The Difference between DriveWorks Xpress Solo and Pro
DriveWorks is a powerful design automation software which comes complimentary with SolidWorks in form of DriveWorks Xpress. DriveWorks helps users in performing repetitive tasks by enabling them to automate them. DriveWorks comes in 3 different versions, DriveWorks Xpress Solo and Pro. Each of the version comes with their own features which are used in a bespoke way by different companies across the world.
The Solo and Pro Version allows engineers and sales teams to draft customised solutions proficiently which in turn minimises the time and effort taken to reproduce your products for manufacturing. While the Xpress version aims at automating basic design tasks without having comprehensive programming knowledge.
In this blog we shall talk about the The differences between DriveWorks Xpress Solo and Pro and their capabilities.
DriveWorks helps in enhancing the productivity of your design processes, all the three versions help users with a variety of tasks from basic design automation to complicated product configuration and it can be integrated seamlessly with your current business model. Here are some of the best practices to make the full use of DriveWorks –
- Arrange and Assemble your Project Structure using folders when Appropriate.
- Use a common path when transferring and sharing project data
- Optimise 3D models and previews for performance
- Utilise DriveWorks macros to run set tasks within your DriveWorks flow
- Continuously go over 3D Preview functionality to determine areas for improvement.
DriveWorks Xpress or Solo
Xpress – is a basic automation level tool that comes complimentary with SolidWorks that helps with basic automation of parts, assemblies and drawings without using extensive automation and customisation features.
Solo – is one of the Paid version, that comes with intermediate level tools for creating and configuring custom products within SolidWorks.
What are the key difference between the two versions?
1. Cost and Accessibility
Xpress – Comes free with SolidWorks which makes it available to everybody with your SolidWorks license at no extra cost.
Solo – Advanced yet Paid version of DriveWorks which is to be purchased through authorised SolidWorks Resellers and provides more advanced features it can also enable you to complete more complex tasks.
2. Features and Functionality
Xpress – Comes with features like basic automation to create part variations, assemblies and drawings. This version comes with basic form design but it can’t be customised to meet your specific company needs. It however allows you to Drive dimensions, features, and custom properties as well as configurations which further helps in automating and controlling the design process in SolidWorks.
Solo – Unlike the Xpress version, Solo comes with Drive advanced features properties such as Hole Wizards – which allows users to automate the creation and modification of holes in your CAD models; Sheet Metal – allows you to automate sheet thickness, bends, flange types and more directly from DriveWorks, Weldments – automate and customise the design of structural components, such as frames or supports, within SOLIDWORKS.
3. User Interface and Project Management
The Xpress version comes with Basic form designer along with basic form controls such as text box, numeric text box, drop-down, spin button, check box. Additionally it also features Static validation and validation messages which help in ensuring the accuracy and appropriateness of user inputs during the design automation process.
Solo – Compared to Xpress, the Solo version features Dynamic Validation messages that helps users in real-time, by checking the user inputs as they are entered into the form input box, The Solo version features Multiple form creation with dynamic navigation along with Enhanced form controls such as check box group, hyperlink, label, list box, option group, picture box, slider and toggle switch. Additionally, the form designer comes with advanced capabilities which allows us to create custom forms to reflect your company branding. It also allows dynamic control of features like fonts and colours used on your form design enabling you to make visual changes faster.
DriveWorks Xpress and DriveWorks Pro
DriveWorks Xpress – Basic automation level tool that comes complimentary with SolidWorks, it helps with the basic automation of parts, assemblies and drawings without using extensive automation and customisation features.
DriveWorks Pro – Comes with the most advanced high level design automation, the Pro version comes with full suite of features suitable for extensive customisation, guided selling, and seamless integration across various devices and departments.
What are the key differences between the two versions?
1. Cost and Accessibility
Xpress – As mentioned above, DriveWorks Xpress comes complimentary with SolidWorks.
Pro – This is the most advanced version of Driveworks which needs to be purchased separately through an authorised SolidWorks Reseller.
2. Features and Functionality
Xpress – It comes with features like basic automation functions allowing you to create multiple parts variations, assemblies and drawings. In addition to this, the Xpress version lets users capture design knowledge, It however does not support extensive documentation and customisation options.
