19 % increase despite global exceptional situation: CADENAS records 45 million CAD models Downloads in March

In the actual special situation, 3D CAD & BIM models of components are in greater demand than ever before, as the newly established download record shows: In March 2020, 45,706,094 CAD model downloads (=sales contacts) from the 3D CAD & BIM product catalogs of well-known manufacturers were achieved for the first time worldwide. This represents an increase of more than 19 % compared to the previous month of February and even 46 % within one year compared to March 2019. "Especially in the current situation we realize how important it is for companies to be well positioned digitally. Despite the current economic obstacles, it is clear that the demand for intelligent engineering data has remained unchanged or even increased," says Jürgen Heimbach, CEO of CADENAS. "This makes it clear that companies can no longer avoid the issue of digitalization if they want to remain competitive in the long term."

The number of 3D CAD downloads is also increasing thanks to the innovative visual search engine for 3D manufacturer components 3DfindIT.com and the 3D CAD models download portal PARTcommunity, both developed by CADENAS.

For the ideal marketing of their components, many manufacturers have so far relied on traditional marketing instruments such as print advertising, successful trade fair appearances and the customer contacts made there. Trade fair presentations have always been very expensive and only partially effective in generating sales leads and boosting actual component sales. In the current time of crisis with cancelled trade fairs and events, it is time to rethink the proven ways of marketing and to cleverly invest the existing budget for promising digitalization strategies.

"In order to develop the right digitization strategy, companies must first ask themselves who has a decisive influence on the choice of their product," says Jürgen Heimbach. "Especially in the fields of mechanical and electrical engineering, this will be engineers or planners. They are the key drivers for the procurement of technical components. That is why it is important to adjust the digital offer to their needs in the best possible way". Once the component has been downloaded as a digital twin and placed in the design department, everything follows its defined path: the information is transferred from the CAD or PLM system to the bill of materials, which is then used by the buyer within the ERP system or merchandise management system as the basis for his procurement.

This is where the 3D CAD product catalogs of CADENAS come in: Component manufacturers have the possibility to offer intelligent engineering data of their products in more than 150 CAD & BIM formats for free download, just as customers and interested parties need them for their designs and planning. A study shows that 87% of downloaded components are subsequently purchased and used in products.

In addition, the product data of well-known manufacturers are automatically offered on digital platforms such as www.3DfindIT.com or www.PARTcommunity.com with their millions of users from the fields of mechanical engineering, plant engineering, electrical engineering and architecture.

Here you can find out more about how to invest your budget cleverly in times of crisis and thus secure your competitiveness in the future.