MOVIES

CONCORD, Mass., - Nook Industries, Inc. has reduced three-dimensional computer-aided design (3D CAD) model delivery time from about six days to a matter of minutes using SolidWorks Corporation's 3D PartStream.NET(r) technology, SolidWorks announced today. 3D PartStream.NET allows Nook customers such as 3M, Procter & Gamble, and GE to quickly download 3D CAD models from Nook's online catalog directly into their designs, check design compatibility, and make design decisions in minutes instead of days. Access to downloadable CAD models of Nook components means these customers can bring their products to market faster. Headquartered in Cleveland, Nook makes linear systems and linear motion components, such as screw jacks, that manufacturing companies use to lift and position objects during production. These companies serve a wide range of industries, including transportation, medical/diagnostic, paper, chemical, food/beverage, and communications. Nook's customers operate under tight deadlines, and don't have time to spend creating supplier component models from scratch for use in their product designs. Nor do they have the time to endure lengthy technical evaluation processes and sales cycles. With just a few mouse clicks, 3D PartStream.NET allows Nook's customers to find the desired part, configure it to their specification (for length, diameter, etc.), and download a 3D CAD model into their design to make sure it's compatible and the design is accurate. Nook customer Remmele Engineering now gets its automation machinery products to market faster because it can find the right linear system products much more quickly than before using 3D PartStream.NET. "Fast time-to-market is an absolute necessity for automation machinery manufacturers," said Roger Clark, design engineer at Remmele. "Our customers are requiring shorter lead times on equipment delivery. Nook's online catalog lets us find the products we need much more rapidly. As a result, we've been able to bring products to our customers about a week sooner than before. In this industry, that's a significant competitive advantage." 3D PartStream.NET also benefits Nook by dramatically shortening its sales cycle from nearly a week to a few minutes. "Most of our customers submitted requests for a customized part by e-mail," said Chris Nook, the company's vice president of marketing and sales. "It usually took six days to reconfigure the CAD model to a customer's specifications, go through an internal approval process, and send it back to the customer for initial review. If the customer wanted to evaluate another product configuration in their designs, the process repeated itself. 3D PartStream.NET's configuration capabilities and accurate geometry output ensure we can deliver accurate models quickly without spending time creating models from scratch based on customer specifications. Reducing our customers' product evaluation time and cutting the sales process from days to minutes helps us stay in front of competitors." 3D PartStream.NET helps manufacturers like Nook increase revenues by encouraging customers to "design in" (check compatibility and subsequently purchase) their products. "Nook Industries is a leading supplier to some of the biggest names in industry," said Bob Noftle, general manager of 3D content solutions at SolidWorks Corporation. "Its customers require exact, and often, unique specifications for the components included in their products. 3D PartStream.NET makes it easy for those companies to meet their deadlines because they don't have to spend days procuring the right part. That ease helps Nook maintain its leadership in the linear motion and linear systems markets."