Pro – Known as the most advanced version of DriveWorks, this version comes with the most advanced automation features which provides users with the facility of creating intricate manufacturing drawings, quotes, and cover letters. Compared to DriveWorks Xpress, the Pro version supports Advanced form controls such as 3D preview, child specification list, clipboard button, data table, date picker, frame control, macro button, option button, etc.
3. User Interface and Project Management
Xpress – Being the basic version, DriveWorks Xpress comes with a simpler interface which is appropriate for basic automation tasks.
Pro – Comes with a more advanced interface which gives greater control to users for performing advanced automation tasks and helps in handling more detailed workflows. The highlight of this version is the DriveWorks Administrator which serves as a control centre for managing projects, user permissions, and configurations.
More advanced than Xpress version, this variant is used for more detailed projects that need more customisation along with detailed documentation. It helps users to generate detailed manufacturing drawings and manage more complex design variations and rules, providing greater control over assemblies, parts, and drawings.
Driveworks Solo and DriveWorks Pro
Solo – More advanced than Xpress version, this variant is used for more detailed projects that need more customisation along with detailed documentation. It helps users to generate detailed manufacturing drawings and manage more complex design variations and rules, providing greater control over assemblies, parts, and drawings.
Pro – DriveWorks Pro comes with full suite of features suitable for extensive customisation, guided selling, and seamless integration across various devices and departments.
What are the key differences between the two versions?
1. Cost and Accessibility
Solo – Less expensive as compared to DriveWorks Pro, DriveWorks Solo is best suited for small and medium sized businesses that need basic to medium automation functions and don’t need all the advanced features such as Web integration with Driveworks Live, autopilot capabilities or web requests capabilities to name a few.
Pro – The most expensive yet most advanced of all the DriveWorks version out there. This is best used by organisations in need of more advanced automation tasks and complex integration requirements.
2. Features and Functionality
Solo – Best suited for intermediate projects, helps with design automation and documentation generation within SOLIDWORKS. The Solo version also comes with Over 250 engineering, mathematical and scientific functions, is able to create custom formulas as reusable lambda functions, though it cannot work on 50 vector (3D), database and PDM functions. It also doesn’t support DriveWorks CPQ that allows users to Configure, Price or Quote.
Pro – Known as the most advanced version of DriveWorks, The Pro version comes with the ability of using web requests which enables users to, communicate directly with live websites, databases and suppliers information, the requested information can then be used to drive your model and documentation as required. Another added functionality of Pro is the ability to work with DriveWorks Autopilot which helps in automating the generation of custom product data and associated documentation for engineering, manufacturing, and sales. One more added feature that only DriveWorks supports is DriveWorks CPQ for Manufacturing. The DriveWorks CPQ DriveApp simplifies the setup and use of a Configure, Price, Quote solution, enabling quick access to its benefits for managing quotes and orders for configurable products
3.User Interface and Project Management
Solo – Comes with Project Designer application which is best suited for people who need to work without extensive project management tools. The Solo version comes with more features such as Multiple form creation with dynamic navigation, Support for responsive forms which allows re-positioning of controls when used on screens of different sizes, and much more.
Pro – Whereas DriveWorks Pro Comes with a more advanced interface which gives greater control to users for doing advanced automation tasks and helps in handling more detailed workflows. DriveWorks Pro is structured into individual software modules, each designed to address specific business needs. Also features Web styling with CSS which allows you to fully customise the form to reflect your current websites flow, match your branding or add modern effects to your form. It also comes with Project hierarchy that helps in organising complex design automation projects by establishing parent-child relationships among multiple projects. Integrating DriveWorks Pro with CRM, ERP, and PDM systems enables customer-specific pricing and delivery management, reducing costs and enhancing customer satisfaction.
The Pro version also features an Online Visual Sales Configurator with Driveworks Live, which allows users to configure products in real time from any device, enhancing customer engagement. With interactive 3D visualization and guided selling, it streamlines the sales process while ensuring accurate pricing and documentation.
