More and more companies are designing products in 3D and using rich 3D CAD data across the entire product lifecycle, from concept to design, simulation, manufacturing, documentation and maintenance.  While 3D CAD data is incredibly powerful, making full use of it throughout your organization is easier said than done.  

To solve these issues, organizations turn to a wide range of applications from third-party vendors to better leverage CAD data at one or multiple stages of their workflows, yet the results are often disappointing. Licensing many “one-size-fits-all” applications from various vendors can cause: 

• Disconnected Data – different formats, requiring manual entry and conversions 

• Constant, Unfulfilled Feature Requests – waiting for each application to be tailored to your needs, often taking months if it happens at all 

• Unhelpful New Releases – version issues that break workflows without adding the functionality you actually need. 

• Ever-Increasing Prices 

• Compatibility Issues – even staying with a version you're happy with requires constant testing 

Unfortunately, the applications you licensed to unlock your data end up slowing down workflows and costing a fortune.  

The solution for many organizations is to build or expand their own 3D applications, perfectly tailored to their needs and customizable on the fly, with complete control over the costs. Fortunately, it has never been easier to develop your own 3D applications in-house, even with smaller developer teams and limited resources. Technologies like Vibe Coding and other AI powered techniques make building applications with preexisting industrial tools easier than ever. The key is to leverage market-tested Software Development Toolkits (SDKs) from trusted vendors like Tech Soft 3D. 

Here are 10 examples of internal applications or application features you can build instead of buy. We discuss how they can benefit your workflows and the tools that exist that enable you to access proven functionality without developing from scratch. 

Application/Feature 1: 3D CAD Data Exchange Throughout the Organization 

Taking native data from applications such as CATIA, NX, Creo, or SOLIDWORKS and converting it into neutral formats like STEP for internal use is an extremely common. As a result, most companies that work with 3D data already have some workflows involving CAD data exchange. Although many viewers and CAD systems can read and write some range of formats, these can be insufficient for your needs.  

Tech Soft 3D toolkits can provide a fully customizable CAD data conversion component to any application that works with 3D data. HOOPS Exchange supports CAD data access for 30+ of the most popular formats with unmatched speed and accuracy; the SDK allows you to build an internal application adaptable to any workflow and use case, rather than waiting on a vendor's roadmap to catch up to yours.  

Since the toolkit is licensed company-wide, you can distribute your application to every employee and partner company at no additional cost. From this foundation, custom software can convert CAD data into a specific format like STEP without needing licenses from the original CAD vendors, with support for automatic batch conversion across multiple datasets.   

HOOPS Exchange ships with a sample application called "ImportExport." Users can launch it from a Windows or Linux command prompt with arguments like “Shaft.CATPart” and “Shaft.STEP”, and the executable converts the CAD data from CATIA to STEP. 

The sample application “ImportExport” can be edited and compiled f you need specific behavior before or after conversion. The sample offers a compact Main function, about a page long, using three main API calls: sImport and sExport define the input and output files, and “Convert” is called with sImport as the first argument and sExport as the second.  

Application/Feature 2: A 3D CAD Web Viewer 

Any organization working with 3D data will benefit from a powerful visualization tool, and a web-native 3D CAD viewer allows you to display native data from CATIA, NX, Creo, SOLIDWORKS, and others directly in a browser.  

When done well, a CAD viewer application or feature allows teams to access the latest versions of 3D data as soon as it's available, with no need to convert it to an intermediate format or save it elsewhere first. By building your own application with a web viewer, you ensure full control over the development process, features, data, and costs, no matter which parts of the company will use it.  

HOOPS Visualize for Web is Tech Soft 3D’s graphics engine that enables you to integrate this functionality into internal applications without building it from scratch. From this foundation, you can add and customize specific features as needed, like complex dimension measurement tools, rather than requesting them from a vendor and waiting.  

HOOPS Visualize for Web includes a "Quick Start" folder so you can try the features immediately. It's a client-server system, meaning CAD processing generally happens on the server, and results are viewed on the client. The Quick Start folder includes a simple start_server.bat script to spin up a local server on your PC, simulating a client-server environment. Once the server is running, you can view a CAD part or assembly file just by dragging and dropping it onto convert.bat. 

From there, you can view your native CAD data right in a browser, complete with features like the model tree, selection, and cutting planes. Getting this far requires no programming, with the toolkit providing comprehensive engineering and manufacturing features right out of the box. From here, you and your development team can extend it further with JavaScript to build the additional functionality specific to your needs.  

