SolidWorks

SolidWorks is a popular mid-range commercial 3D mechanical CAD product owned by Dassault Systèmes. Known for an approachable user experience and a large reseller channel, it has a dominant position in small-to-mid-cap manufacturing, machine-builders, and educational institutions worldwide.

Context

SolidWorks Corporation was founded in 1993 and acquired by Dassault Systèmes in 1997, but kept a distinct brand and Windows-only desktop product line. It uses the Parasolid geometry kernel under license from Siemens — an unusual cross-vendor dependency — and is paired with SOLIDWORKS PDM (formerly Enterprise PDM / EPDM).

What it implements

• CAD 2D Drafting with the Drawings module.
• CAD Assembly with mate-based assembly.
• STEP AP242 Data Exchange import/export.

Relationships (see sidebar)

• Mid-range alternative to PTC Creo; sits alongside Dassault CATIA in the broader Dassault portfolio.

Vendor

Dassault Systèmes (SOLIDWORKS brand).

Resources

• SOLIDWORKS – 3D CAD and Engineering Software — official homepage
• An introduction to SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD — official overview
• SOLIDWORKS YouTube channel — official channel