Conclusion
Now that we know about the features and functionality of all DriveWorks Packages, lets see which version is useful to which users. Here is what we suggest –
1. DriveWorks Xpress
Best to be used by beginners who want to automate simple design tasks without any cost.
2. DriveWorks Solo
Best for small and medium sized businesses who are looking for robust configuration capabilities, empowering users to create custom forms and streamline your documentation flow.
3. DriveWorks Pro
Specially Designed for large organisations which require comprehensive automation and integration solutions which further helps users in advanced features for managing complex design and sales processes.
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The Difference between DriveWorks Xpress Solo and Pro
| Point of Difference | DriveWorks Xpress | DriveWorks Solo | DriveWorks Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows 10, Windows 11 (DriveWorks Desktop Applications) |  |  |  |
| Create a drawing for each part and assembly |  |  |  |
| Drive dimensions, features, and custom properties |  |  |  |
| Basic form controls (text box, numeric text box, drop-down, spin button, check box) |  |  |  |
| Static validation and validation messages |  |  |  |
| Reporting on model generation success or failure |  |  |  |
| Immediate generation of SOLIDWORKS models and drawings |  |  |  |
| Basic form designer |  |  |  |
| Drive color, material, and textures |  |  |  |
| Drive advanced feature properties (Hole Wizards, Sheet Metal, Weldments) |  |  |  |
| Drive instances |  |  |  |
| Replace components (with existing files or dynamically driven files) |  |  |  |
| Create additional model file formats (STEP, STL, PDF, DXF, JPEG, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Full control over new model file names and locations |  |  |  |
| Control multiple model sets from a single project |  |  |  |
| Create multiple drawings for each part and assembly |  |  |  |
| Dynamic options for list controls |  |  |  |
| Dynamic control of enable and visible properties of form controls |  |  |  |
| Dynamic control over fonts and colors |  |  |  |
| Dynamic validation and validation messages |  |  |  |
| Copy and paste form controls |  |  |  |
| Re-skin controls |  |  |  |
| Support for responsive forms (allows re-positioning of controls when used on screens of different sizes) |  |  |  |
| Full control over new drawing file names and locations |  |  |  |
| Create additional drawing file formats (PDF, DXF, DWG, JPEG, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Use tabular data to calculate rules |  |  |  |
| Copy and paste Excel data |  |  |  |
| Create internal data tables |  |  |  |
| Control drawing sheets (re-scale, rename, delete) |  |  |  |
| Control drawing views (re-scale, re-position, delete) |  |  |  |
| Control annotations (dimension text, notes, symbols, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Rules builder with function wizard and rule insight (rule breakdown and drill down, function assistance, syntax highlighting and function helper text) |  |  |  |
| Reusable rules (Variables) |  |  |  |
| Pervasive search/filtering capabilities |  |  |  |
| Rules commentary |  |  |  |
| Rules revisioning |  |  |  |
| Control dimension positions |  |  |  |
| Control custom properties, break lines, and layers |  |  |  |
| Create documents (such as sales quotes, purchase orders, bills of materials, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Built-in document templates |  |  |  |
| Expert form designer (resolution and control guides, control grouping, control property grid, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Over 250 engineering, mathematic and scientific functions |  |  |  |
| Create custom formulas as reusable lambda functions |  |  |  |
| Multiple form creation with dynamic navigation |  |  |  |
| Enhanced form controls (check box group, hyperlink, label, list box, option group, picture box, slider, toggle switch) |  |  |  |
| Real-time testing during form design |  |  |  |
| Rules analysis and breakdown |  |  |  |
| Import DriveWorksXpress projects |  |  |  |
| Underlying database – Microsoft SQL Server |  |  |  |
| Import DriveWorks Solo projects |  |  |  |
| All of the above plus Windows Server (2019, 2022) (DriveWorks Live web application) |  |  |  |
| Google Chrome 8+, Mozilla Firefox 4+, Microsoft Edge, Safari 5.1+ (configuring products in a browser through DriveWorks Live) |  |  |  |
| Cloud Hosting: Microsoft Azure, AWS |  |  |  |
| Run SOLIDWORKS model macros |  |  |  |
| Generative design – create new features on the fly (configurations, insert components, mates, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Run SOLIDWORKS drawing macros |  |  |  |