If you are interested in the details of “Quick start”, refer to the following document: 

https://docs.techsoft3d.com/hoops/visualize-web/overview/quickstart.html 

Application/Feature 3: 3D Viewing Windows Within Existing Business Applications 

There are many circumstances where you may not need a fully-fledged 3D application, but still want teams to be able to quickly view CAD models. A purchasing agent, for example, placing an order with a supplier based on a part number, may get real value from a quick look at the 3D shape. Native CAD data can't be read directly inside most business applications, but it can be converted to HTML and embedded instead. This allows teams to check a 3D shape directly in their browser without relying on external CAD applications. 

Organizations that use HOOPS Exchange as a foundation to manage CAD data access in their internal applications can take advantage of the export function to turn their 3D models into a file usable by many common business applications.  

You see this for yourself in the “Export 3D to HTML” sample application to export HTML from a native CAD file. Perform this conversion from the command line with a compiled executable. The result displays right in the browser (like displayed below), and unlike the client-server setup for a 3D CAD Web viewer like we just described, this works as a standalone HTML file, making it easy to drop 3D views into existing business systems.  

Check out our documentation for details of the “3D to HTML” sample application included in HOOPS Exchange. 

https://docs.techsoft3d.com/hoops/exchange/sample_codes.html#sample-export3dtohtml 

Alternatively, you can convert a file to glTF and embed it directly in Word or PowerPoint. In PowerPoint, select Insert > 3D Models and choose the glTF file. Your model is then usable in 3D right inside a slide. 

Application/Feature 4: Exporting to 3D PDF for Internal and External Communication 

While 3D viewing in business software is incredibly useful, sometimes you need to share data in a linked to additional data like drawings, tables, notes, and metadata . Applications built with HOOPS Exchange can export to 3D PDF, allowing 3D content to be added to customer quotes, instruction manuals, and more.  

3D PDF is a well-established, secure document format that non-engineers can use to get the benefits of 3D visualization without additional training in complex, engineer-focused applications. The format can be opened for free with Adobe Acrobat Reader, allowing for near-universal access no matter the technical experience of the user. 

You can test out this format with your own data by the sample application “manufacturing-mbe.” This includes a view carousel for navigating preset 3D views, and standard zoom controls for navigation the 3D model, all using the Acrobat Reader, software most people already have installed. 

Check out this sample application for details with the following documentation. 

https://docs.techsoft3d.com/hoops/exchange/sample_codes.html#manufacturing-mbe 

3D PDF is also extremely secure, allowing you to provide a 3D model of your model with sensitive manufacturable CAD data that is the original CAD file.  

You can learn more about the common misconceptions about 3D PDF and what they can actually do in our blog post “5 Common Myths About 3D PDF”. 

Application/Feature 5: Complete 3D CAD Data Extraction 

3D CAD models contain a huge amount of information, including geometry, topology, meshes, attributes (like body names and colors), tree hierarchies, dimension and tolerance annotations, feature trees, assembly trees, constraints, and more.  

To take advantage of the richness of CAD data, you need software with the ability to quickly extract the data without corruption or loss. Building a bespoke application for your organization allows the extraction logic to match exactly the subset of data your workflow needs.  

While we discussed broad CAD data access earlier, HOOPS Exchange more completely preserves the vital information present in 3D data formats.  

HOOPS Exchange allows you to output key information from raw CAD data into XML using the PRC2XML sample included in the toolkit. You can launch this from the same command prompt as before: The sample takes two command line parameters, the input file for conversion and the outputXML filename. After running, the resulting XML file shows everything contained in the CAD data. 

Since this will include complete geometric data, the files can get large fast. Recently, a partner built a Visual Basic system that could read geometry and fully reconstruct the model, including faces and edges, from this XML. Most cases only need a subset of this information, such as tree structure, attributes, or feature information, and XML makes it straightforward to extract exactly what you need.  

No matter the level of detail needed, HOOPS Exchange provides the foundation for an internal application that can extract all the vital information that makes CAD data so useful across the organization.  

For PRC2XML, check out our documentation for details below. 

https://docs.techsoft3d.com/hoops/exchange/sample_codes.html#sample-prc-to-xml 

Application/Feature 6: Extracting 3D CAD Data for AI 

HOOPS Exchange can extract key information from CAD data, including its bounding box, volume, surface area, material properties, and more, using the same PRC2XML tool described above. By storing this data in an in-house database, you can search for similar CAD models from past design and manufacturing projects.  

