Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Cologne, igus is a leading manufacturer of high-performance motion plastics. The company specializes in the development of innovative, lubrication-free polymer products — from energy chains and cables to plain bearings, lead screw technology, robotics, and intelligent sensors. With 5,200 employees across 35 global locations, igus supports customers in optimizing processes and reducing costs. With 5,200 employees across 35 global locations, igus supports customers in optimizing processes and reducing costs.
CLIENT: igus
INDUSTRY: Plastic bearing technology, energy chains, and specialized cables
PROJECT: CAD output including dimensioned drawings in the igus drylin® lead screw configurator
SOLUTIONS: CAD publishing
TECHNOLOGIES: CADClick®
igus, einer der ersten Kunden der KiM (heute Teil der 4PACE), arbeitet seit fast 25 Jahren As one of the earliest partners of KiM (now part of 4PACE), igus has successfully collaborated with us for nearly 25 years. Together, we have made numerous engineering-relevant products from the igus portfolio available as CAD data. In an effort to continuously streamline construction workflows and enhance customer-centricity, igus has developed various product configurators over the years — including the drylin® lead screw configurator.The wide range of customization options at the screw ends and the need to accommodate different application scenarios significantly increased product complexity. Capturing this complexity in clear, detailed 2D dimensioned drawings posed a major challenge. The previous manual process involved several knowledge holders and often proved time-consuming: customer inquiries were passed from technical sales to engineering, where drawings were manually created and forwarded to manufacturing. This workflow often resulted in customers waiting several weeks to receive their specifications. wurden an die Konstruktion weitergeleitet, die die Maßblätter händisch erstellte und an die Fertigung übergab. Dieser aufwändige Ablauf führte häufig dazu, dass Kunden mehrere Wochen auf ihre Bemaßungen warten mussten.
Today, the entire process — from configuration to dimensioned drawing — is fully automated thanks to igus’ in-house configurator and slim CAD data architecture. Customers can configure their lead screws online, instantly receive precise, automatically generated drawings, a parametric 3D model, and a personalized quote. Once the order is placed, all data is transmitted digitally — without media discontinuities — directly into manufacturing. This not only ensures customer satisfaction but also significantly relieves pressure on both the design and sales teams.
To further increase efficiency in the configuration process, the product configurator calls up a corresponding CAD model at the end and outputs a CAD file as a 3D step or dimension sheet. The logic required for this is imported from the configurator via an interface. The 3D model and the dimension sheet are generated in the background based on questions and answers. The former receives basic information; on the one hand about the geometry, such as diameter and length, but also to set dimensions and transfer texts. The basis for the CAD output is CADClick®.
