{"id":260757,"date":"2023-09-17T21:00:41","date_gmt":"2023-09-17T21:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solidxperts.com\/?post_type=techtips&p=260757"},"modified":"2024-12-19T11:08:06","modified_gmt":"2024-12-19T16:08:06","slug":"bowhead-corporation-solidworks-and-the-3dexperience-platform","status":"publish","type":"techtips","link":"https:\/\/www.solidxperts.com\/en\/blog\/bowhead-corporation-solidworks-and-the-3dexperience-platform\/","title":{"rendered":"Defying Limitations: Bowhead Corporation, SOLIDWORKS, and the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Defying Limitations: Bowhead Corporation, SOLIDWORKS, and the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform<\/h1>\n

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<\/div><\/div>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row el_class=”container post-content”][vc_column][vc_column_text]Christian Bagg, co-founder of Bowhead Corporation, is an admitted adrenaline junkie and outdoor enthusiast. After a snowboarding accident left him paralyzed from the waist down, all Bagg could think about was returning to his \u201cnormal\u201d activities. His passion drove him to invent a mountain bike that accommodated the inability to use his legs. Although he was psyched to get back in the saddle again, another life-changing event lay just around the corner.<\/p>\n

Bagg loaned one of his bikes to a camp for disabled children. There he witnessed a 14-year-old girl with cerebral palsy, who rarely spoke, return excited and energized from her first-ever experience of complete freedom on a bike. \u201cBest day of my life!\u201d she exclaimed. Her incredible joy galvanized Bagg\u2019s mission: His company, Bowhead Corporation, would make access to mountain trails, woodland hikes, and the beauty of the great outdoors a reality for people around the world who have disabilities.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=88KPf6_Tq2A<\/a><\/p>\n

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Designs Evolve as Company Grows<\/strong><\/p>\n

With SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD<\/a>, Bowhead Corp. introduced its innovative hybrid ATV\/mountain bike a year ahead of schedule. Along with streamlining design efficiency, SOLIDWORKS Simulation<\/a> enabled the Bowhead team to reduce its need for prototypes, which helped the company produce the bike with dramatically lower costs.<\/p>\n

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The first Bowhead Reach bike was delivered in November 2018. The company quickly learned that some riders were jumping over obstacles while sailing the bike up to eight feet in the air.<\/p>\n

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This prompted Bowhead to modify the base design by beefing up the shock absorber. It also replaced the throttle and braking controls with forearm paddles and built helmet-mounted bite throttles for use by quadriplegics.<\/p>\n

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\u201cNow we have three bikes. We [also] have customer service, operations, engineering, and inventory management,\u201d says Bagg. \u201cSOLIDWORKS plays a role in every piece of our company.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The growing company needed a data management and collaboration solution to continue working as an efficient and unified team.<\/p>\n

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Everyone on the Same Page<\/strong><\/p>\n

With 800 to 900 parts, Bowhead bikes are complex. \u201cThe [cloud-based] 3DEXPERIENCE platform<\/a> became a way to manage an engineering company, not just to engineer the parts,\u201d notes Bagg. \u201cIt was a funny moment realizing \u2026 that SOLIDWORKS and the 3DEXPERIENCE platform were more than just engineering tools,\u201d he recalls. \u201cThey became this sort of marriage counselor between operations and customer service and engineering. It was a way for everyone to look at a problem in a focused manner and then deal with it as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Bowhead<\/a><\/p>\n

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Modifications during product development can originate from the shop floor, designers, managers, and even customers. \u201cWhen you are working with a complex product like ours, it is very important that you stay on top of the changes,\u201d says Mechanical Engineer Sanket Patil. \u201cA simple change affects everything, be it in your assembly or processes.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The browser-based aspect of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform brings familiarity to any user who accesses the internet. \u201cOne of the things that I really enjoyed was giving access to the platform to non-CAD users who needed access to it because they do so much with the data,\u201d notes Patil. \u201cI didn\u2019t have to hold their hand [or teach them anything]. I sent them a link where they created their user credentials, and they started using the system like pros from day one.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou find different ways of using the tool that wouldn\u2019t be obvious to an engineer. By using 3DEXPERIENCE, things become less obscure, and everyone starts speaking the same language. As a communication tool, we finally have one way to bring everybody together.\u201d<\/p>\n

-Christian Bagg, co-founder of Bowhead Corporation<\/p>\n

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Control As a Positive Force<\/strong><\/p>\n

Managing all product data, parts, inventory, and bills of material is critical for Bowhead\u2019s operational efficiency, collaboration, and success.<\/p>\n

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VP of Engineering Roger McPherson notes, \u201c\u2026 to maintain the quality of our product, control is really important. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform has been useful for us in that way. We must make sure that our changes\u2014and they come from everywhere\u2014are managed whether from builders, customers, quality, or suppliers. We must manage that [data in an automated way].\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cAll of our data is on the platform,\u201d adds Patil. \u201cWe use the maturity states to control if a particular document or a part file or a drawing is being worked or if it\u2019s released. This helps us to understand what is in the latest revision or what is the latest state of a drawing or a file.\u201d Before using the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, Bowhead\u2019s revision control was basically renaming a part file to something like \u201crevision 1.11.2,\u201d or \u201cFINAL final revision.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Great Communication Prevents Delays<\/strong><\/p>\n

Clear communication eliminates confusion and prevents duplicate or missed work, which improves productivity and speeds up the development process. When information is shared openly and effectively, all team members can make informed decisions faster and more effectively.<\/p>\n

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\u201cAs you grow your company, you really must grow the way you communicate. Having a cohesive, one-stop shop for communication has been, from a management side, the biggest addition of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform to the SOLIDWORKS engineering platform,\u201d says Bagg.<\/p>\n

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For example, the company\u2019s assembly team can now see inside the glass doors of an engineering room, so they feel like part of the engineering team. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform enables all key departments to give feedback on the design earlier in the process, which can help prevent misunderstandings and associated delays downstream.<\/p>\n

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Secure and Easy File Sharing<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe quite frequently share information (3D data and 2D drawings) with external stakeholders [via the 3DEXPERIENCE platform],\u201d says Operations Specialist Tatiana Place. Some suppliers use the files to produce Bowhead parts. Others use 2D drawings to supplement the 3D model. Bowhead also sends files to a firm that supports the company\u2019s engineering change processes when Bowhead\u2019s in-house team needs additional help.<\/p>\n

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Place loves how the 3DEXPERIENCE platform has replaced cumbersome and confusing email communications and supports its collaboration with suppliers. \u201c[The platform] has enabled us to amplify our workforce and continually innovate the rate that we come up with ideas,\u201d concludes Place. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine a world without 3DEXPERIENCE right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

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If you\u2019d like more information about how the 3DEXPERIENCE platform can improve your data management, collaboration, and communication, contact our dedicated team of Xperts<\/a> to learn how to make the platform part of your SOLIDWORKS workflow.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row full_width=”stretch_row_content_no_spaces” el_class=”pd-5 pd-form” css=”.vc_custom_1732896386742{background-color: #0b1623 !important;}” el_id=”form”][vc_column][vc_row_inner el_class=”container container-center”][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”263048″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” el_class=”img-full”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner el_class=”form-block” width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text el_class=”title”]Any questions? Need help? Ask one of our experts.[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text el_class=”details”]Whether you’re ready to get started or just have a few more questions, you can contact us toll-free:[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text el_class=”form-block-inner products-contact”]\n

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