| Run additional tasks on the fly (auto balloon, arrange dimensions, rescale and position views, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Fully customizable document creation (from Word, Excel, XML, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Send HTML emails with attachments |  |  |  |
| Create PDF from markdown, manipulate existing PDF files |  |  |  |
| Create additional file formats (PDF, HTML, TXT, XML, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Real-time preview (On Demand) – updates model while specifying |  |  |  |
| Manual release of generation queue – allows multiple specifications to have their models generated from a queue |  |  |  |
| Automatic generation – unattended generation of outputs |  |  |  |
| Load balancing – distributes output generation over multiple machines |  |  |  |
| Priority processing – change the order that outputs are created based on rules |  |  |  |
| Output tagging – generate outputs on targeted machines or in specific locations |  |  |  |
| Advanced form controls (3D preview, child specification list, clipboard button, data table, date picker, frame control, macro button, option button, TinyMCE control, upload control, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Web styling with CSS |  |  |  |
| Project hierarchy (run a specification inside a specification to any level (For example a contract with multiple configurable line items) |  |  |  |
| Use dynamic data from ODBC Data sources in rules (SAP, Oracle, MySQL, SQLServer, etc.) |  |  |  |
| Export data to ODBC data sources (for example SAP, Oracle, MySQL, SQLServer) |  |  |  |
| Pull and push data dynamically to and from SQL Server databases using SQL or Windows authentication |  |  |  |
| Create group-level tabular data for use across an entire implementation |  |  |  |
| Create calculation tables where each cell can be calculated from other cells |  |  |  |
| Create rollup data tables – where information such a price or BOM quantities is rolled up through the project hierarchy |  |  |  |
| Web service integration – communicate with any web service or use DriveWorks as a web service |  |  |  |
| Over 50 vector (3D), database and PDM functions |  |  |  |
| Reporting on specification process success or failure |  |  |  |
| What-if scenarios (specification test mode) |  |  |  |
| Interactive step through of model generation |  |  |  |
| Rule profiling (rule-specific error debugging, performance solving and insight features) |  |  |  |
| Microsoft SQL Server fully supported |  |  |  |
| Security – users and teams |  |  |  |
| Security – Single Sign On (SSO) Active Directory compatibility |  |  |  |
| Granular permissions |  |  |  |
| Zero-conversion web access |  |  |  |
| Unattended model generation |  |  |  |
| Standalone user seats |  |  |  |
| Fully customizable workflow – (who, what and when) |  |  |  |
| Built-in apps providing ready-to-run functionality: - Dashboard – link to projects, access KPI’s - CPQ – full configure, price, quote (CPQ) solution - Scheduler – apply tasks to run on a schedule |  |  |  |
| Automatic processing of external data |  |  |  |
| Fully documented API with Software Development Kit |  |  |  |
| Plugins |  |  |  |
| SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional (automatic check-in of models, drawings and documents) |  |  |  |
| Salesforce |  |  |  |
| 3rd party system Integration through file import and export |  |  |  |
| 3rd party system Integration through SQL\ ODBC connections |  |  |  |
| 3rd party system Integration through web services |  |  |  |
| 3rd party system integration through a fully documented Application Programming Interface |  |  |  |
| Direct web access through the application |  |  |  |
| Run as a service through Internet Information Services (IIS) |  |  |  |
| Application mode – replicate desktop running directly on the web |  |  |  |
| Web theme with basic re-skinning |  |  |  |
| Choice of fully responsive skins |  |  |  |
| Integration Theme with Web API enabling full integration with existing websites |  |  |  |
| Session management – control license usage over the Internet |  |  |  |
| Image gallery – display image files as they are created |  |  |  |
| Configurable 3D in a browser |  |  |  |
| Virtual reality support |  |  |  |
| Real-time 3D text support |  |  |  |
| Create visually realistic appearances with physically based rendering (PBR) |  |  |  |
| Server-side rendering of web-optimized DriveWorks 3D files |  |  |  |
| Image fallback mode when no WebGL is on the client machine |  |  |  |
| Transparent image support |  |  |  |
