CAD Forum discussion (EN) : Best CAD for Small Business?

CAD Forum discussion (EN) : Best CAD for Small Business? https://www.cadforum.cz/forum_en/ Sat, 16 May 2026 10:33:52 +0000 Wed, 21 Apr 2021 21:24:17 +0000 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Web Wiz Forums 12.04 360 https://www.cadforum.cz/forum_en/RSS_post_feed.asp?TID=13587 <![CDATA[CAD Forum discussion (EN)]]> https://www.cadforum.cz/forum_en/forum_images/web_wiz_forums.png https://www.cadforum.cz/forum_en/ <![CDATA[Best CAD for Small Business? : Dear CAD Experts, hit a dilemma...]]> https://www.cadforum.cz/forum_en/forum_posts.asp?TID=13587&PID=37932&title=best-cad-for-small-business#37932 Author: pipcart
Subject: 13587
Posted: 21.Apr.2021 at 21:24

Dear CAD Experts, hit a dilemma regarding CAD software and would welcome your advice.

The next step is to build a bill of materials with which to test the commercial viability of the design and I need appropriately formatted drawings, in order to get quotes.

The prototype has been satisfactorily developed using TurboCad and Tinkercad, to produce 3D prints and hand machined parts.

I now need to get quotes from parts manufacturers who only accept industry-standard CAD file types, such as Solidworks, etc., rather than the generic formats I can export, such as .DXF and .STL. I have tried unsuccessfully to translate the file types.

I am looking for a more economic route than investing in e.g. Solidworks that would allow me to get quotes for the BOM. I have looked at open source options but have not spotted one that fits the bill. The products I design are not super-complex.

All thoughts gratefully received.

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