DriveWorksXpress Quick Tips: Starting a Project

DriveWorksXpress is a free design automation tool inside SOLIDWORKS. Quickly create variations of parts, assemblies and drawings to save time, reduce repetitive engineering tasks and minimise costly errors.

In this video, we go through the very first steps of getting started with your design automation project. We start by creating the database where your project data will be stored and continue by adding a model to the project.

Activate your free license to start automating. Within SOLIDWORKS, go to Tools, Xpress Products and click DriveWorksXpress. Click on the link and log in to MySolidWorks, copy the activation code and paste it into the product code box, click OK.

This will launch DriveWorksXpress in the task pane on the right.

Select Create/Change Database in the task pane, this will launch a Windows Explorer window. Within that window, choose where the database will be saved and give it a name. Notice that the database is a Microsoft Access Database file.

After clicking Open, click Browse in the task pane. You will now browse within another Windows Explorer window for your master model. A master model is the base for all other models. The dimensions and features of the master model will not change but they are what will be controlled in the variations DriveWorksXpress creates.