The software was crucial to the Thermo Fisher Scientific iCAP 6000 spectrometer design."

One of the many challenges Creactive faced was to make the radically smaller spectrometer easy to operate in confined laboratory environments. SolidWorks enabled Petersen and his team to visualize how all of the device's components would shrink down and fit into a smaller unit, while ensuring against part interference. Reducing design errors on the computer helped the company minimize expensive prototyping and accelerated production.

Creactive created the design for the iCAP 6000 in less than six months. "We wouldn't have even attempted this form in 2D," said Andrew Russell, senior designer with Creactive. "It would have been a square box without any of the ergonomics that make it easy to operate, even in a compact shape."

The spectrometer won the Instrument Business Outlook 2006 Gold Award based on innovation, functionality, and style. Boeing recently purchased the 500th iCAP 6000 to monitor the contents of chemical tanks used in the production of aluminum wings and other structural components. Other industry accolades for Creactive projects include the Minerva Award, IF Design Award, the DBA Design Effectiveness Award, and the British Design Award.

SolidWorks' flexibility enables Creactive to work on client design files sent in other CAD formats to ensure everyone is on the same page. The company also uses SolidWorks eDrawings® e-mail-enabled design communication tool to share 3D models of concepts with clients, which accelerates the approval process.

"Breaking new ground in product design requires the freedom to innovate, even within tight deadlines," said Simon Booker, SolidWorks marketing manager, Europe. "Creactive has won a series of industry accolades because it has been able to try different approaches in search of the best solution for its clients."

Creactive relies on authorized SolidWorks reseller Cadtek for ongoing software training, implementation, and support.

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