Discover where CustomTools makes your work easier
- Watch short videos of each feature and see how easily you can automate routine tasks with these SOLIDWORKS automation tools.
- Compare the features across editions and choose the solution that fits your needs.
- Explore what CustomTools adds on top of SOLIDWORKS alone and see how much more efficient your work can become.
- Read the case studies and get inspired by real users who achieved faster results and better organization with CustomTools.
Batch print
Print all drawings related to an assembly in one go – always with the right paper size, printer and orientation.
Batch conversion
Convert all drawings, parts and assemblies related to an assembly into multiple file formats at once.
Solid Edge migration
When moving from Solid Edge to SOLIDWORKS, don't forget to convert the custom properties from your Solid Edge files.
SOLIDWORKS
To print or convert in SOLIDWORKS, you have to open every file separately – which can be very time-consuming and error-prone.
CUSTOMTOOLS
Printing and file conversion are fully automated because they are driven by predefined settings. Several tasks can be combined into a single operation, processing every file in the bill of materials.
Company: Paroc
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Printing and conversion were done manually.
- There was no way to generate a list of drawings per assembly
- The print order could not be managed in SOLIDWORKS PDM
What solution did we provide?
- Printing and conversion were fully automated.
- Printing follows the BOM order.
- An Excel report generates the drawing list.
How did CustomTools help them?
- Designers no longer waste time printing or converting documents.
- Drawings are always printed with the right settings and in BOM order.
- Multiple profiles to choose which settings to use.
DXF automation
Automate DXF export from parts, multibody parts and drawings.
Cut list – property management
Write additional custom property values to cut list item properties.
SOLIDWORKS
Creating DXF files, even from a single SOLIDWORKS file, usually takes several steps. To manage cut list item properties, you are limited to a very basic user interface and features.
CUSTOMTOOLS
Creating DXF files from every type of sheet metal part in your assemblies now takes just a few clicks. CustomTools offers a fully integrated, extended property pane for managing cut list items.
Company: HRS
Why did they need CustomTools?
- They spent a lot of time creating DXF files manually
- Extensive work with sheet metal parts in SOLIDWORKS
- DXF files were too often missing or in the wrong scale
What solution did we provide?
- They create the sheet metal flat pattern with the CNC tool
- Full automation of DXF file creation
- DXF files are saved to different folders based on property values
How did CustomTools help them?
- Errors eliminated
- Huge time savings
- DXF files are always stored in the right place
Excel BOM
Generate structured BOM reports with custom properties and embedded preview images.
SOLIDWORKS
In SOLIDWORKS you are limited to saving the current BOM view as a basic report. To meet company standards, these reports often have to be formatted by hand.
CUSTOMTOOLS
Based on predefined Excel templates, you can effortlessly create publication-ready reports with embedded preview images, cumulative quantities and many other features. You can also extend the reports with data from your ERP.
Company: Paroc
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Excel reports were created manually
- Time spent creating these reports
- Missing reporting features in SOLIDWORKS PDM
What solution did we provide?
- Used for drawings and spare parts lists
- Automatic saving to SOLIDWORKS PDM
- Automatic revision of existing reports
How did CustomTools help them?
- Significant savings in time and errors
- Easier to keep reports up to date
- Fully automated Excel reporting
Custom properties
Extend and optimize how you manage custom properties in SOLIDWORKS.
Bounding box
Create a bounding box for parts and assemblies with additional dimension properties.
SOLIDWORKS
SOLIDWORKS Tab Builder offers basic tools for managing your custom properties – good enough for basic use. In addition, the bounding box is limited to cut list items only.
CUSTOMTOOLS
This core CustomTools function extends SOLIDWORKS property management by letting you define properties consistently and making sure all required properties are always filled in correctly.
Company: STX Europe
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Easily copy existing cabin assemblies as new cabins
- Efficiently manage dozens of properties related to individual parts
- Export design data from SOLIDWORKS to other systems
What solution did we provide?
