SolidWorks Inspection
Inspection management software
Environmental, quality and safety management software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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What is SolidWorks Inspection
SOLIDWORKS Inspection is a CAD-based inspection documentation tool used to create ballooned drawings and inspection reports from SOLIDWORKS models and 2D drawings (including PDFs and TIFFs). It supports first article inspection (FAI) and in-process inspection planning by extracting dimensions and characteristics into structured forms such as Excel-based reports. The product is primarily used by manufacturing and quality teams that need to standardize inspection documentation tied to engineering design data. It is typically deployed as a desktop application within organizations already using the SOLIDWORKS design ecosystem.
Tight SOLIDWORKS design integration
The tool works directly with SOLIDWORKS parts and drawings, which reduces manual re-entry of characteristics from CAD into inspection documents. It supports ballooning and characteristic extraction that stays aligned with drawing/model revisions when used within the same workflow. This CAD-centric approach fits organizations where engineering and quality share SOLIDWORKS data as the system of record. It can be more efficient than general-purpose mobile form tools when the inspection plan is driven by CAD dimensions.
Automated ballooning and reporting
SOLIDWORKS Inspection automates creation of numbered balloons and populates inspection reports from extracted dimensions and notes. It outputs common deliverables (e.g., Excel-based reports) that many suppliers and customers accept for FAI packages. This reduces time spent formatting documents and helps standardize report structure across parts. The focus on drawing/model-derived characteristics differentiates it from generic inspection checklist builders.
Supports PDF and 2D workflows
Beyond native SOLIDWORKS drawings, it can work with 2D sources such as PDFs and image files, enabling use when CAD is not available to the inspector. This helps teams that receive supplier drawings or legacy documentation in non-native formats. It provides a consistent ballooning and characteristic capture process across mixed document types. That flexibility can reduce reliance on separate markup tools for 2D inspection packages.
Not a full QMS/EHS suite
Despite being used in quality processes, the product is not designed as an end-to-end quality or EHS management system with modules for audits, incidents, corrective actions, training, or risk management. Organizations typically need additional systems to manage CAPA workflows, approvals, and compliance records. It focuses on inspection documentation rather than enterprise quality governance. Buyers evaluating it under EHS/QMS categories may find functional gaps.
Desktop-centric, limited field mobility
The product is primarily oriented to office/engineering desktops rather than mobile-first data capture on the shop floor. Compared with mobile form platforms, it is less suited to offline field inspections, device-based media capture, and rapid deployment of multi-step workflows across distributed teams. Integrations for real-time field submission and routing may require additional tooling. This can limit adoption where inspections are performed primarily on mobile devices.
Best fit within SOLIDWORKS ecosystem
Value is highest when organizations already use SOLIDWORKS CAD and related data management practices. Teams using other CAD systems or needing CAD-agnostic inspection planning may face extra conversion steps or reduced automation benefits. Licensing and deployment typically align with the SOLIDWORKS product stack, which can influence total cost and IT standardization decisions. Cross-platform standardization may be harder in heterogeneous engineering environments.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| SOLIDWORKS Inspection Standard | Price not published on SOLIDWORKS official site — Request a quote / Buy via reseller | First-article & in-process inspection; standalone app + SOLIDWORKS add-in; OCR support; automatic ballooning; export to PDF/Excel; integrates with PDM. |
| SOLIDWORKS Inspection Professional | Price not published on SOLIDWORKS official site — Request a quote / Buy via reseller | Extends Standard with manual/semi-automatic measured-value entry, CMM import, direct 2D/3D CAD workflows and advanced inspection features. |
Seller details
Dassault Systèmes SE
Vélizy-Villacoublay, France
1981
Public
https://www.3ds.com/
https://x.com/3DS
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dassaultsystemes/
