Case Study
Italian appliance maker migrates from slow 2D design system to 3D advantage of Solid Edge. Company reduces design time as much as 80 percent.
Baxi S.p.A.
Just as many companies like Baxi in the 1990s, 2D design was common but the advantages of 3D were just being discovered.
Baxi S.p.A., an affiliate of Baxi Group Ltd. in the United Kingdom, is the European market leader in the home heating and home comfort markets. Baxi S.p.A. operates production units in France, Germany and Denmark. In Italy, Baxi S.p.A.’s production center in Bassano del Grappa (VI) manufactures home appliances, including ground- and wall-mounted water and natural gas heaters.
Baxi S.p.A., with growing annual revenues, employs 740 workers and is making a variety of capital investments in emerging and advanced technologies in order to be prepared for increased market demand.
In 2000, Baxi S.p.A. developed and distributed more than a million products across more than 50 countries. Of these, one third is made up of wall-installed heaters designed with Solid Edge from Siemens PLM Software. Since May 1999, Baxi S.p.A. has used Solid Edge to design and develop its products.
Baxi S.p.A. cited Solid Edge as being intuitive, easy to use, compatible with third-party software packages, highly functional and capable of saving major design time for the company.
“Before we selected and used Solid Edge, our engineers at Baxi S.p.A. used only Euclid 2D CAD software,” says Antonio Sandro, CAD system manager at Baxi S.p.A. “Our decision to integrate our system with 3D came after many years of experience with 2D systems. At the time, in the early 1990s, the market for a mid-range solid modeling product was still in its infancy and a positive approach towards the 3D systems was somewhat problematic,” says Sandro. “The 2D system users lost considerable amounts of time following the design’s detailing process, without being able to focus on the project as a whole. We needed to avoid unforeseen problems that could stall the advancement of the entire process. It was inevitable. We had to overcome the limitations caused by out-of-date drawings, especially when related to the build-up phase of the design and the study of extremely complex plastic parts.”
Solid Edge cuts design time up to 80 percent
“It was at that point,” says Sandro, “that we felt a need emerging to define a system which could best fit our specific work requirements, like ease of use, a rapid learning process, compatibility with our 2D project archive and recognition of the most widely used graphic formats. After a careful evaluation and analysis of the CAD systems currently available on the market, such as SolidWorks and PTC, we chose to use the Solid Edge 3D CAD solution.”
“With the use of a pilot (test) program, and the assistance of two technical experts, we were able to detect a significant reduction in the development time of the project. Shortly afterwards, with the immediate participation of all the design team we determined it was possible to produce an increased number of projects in less time, even up to 80 percent less. It is absolutely impossible to assume that we could have managed to obtain the same results with a 2D CAD product.”
Solid Edge ease of use
“One of the indicators that measures the productivity of a product consists in establishing its power,” says Pier Mario Polenghi, logistics manager at Baxi S.p.A. “The power of a product is measured by its speed, and consequently by the short learning curve required for using it. With Solid Edge we have seen projects being completed after only about three days of training. We have concluded that Solid Edge cannot be matched.”
In conclusion, Polenghi emphasizes that “by learning in a systematically easy and intuitive way, we were able to strengthen the productive process of the product, reduce the time-to-market, with the advantage of increased return on our investments.”
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Challenges:
- Lost too much time on details in 2D process
- Could not focus on design project as a whole
- Slowed down by out-of-date drawings
Keys To Success:
- Examine use of 3D solid modeling
- Find a system to fit specific work requirements: ease of use, rapid learning, and compatibility with existing 2D project archive
- Select Solid Edge® software, testing its viability via pilot project
Results:
- Detected significant reduction in the development time
- Increased number of projects, and reduced design time up to 80 percent
- Strengthened the process, reduced time-to-market and increased return on investments
Industry:
- Machinery & Industrial
Client's Primary Business:
Baxi S.p.A. manufactures home appliances, including ground- and wall-mounted water and natural gas heaters. The European leader in the home heating and home comfort markets, the company has operations in Italy, France, Germany and Denmark.
Business Initiatives:
- Commonization & Re-use
- Production Efficiency
Solutions/Services:
- NX Design (CAD)
- Solid Edge
Client Location:
Bassano del Grappa
Italy
"We determined it was possible to produce an increased number of projects in less time, even up to 80 percent less. It is absolutely impossible to assume that we could have managed to obtain the same results with a 2D CAD product."
Antonio Sandro
CAD system manager
Baxi S.p.A.