When discussing application development in today’s world, no conversation is complete without touching on the potential usage of artificial intelligence. For teams wanting to go further and build machine learning workflows on top of 3D CAD data, not just metadata and analytics, we offer a separate product, HOOPS AI. We have a separate blog with a full breakdown, titled “Why CAD Data is the Hardest Part of Bringing AI to Manufacturing Applications”. 

Application/Feature 7: Factory Layout Planning 

Just as every factory is different, so are the applications to serve the planning process, which often makes off-the-shelf layout tools a poor fit. Creating a custom planning tool built for your specific facility, equipment, and workflows comes with many benefits, and HOOPS Exchange is perfectly suited to provide the foundation for that application. 

HOOPS Exchange supports architectural formats including Autodesk Revit, DGN, IFC, and Navisworks, allowing you to place machinery within a factory building model to evaluate layouts. On the shop floor, workers can access relevant models (such as Revit or IFC) on tablets or smartphones, with full access to all the supporting information they may need. 

In our lab at lab.techsoft3d.com, we built a "large factory with robots" example that imports the factory structure, recreates the HVAC systems, and positions machine tools and robots throughout. You can walk through the factory to check conditions, assess workflow efficiency, and review robot movements. The resources are available on GitHub. 

Application/Feature 8: Validating Virtual Environments (Metaverse/XR) 

HOOPS Exchange also supports the development of applications seeking to take advantage of virtual environments by supporting the key formats for these workflows, such as USD and FBX. From this foundation, your team can build and validate virtual environments, whether for metaverse platforms like NVIDIA Omniverse or for XR devices, rather than waiting for a specific vendor to support the platform you've chosen. The workflow is simple: import 3D CAD data, export it to USD, then run simulations in the metaverse space.  

Developing with HOOPS Exchange's flexible support for multiple CAD formats gives you the freedom to build for the environment you want, not the one a single vendor happens to support. Complete control over the application allows you to stay on the cutting edge of virtual environment technology without waiting around for (and paying) a third party to attempt to customize their tool to your needs.  

Application/Feature 9: Auxiliary Viewers for PLM and PDM Systems 

The tools for importing, rendering, and displaying attributes on 3D CAD data covered above can be built easily using HOOPS Exchange and HOOPS Visualize for Web, with the building blocks working whether you're building for internal use or for customers.  

Integrating these into a PLM system allows teams to get more out of their existing PLM platform without waiting on the vendor to build the specific view or workflow you need. Tech Soft 3D partners, including Oracle and Aras, have built exactly this kind of auxiliary viewer into their own applications using HOOPS toolkits, demonstrating their ability to support work at large production scales.  

Because Tech Soft 3D toolkits are built with flexibility in mind and refined with decades of market experience, developers can often easily integrate their applications with their PLM and PDM systems. 

Application/Feature 10: Creating Assembly & Work Instructions & Procedures 

Organizations often seek to build in-house applications to generate assembly and work instructions, including for procedures too complex to manage with vendor-provided software. This software takes into account a company’s specific needs and automates where possible, offering a significant boost to operational efficiency. 

A good example application would be one developed by a company that manufactures railroad vehicles. The assembly process is complex and potentially dangerous, yet virtually identical for many of their products. By creating digital work notes that leverage the CAD model itself to instruct assembly, even less experienced workers can perform the task quickly and without slowdowns. 

HOOPS Exchange and HOOPS Visualize allow you to quickly develop an internal application to create assembly and work procedures specific to your industry.  

In this demo application, built by our team with input from professional technical documentation experts, HOOPS Exchange is used to import data from many complex components of a car door assembly into a lightweight, streaming format. HOOPS Visualize then allows for animated visualization, with interactive part details and pricing displayed when needed.  

Out-of-the-box tools like the Assembly creator can allow your application to create custom animated work instructions for assembly, disassembly, and other work instruction-related tasks.  

Organizations can also take advantage of the 3D PDF export capabilities in HOOPS Exchange to provide animated 3D procedures both internally and with external partners.  

Components Make Creating Internal Applications More Feasible Than Ever 

To summarize, there are tons of circumstances where organizations may benefit from developing their own, customized applications for internal use rather than relying on a vendor’s software. While labor shortages and the inherent complexity of building your own tools may seem daunting, Software Development Kits make it possible to create powerful applications more easily than ever. 

From CAD data access and visualization tools to CAE and integrating AI, HOOPS toolkits can provide powerful features far more easily than developing from scratch. To learn more about what these components can do for you, get in touch.