How to Work Faster in SolidWorks

A well-structured SolidWorks model can make a major difference in engineering productivity, but the model itself is only part of the workflow. Engineers also spend a significant amount of time interacting with the software: selecting commands, navigating menus, rotating models, entering information, exporting files, and performing repetitive administrative tasks.

These activities may seem insignificant when considered individually. Moving a mouse across the screen to access a command might take only a second or two. Opening a dialog box and entering a few pieces of information might take less than a minute. However, when those actions are repeated throughout an eight-hour workday, they can consume a surprising amount of engineering time.

The good news is that many of these inefficiencies can be addressed without changing the way the product is designed. SolidWorks provides several tools for reducing this type of friction, and modern AI tools have also made it easier to automate repetitive tasks.

Customize Your Keyboard Shortcuts

SolidWorks has many built-in keyboard shortcuts, and learning the commands you use most frequently is one of the easiest ways to reduce unnecessary mouse movement.

However, the real productivity improvement comes from customizing the software around your own workflow. Different engineers use SolidWorks in very different ways. A mold designer, machine designer, and product development engineer may have completely different groups of commands that they use throughout the day.

Take some time to identify the commands you use repeatedly and make those commands easy to access. The goal is not to memorize every shortcut available in SolidWorks. Instead, focus on the commands that appear frequently in your normal workflow.

The S key shortcut menu is particularly useful for this. Pressing S brings up a customizable menu near your cursor, allowing you to access commonly used commands without moving your mouse to the CommandManager or another area of the screen.

Mouse gestures provide another way to access commands quickly. Once they become familiar, a simple directional movement can replace the process of moving the cursor to a toolbar and searching for the appropriate command.

This may seem like a minor improvement, but reducing interruptions can have a significant effect over the course of a workday. The less often you have to stop your thought process to search for a command, the more of your attention can remain focused on the engineering problem.

Use a 3D Mouse for Model Navigation

A 3D mouse is another useful tool for anyone who spends several hours a day working in CAD. Although the programmable buttons provide another way to access shortcuts, the biggest advantage is the control it gives you over model navigation.

With a traditional mouse, rotating a 3D model typically requires a combination of clicks, drags, and scroll-wheel movements. It is common to rotate the model, realize that the view is not quite right, rotate it again, zoom in, zoom out, and repeat the process until the desired orientation is achieved.

A 3D mouse provides direct control over the model view. The controller allows you to rotate, pan, and zoom the model simultaneously, making it possible to move directly to the view you want.

There is a learning curve. During the first few sessions, a 3D mouse may actually make you less efficient because you are learning a new control system. Once the movements become intuitive, however, model navigation can become much faster.

I personally use the SpaceMouse Pro from 3Dconnexion. It is not sponsored; it is simply the model I prefer.

The advantage is particularly noticeable when working with complex assemblies or parts where you frequently need to inspect features from different directions. Instead of thinking about the mechanics of rotating the model, you can focus on what you are trying to see.

The programmable buttons are also useful for adding another layer of shortcuts to your workflow.

Automate Repetitive Tasks With Macros

Some SolidWorks tasks are repetitive enough that they should not require much human involvement at all.

If you repeatedly perform the same sequence of commands, it is worth asking whether that process can be automated. SolidWorks macros can automate many repetitive operations, including tasks related to file management, exporting, properties, and other aspects of the CAD workflow.

Creating macros traditionally required some programming knowledge, which made them inaccessible to many engineers. AI tools have changed that equation. Modern AI systems can generate executable code based on a plain-English description of what you want the macro to accomplish.

The resulting code still needs to be tested and reviewed, particularly when it interacts with engineering files or revision-controlled data. However, AI can significantly reduce the amount of programming knowledge required to create useful automation.

I recently created a SolidWorks macro for saving models as STEP files. The normal process required opening the Save As dialog, selecting the appropriate location, choosing the STEP format, entering the correct file name, and verifying that the appropriate revision was included.

The macro automates that process. It pulls the model name and revision information into the file name, selects the appropriate save location and STEP format, and can roll the revision when necessary.

The time savings are useful, but there is another benefit that is arguably more important: the macro provides an additional quality check.

Instead of relying entirely on the engineer to remember whether the correct revision was entered, the automation follows the established naming and revision rules. The process therefore becomes more consistent while also becoming faster.

This is an important consideration when looking for automation opportunities. The question should not simply be, “Can I save time?” It should also be, “Can I reduce the opportunity for human error?”

Look for Repetitive Work Throughout the Workflow

Once you start looking for automation opportunities, you may find them in places that initially seem unrelated to CAD modeling.

You may repeatedly export the same file formats, create the same drawing views, rename files, enter the same custom properties, create similar configurations, or perform the same sequence of operations whenever a design reaches a particular stage.

Not every repetitive task needs to become a macro. A shortcut may be a better solution for one problem, while a template or design standard may be more appropriate for another.

The important thing is to recognize repetitive work as an opportunity to improve the process.

A useful question is: What am I doing repeatedly that does not require an engineering decision?

If a task does not require engineering judgment, there is a good chance that some portion of it can be standardized or automated.

Improve the Workflow Instead of Just Individual Commands

It is easy to focus on individual SolidWorks commands when looking for productivity improvements. Learning a faster way to create a feature can certainly help, but the largest gains often come from looking at the entire workflow.

For example, suppose a task requires ten separate actions. Learning a shortcut might eliminate two of those actions. That is useful, but changing the overall workflow might eliminate eight.

This is why shortcuts, 3D mice, macros, and modeling strategies work best when considered together.

A shortcut reduces the time required to execute a command. A 3D mouse reduces the time required to navigate to the geometry. A macro eliminates repetitive steps. A well-structured model may eliminate the need to perform those steps in the first place.

The most effective improvements often come from combining several small changes.

Don’t Automate a Bad Process

There is one important caution when implementing automation: make sure the underlying process makes sense before automating it.

Automating an inefficient process simply allows you to perform that inefficient process faster.

Before writing a macro, ask whether the task could be eliminated through a better model structure, template, design standard, or workflow.

For example, if you repeatedly have to correct the same information in a file, the best solution might not be a macro that fixes it automatically. It might be better to change the process that creates the incorrect information in the first place.

Automation is most effective when it is part of a broader effort to improve the workflow rather than simply adding software on top of an inefficient process.

Make the Computer Work for You

Engineering time is valuable, and it is better spent making decisions than performing repetitive computer operations.

SolidWorks is capable of doing a great deal of the repetitive work for you, but it requires some thought to configure the software around your own workflow.

Customize the shortcuts for the commands you use most often. Take advantage of the S key menu and mouse gestures. Consider a 3D mouse if you spend significant time navigating models. Use macros for repetitive tasks and look for opportunities to use AI to help create simple automation.

Most importantly, look beyond the individual command. The biggest productivity improvements often come from changing the process itself.

A faster engineer is not necessarily the person who can execute every SolidWorks command the fastest. More often, it is the engineer who has designed a workflow that requires fewer unnecessary commands in the first place.