Cool design: Foster Refrigerator cuts prototyping costs by a third using SolidWorks solutions
By Manufacturing Business Technology Staff -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 9/26/2007 3:34:00 PM
One of the largest commercial refrigerator manufacturers in Europe, Foster Refrigerator, is using SolidWorks 3D CAD and COSMOS design analysis software to develop units that take a beating every day in industrial kitchens and other foodservice environments. The company cut development time by as much as 50 percent, and reduced prototyping costs by as much as 30 percent after standardizing on SolidWorks software.
For more than 40 years, Foster Refrigerator has set new benchmarks for blast chillers and freezers, refrigerated storage cabinets and counters, walk-in cold rooms, refrigeration systems, prep stations, ice makers, water coolers, and special refrigeration and temperature monitoring equipment for professional bakers. It standardized on SolidWorks to speed new product design and reduce costs for the hundreds of different customized models it sells.
'Our products don't get much respect in the average restaurant kitchen,' says Andrew Hodges, senior development engineer at Foster, 'so we have to make sure they're durable, that they perform as we say they will, and that they meet the unique space and temperature needs for every customer. SolidWorks gives us the accurate design visualization, sheet metal capabilities, and table-driven modeling to constantly improve our products so they continue to perform to our customers' demanding expectations.'
Using SolidWorks, Foster cut sheet metal design time in half and reduced the number of prototypes it builds from three to one for most every project. The software also makes it easy for Foster to generate the geometry and other data needed for manufacturing to accelerate production and reduce the typical back-and-forth between designers and manufacturing engineers. 'SolidWorks paid for itself in less than two years. That ROI, along with a rich feature set, is why we chose SolidWorks after an intense evaluation,' says Hodges.
Foster uses COSMOSXpress design analysis tool to test the load strength of brackets and similar features, and SolidWorks PDMWorks Workgroup product data management software to securely store all design information, maintain version control, and allow multiple engineers to work concurrently on one design.
