Solid Edge Streamlines Metallurgical Machinery Design For VAI CLECIM
VAI CLECIM takes full advantage of Solid Edge, from 3D mockups to fast
drawing production, to serve the customers all over the world
Customers and industry prompt move to 3D
VAI CLECIM, subsidiary of VAI, designs and provides equipment for the
metallurgy industry worldwide. The company’s product line includes rolling
mill machinery for steel and aluminum, process lines, extrusion press and
custom machinery. VAI CLECIM supplies ready-to-go new installations and also
modernizes existing equipment. VAI CLECIM’s machines contain as many as
10,000 parts. Because the company’s customers, like those in other
industries, have been demanding faster cycle times, VAI CLECIM sought to
upgrade its development process from 2D to 3D to speed the design of this
complex equipment. In particular, 3D would give them the ability to create
virtual mockups of the machines and detect interferences early on, instead
of when the equipment was being assembled at the customer’s site.
VAI CLECIM chose Solid Edge because it was capable of creating such large
virtual assemblies, and also because the software’s efficient drawing
environment would make it possible to quickly produce the large packets of
drawings required by the customers.
Short learning curve, better productivity Designers and drafters quickly
learned Solid Edge and now prefer it to 2D. “Solid Edge 3D CAD has changed
the design process,” says Christophe Furgerol, CAD manager at VAI CLECIM.
“For most users, it is out of question that they would return to 2D.”
Designers now build 3D mockups and check for interferences as they build
the virtual models. “The precise interference checking in assemblies is
very helpful,” says Furgerol. “It significantly reduces errors during
mounting, which is done at the production site. The impact on quality and
customer satisfaction has been very positive.” The parametric modeling
capabilities of Solid Edge are used to quickly build a range of products.
VAI CLECIM standardized on Solid Edge internally. It also uses Solid Edge
data as its means of communicating with subcontractors worldwide, for better
productivity throughout the product design and manufacturing process.
Overall, VAI CLECIM has seen a 20 percent reduction in the time needed for
machinery design across a range of products. The company has seen a
reduction in development costs as well. Another benefit of the move to Solid
Edge is that customers appreciate the 3D mockups, which are easier to
understand than drawings.
VAI CLEMIN is located in St. Chamond, France Montbrison, France.
