InFlow Technology

Rename SQL server

There are those rare times when you have a need to rename your server that is running SLQ server on it.

You may now know that once you change your server name.. that connecting to the SQL portion won't work particulairly from remote clients.

I have found a couple of pretty simple SQL commands that can help assist in this.

From Query window.. I typically set it to "Master".. run the following commands.

 

To return current name - 

     SELECT @@SERVERNAME AS 'Server Name' 

To return the old name -

    SELECT sys.servers AS 'Server Name'

To do the actual renaming -

    sp_dropserver "INFLOW-AEPGUOJH"

    GO

    sp_addserver "INFLOW-R19-1", local

    GO

***Restart SQL services

For more information please check out

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143799(SQL.90).aspx

By Scott Evans - InFlow Technologies - www.inflow-tech.com

SW Custom Properties API

I thought I would share a few code snippets relating to the reading and saving of SW custom properties using the API.

This is not something you can easily do a macro "recording" of.. as it is handled through a pop up window so it is not really captured in the recorded macro.

'To set up the environment.. you need to connect to the Part object and get the configuration name.

Set swapp = CreateObject("SldWorks.Application")

Set Part = swapp.ActiveDoc

sConfigName = Part.GetActiveConfiguration.Name

'Leave the sConfigName variable blank if you was to set the properties just of the part and not config specific

 

‘To read custom property info

txtDocNumber.Text = Part.GetCustomInfoValue(sConfigName, "PW_Number")

txtDesc1.Text = Part.GetCustomInfoValue(sConfigName, "PW_Description1")

'Deleting Custom Properties

retval = Part.DeleteCustomInfo2(sConfigName, "PW_Number")

retval = Part.DeleteCustomInfo2(sConfigName, "PW_Description1")

'Adding custom properties and summary info

retval = Part.AddCustomInfo3(sConfigName, "PW_Number", swCustomInfoText, UCase(txtDocNumber.Text))

retval = Part.AddCustomInfo3(sConfigName, "PW_Description1", swCustomInfoText, UCase(txtDesc1.Text))

Part.SummaryInfo(swSumInfoTitle) = txtDocNumber.Text

 

 

 

You might need to add in some API constants as well..

    

        Public Enum swCustomInfoType_e

        swCustomInfoUnknown = 0

        swCustomInfoText = 30   '  VT_LPSTR

        swCustomInfoDate = 64   '  VT_FILETIME

        swCustomInfoNumber = 3  '  VT_I4

        swCustomInfoYesOrNo = 11        '  VT_BOOL

        End Enum

 

Hope this gets you started.

 By Scott Evans - InFlow Technologies - www.inflow-tech.com

 

No one wants to buy PLM…Part 7 of an infinite series

 

I am a PLM sales person…and the title of this blog entry may imply that I am whining about my job. While I am not immune to the occasional emotional episode / mild tantrum, the title of this blog entry has a purpose. I assure you that this purpose has nothing to do with my emotional state.

Companies that contact InFlow are generally not looking to buy a PLM solution. Rather, they are looking to solve complex issues in their organization. Often times, the connection between the issue and the definition of PLM is somewhat cloudy. Therefore, my goal in this series is to discuss some of these challenges that InFlow has addressed with PLM and some of the measurable success that our customers have achieved.

"Can we attribute this to Yogi Berra and call it a day?"

I read an article last year that discussed the application of lean principles to the product development process.  In the article, the author called for rigorous standardization in order to create strategic flexibility.

If any of you have ever seen me present PLM solutions to your company, you may have heard me remark that I am not a smart man.  Reading the author’s statement further confirmed this sentiment.

As I read the sentence, then wrote it on a scratch pad seven times like an engaged 20-something with a new married last name, reality became very clear:  I needed to speak to an engineer.  His first response, a tribute to the former Yankee catcher:  “If you ask me anything I don't know, I'm not going to answer.”