- Automatic file naming, assembly copying and project management
- Bi-directional link between SOLIDWORKS files and external systems
- Automatic feature recognition to fill in properties
How did CustomTools help them?
- Time spent on structural design cut by 30%
- Really fast creation of cabin variants with the copy tool
- No more manual data entry when transferring data between systems
Automatic file naming
Automate and standardize your rules for naming and saving files.
Project
Manage your SOLIDWORKS files by projects and sub-projects.
SOLIDWORKS
You have to name files consistently to avoid duplicate names. To guarantee this, you need a running number shared between designers. On top of that, you have to choose the right location to save to.
CUSTOMTOOLS
File naming can be fully automated: sequence numbers are shared automatically between users, and files are always saved to the right location for each selected project.
Company: Pinomatic
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Designers used an Excel file to share document codes
- Naming a file required a lot of manual work
- Many files were not named correctly
What solution did we provide?
- Automated file naming convention
- Sequence code generated based on the project
- Projects come automatically from their ERP
How did CustomTools help them?
- Designers no longer waste time printing or converting documents.
- Drawings are always printed with the right settings and in BOM order.
- Multiple profiles to choose which settings to use.
Search
Search for files by custom property, project or file type, or use free-text search.
Explore
Quickly locate a SOLIDWORKS file in Windows Explorer.
Open drawings
Find your drawings regardless of naming and storage conventions.
SOLIDWORKS
Searching existing files efficiently is essential to avoid creating duplicate models and to identify or locate them. In addition, to find a drawing you have to name it after its model.
CUSTOMTOOLS
All files are indexed, so you can quickly search for them or find them by project or properties. A drawing's name can differ from its model's, which lets you create configuration-specific drawings.
Company: Palmse Trailer
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Time spent searching for files
- Duplicate files were sometimes created
- Difficulty finding SOLIDWORKS files
What solution did we provide?
- File search based on custom property values
- Access to other CustomTools functions directly from the search results
- File search by specific material or cutting technology
How did CustomTools help them?
- No more duplicate files
- Higher productivity
- Easier reuse of existing files in new projects
Copy
Copy and rename an assembly and all referenced documents in one go.
Where used
Find out which assemblies a part is used in
Copy referenced drawings
Copy and rename drawings when copying the referenced part/assembly
SOLIDWORKS
To modify an existing model safely, you need to know where it is used. To copy assemblies, you have to control file naming and update properties. When copying a model, there is no easy way to reuse the existing drawing.
CUSTOMTOOLS
File indexing lets you check where parts are used and automatically copy drawings together with their model. When copying assemblies, you can apply your own file naming rules and update properties accordingly.
Company: VAK
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Effort spent on manually copying and renaming SW files
- Custom properties then had to be edited by hand
- Pack & Go did not meet their needs
What solution did we provide?
- Files are renamed based on the project
- New SW files follow the VAK convention,
- Properties can be edited easily
How did CustomTools help them?
- Copying documents is now an easy process
- Starting a new project is easier and faster
- No need to open each file individually
ERP import
Find matching ERP items and link them to your SOLIDWORKS custom properties.
ERP export
Get your project ready and make sure BOMs and items are created or updated in your ERP.
SOLIDWORKS
To work with your ERP and SOLIDWORKS, you constantly have to switch between applications. On top of that, data exchange is an entirely manual, error-prone process that requires ERP know-how.
CUSTOMTOOLS
Your ERP is fully integrated with SOLIDWORKS. You can fill in SOLIDWORKS custom properties with information available in the ERP, and ultimately create and update items and item BOMs in the ERP.
Company: Jomet
Why did they need CustomTools?
- Missing link between SW and their ERP system
- Time spent entering data into the ERP manually
- Insufficient data consistency
What solution did we provide?
- Bi-directional link between SW and their ERP system
- Automated data import/export to the ERP
- Data is entered once, in one place
How did CustomTools help them?
- Designers no longer waste time printing or converting documents.
- Drawings are always printed with the right settings and in BOM order.
- Multiple profiles to choose which settings to use.
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