Innovation in cleaning with SOLIDWORKS xDesign

For more than half a century, family company Flash (based in Oss, the Netherlands) has been producing high-quality non-woven cleaning products for the private label market. With a focus on single-use disposable products, such as those used in hospitals, Flash supplies directly to more than 50 countries worldwide from their own production line in Oss. In this article, we speak to Sander van Hout, the Key Supply Chain specialist responsible for setting up and adjusting the production lines in Oss. For just under a year, he has been using SOLIDWORKS xDesign‘s 100% online offering to his satisfaction.

Despite his busy schedule, Sander uses the SOLIDWORKS xDesign apps for at least six hours every week. “Sometimes there are weeks when I use it less, but if there is a project with a lot of drawing work, I dive right back in. The usage varies a lot.”, he explains.

Van Hout considers himself a ‘moderate user’. “That’s why SOLIDWORKS xDesign suits me perfectly. A full SOLIDWORKS license is a lot more expensive, but with the various apps from xDesign I can do my job just fine. It has also been an excellent choice for us in terms of price.”, he says. “Before, we were working with free software, which had quite a few bugs. With SOLIDWORKS xDesign, we have taken a big professionalization step.”

Although Van Hout sees visual and user interface differences between the desktop version of SOLIDWORKS and the apps from xDesign, he is satisfied. “Compare SOLIDWORKS on the laptop with an app from 3DEXPERIENCE (SOLIDWORKS’ Cloud platform), and it doesn’t look very similar. But for me, it serves a particular purpose, so I’m happy with it. If you master SOLIDWORKS, you can definitely get started with this.”

Flash is currently redesigning a production line: “There has to be a cooperative robot. All this has to fit. The robot needs tooling, tools, and the products have to be presented in the right way. Then you also have to think about supply lines, as well as more complex projects, such as 3D printing of tooling.”

Within SOLIDWORKS xDesign, he mainly uses the apps xDesign and xSheetMetal. “I often use xDesign for 3D designing small toolings and utensils that we have here. Lately, I’ve also been working a lot with xSheetMetal for sheet metal design. Plus, I see potential in xFrame, but I can’t import European beam sizes into it at the moment. When that comes in, I might use that app more often. Now I still do that in xDesign, but that is a bit more cumbersome.”, he explains.

Working entirely in the cloud suits Sander just fine, but there are also downsides. “Through the dashboard, I can access my files from anywhere. However, we don’t always have stable internet, which is why I am always connected with a LAN cable. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform needs a stable connection, which is why I sometimes have to wait for my files to load. But once it’s loaded, it’s nice software anyway.”, he closes on a positive note.