On a serious note, my smarter cohort set me straight:  The author was referring to the creation of strict design standards in order to predictably alter existing designs and the process by which these designs are priced, ordered, and manufactured.

If you are a CAD guy, you may believe that you can accomplish this with configurations, such as those created in SolidWorks.  If you are on the operations side of the business, you may believe that a Knowledge-Based Engineering solution linked to your ERP and PLM systems may provide this capability.  If you are in a position of power to buy one of these solutions, please contact me at eric.gold@cati.com.

 

One of our customers recently implemented an interesting combination of solutions:  The customer chose a key aspect of their design which is a part of every project but varies in every instance.  For the sake of anonymity, let’s say the customer manufacturers hydraulic cylinders and they are constantly re-designing brackets.

Up until recently, the customer found itself re-designing brackets for every new project.  The engineer would then have to search their ERP system for brackets that they had previously built that were close to the newly designed bracket, then alter the design or create manufacturing instructions for the new design.

With the implementation of DriveWorks’ design automation solution, the engineering leader has created a series of master brackets and has written the rules for all feasible configurations for new brackets.  By offering these designs through a simple-to-use interface, a non-CAD user can specify design standards and allow DriveWorks to access SolidWorks to create all associated models and drawings.  The benefit:  Out customer has cut bracket design time by 70% and reduced overall product development cycles by 5%.

The moral of this story is that that the answer isn’t always clear…more employees, more hours, more sales people, it doesn’t always translate in to more efficiency.  Sometimes, it takes a creative, fresh approach to solve complex issues and improve on operational efficiencies.  As Yogi so graciously one said: “If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

Social networking sites connecting vendors and customers

"It seems that you can't turn a corner these days without hearing something about social media or Web 2.0. Recently, vendors and channel partners alike have been catching on to this trend, with large vendors such as Cisco and Oracle implementing social networking sites to communicate with their channel partners."

 

"Social media is changing the way vendors communicate with partners and the way partners communicate with customers. Partners have always been innovative in finding new ways to communicate with customers, according to Jim Moffat, a U.K.-based sales channels consultant to IT and telecom vendors. Social media is just the next step"

"Social networking also provides more opportunities for reaching small business partners and customers in a way that is more scalable than traditional information flow methods, according to Mark Sochan, CEO of Partnerpedia, a social networking portal for channel partners."

What are your thoughts?  Does this offer you advantages in working with your VARs?

 

For full article... see

http://searchnetworkingchannel.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid100_gci1361308,00.html

 

Best Regards,

 

Eric H. Gold

 

Check out this great review of the Objet Alaris30 3D Printer!

Anthony Lockwood of Desktop Engineering reviewed the Alaris30 and here's what he had to say: http://www.deskeng.com/articles/aaamkx.htm

Cultural Change - How some people view change

Just some fun stuff... Enjoy!

The Undocumented Documented "Document Manager DLL"

Huh, what was that? There is a little known feature of SolidWorks called the Document Manager Dll, and it is actually very well documented! A few years ago I ran across a posting about how programmers were able to extract custom property information from a SolidWorks part file without having SolidWorks open. As I looked into it further, I found that this was done by accessing a special dll named SwDocumentMgr.dll.

If you have SolidWorks installed, the actual dll can be found in the  C:\Program Files\Common Files\SolidWorks Shared directory.

So, what can you do with this little wonder object?
     - You can Get and Set the custom/configuration specific properties.
     - You can Get and Set references in an assembly file. (Very powerful, and scary!)
     - You can extract the parasolid (The solid model).
     - You can extract the preview Bitmap. Yes, that is pretty sweet!
     - You can extract eDrawing data.
     - You can extract data out into an xml format. (Basically, export xml of all sub parts and assemblies, etc.)

The documentation on its capabilities, API, and example code can be found in your SolidWorks directory. On my computer, it can be found here:
C:\Program Files\SolidWorks\api\swdocmgrapi.chm

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to use the dll. It is COM based, and simple to consume in your application.
If you are using vb6 or .Net, make sure you reference the SwDocumentMgr 200x type library.

Probably the biggest caveat to using the dll is that you need a key. Without the key the application will fail. I have read somewhere that any file after 2007 doesn't need a key. However, I haven't tried this. You can easily get a key though. Just email apisupport@solidworks.com. They will be glad to set you up with one. You may need to be an existing customer though.... not sure on that one.

With just a few lines of code, and more importantly, without starting (or even having) SolidWorks you can accomplish some very cool things!

' Get the Document Mgr application Object.
classfac = CreateObject("SwDocumentMgr.SwDMClassFactory")
DMapp = classfac.GetApplication("your_license_key")

' Get the document mypart.sldprt. Then grab the configurationmanager object for the default configuration
swDoc = DMapp.GetDocument("C:\MyPart.SLDPRT", swDmDocumentPart, True, e)
c = swDoc.ConfigurationManager.GetConfigurationByName("Default")

' Grab the custom property "MyDimension" for the Default configuration!
Debug.WriteLine(c.GetCustomProperty("MyDimension", e))

Contact Inflow Technology for more information.

SolidWorks Releases PDMWorks Enterprise 2008

This is a release  we at InFlow have been looking forward to for a while. SolidWorks Corporation today unveiled PDMWorks Enterprise 2008. SolidWorks has done a great job of listening to what is going on in the field and improving an already strong product. We  will be talking about the specifics as time goes on, but to give you a taste of whats new ...

Improved support of SolidWorks Configurations

This has gone from a weak spot for PDMWE to a true strength. The new version allows access to the structure of each configuration without launching SolidWorks. This information can also be used to create reports and BOMs.

Better control and management of Bills Of Materials(BOMs)

Multiple BOMs now be created for for an assembly. For example, you can have a separate BOM for as designed, as Manufactured, as Serviced, etc.

BOMs can be routed through work flow. This allows you to route them for approvals or distribution and more.

Using the PDMWE, multiple people can review and edit BOMs without installing SolidWorks. This allows non CAD users contribute to the BOM creation process.

BOMs can now include units of measure.

Improved Connectivity to External Systems

Many companies we talk to put integration to external business systems (ERP) high on the list of priorities. PDMWE 2008 makes a bigger piece of this task a configurable tool rather than a customization. Communication can be triggered manually, or via a work flow. Communication is done via XML files. This process is bi-directional. As an example, this capability can be used to send BOM information to your ERP system and get costing information pushed back into PDMWE.

Improved replication across multiple sites

PDMWorks Enterprise 2008 features faster, more powerful replication of design files across distributed organizations. It optionally replicates only the latest version of design files for faster, less processing-intensive downloads. New capabilities enable design engineers to easily find the current version of any part or project, eliminating confusion and errors.

Other improvements:

• Improved foreign language support
• Performance improvements

There is a lot more to discuss. More to come.

No one wants to buy PLM…Part 6 of an infinite series

I am a PLM sales person…and the title of this blog entry may imply that I am whining about my job. While I am not immune to the occasional emotional episode / mild tantrum, the title of this blog entry has a purpose. I assure you that this purpose has nothing to do with my emotional state.

Companies that contact InFlow are generally not looking to buy a PLM solution. Rather, they are looking to solve complex issues in their organization. Often times, the connection between the issue and the definition of PLM is somewhat cloudy. Therefore, my goal in this series is to discuss some of these challenges that InFlow has addressed with PLM and some of the measurable success that our customers have achieved.

"Change, for lack of a better word, is good"

Excuse the cheap Gordon Gecko rip-off...but who else would you expect a sales guy to quote?  Change in any organization can be viewed as a good thing.  That is, unless you are the poor sap that has to deal with all of this change.

ECRs, or Engineering Change Requests, are the way that many companies request product and design changes within the product development group.  ECRs are product development’s answer to the corporate suggestion box:  They allow anyone from any department to recommend a product change in a formal manner.

ECRs are encouraged.  Many companies believe that their people should have as much input into product line improvements as market research studies and customer demand.

One of InFlow’s customers encourages this type of input from its employees…they posted sheets outside of the VP of Engineering’s office that were filled out and dropped in his mailbox.  This encouragement was not ignored…the VP processed an average of 15 ECRs per week.  The unfortunate part of this story is the process by which these ECRs were…well, processed.  The VP had to complete 50 manual steps before beginning the approval of an ECR.  These tasks included attaching documentation to support the change, reviewing inventory levels in the ERP system, filling out his form that mirrored the employees’ request, and determining the approval route.

Recently, this InFlow customer implemented PDMWorks Enterprise, a Data Management solution developed by Solidworks Corporation. Working with the InFlow team, the customer formalized the ECR process, created submittal and approval forms inside the system, and has created an automated notification system that routes the forms to the proper approvers.  This was completed in a little less than 3 weeks, and the results have been fantastic:  All 50 manual steps have been eliminated from the ECR process.  Furthermore, the submittal process happens online and is much easier for employees to access and complete.  The result:  The customer is completing 3 times as many ECRs.  However, their backlog of active ECRs has decreased by over 50%.  The company is generating more ECRs and processing them faster and more efficiently.

Gordon Gecko also said, “Lunch is for wimps.”  Be that as it may, our VP of Engineering certainly now has more time to take a well deserved lunch.  Enjoy.

SW2007 API changes

Do you have code that uses Block or Symbol insertions?  If so, then this Blog is for you!

It seems that something has changed in the New SW2007 API.  We are working with SW to further understand what has changed.

In the past, we were able to simply insert Blocks fairly easy

     swModel.EditSketch
     Set BlockInstance1A = swModel.InsertBlock("c:\flat_coated.SLDBLK", 0.0254, 0.0254, 0, 0#)

Here is a sample bit of code that seems to work fine now for Blocks:

  Private Sub Command2_Click()
    Dim swModel As SldWorks.ModelDoc2
    Dim BlockFName1 As String
       
    'Attach to running instance of SolidWorks
    If swApp Is Nothing Then Set swApp = GetObject(, "SldWorks.Application")
    Set swModel = swApp.ActiveDoc
   
    Dim BlockInstance1A             As SldWorks.BlockInstance
    Dim swSketchBlockDef            As SldWorks.SketchBlockDefinition
    Dim swSketchMgr                 As SldWorks.SketchManager
    Dim swMathUtil                  As SldWorks.MathUtility
    Dim swMathPoint                 As SldWorks.MathPoint
    Dim nPt(2)                      As Double
    Dim vPt                         As Variant
    Dim vInstPt                     As Variant
 

    Set swSketchMgr = swModel.SketchManager
    Set swMathUtil = swApp.GetMathUtility
   'Define insertion point
    nPt(0) = 0.02
    nPt(1) = 0.02
    nPt(2) = 0#
    vPt = nPt
    Set swMathPoint = swMathUtil.CreatePoint(vPt)

    Set swSketchBlockDef = swSketchMgr.MakeSketchBlockFromFile(swMathPoint, "c:\flat_coated.SLDBLK", False, 1, 0)
    Set BlockInstance1A = swModel.SketchManager.InsertSketchBlockInstance(swSketchBlockDef, swMathPoint, 1, 0)
  End Sub

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In an exisitng bit of code for symbols, I was doing:

    BlockFName1 = "c:\CHECK.SLDSYM"
    swModel.InsertCustomSymbol BlockFName1

and all was working fine.  Now with SW2007 SP3, I can not get it to insert sybols at all and have been forced to switch everything to Blocks.

I hope you find this entry informative and it can help you avoid a couple of pit falls that I was not able to dodge!

Thanks,

Scott Evans

Please contact Inflow tehnology @ www.inflow-tech.com for more information