[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":1101},["ShallowReactive",2],{"{\"resolve_relations\":\"reference.source\",\"version\":\"published\"}resources/blog/build-or-buy-successful-manufacturers-told-us-why-they-do-both":3},{"data":4,"headers":1077},{"story":5,"cv":1058,"rels":1059,"links":1076},{"name":6,"created_at":7,"published_at":8,"updated_at":9,"id":10,"uuid":11,"content":12,"slug":1049,"full_slug":1050,"sort_by_date":1051,"position":1052,"tag_list":1053,"is_startpage":435,"parent_id":1054,"meta_data":24,"group_id":1055,"first_published_at":1056,"release_id":24,"lang":914,"path":24,"alternates":1057,"default_full_slug":24,"translated_slugs":24},"Build OR Buy: Successful Manufacturers Told Us Why They Do Both  ","2026-10-29T13:39:44.741Z","2026-10-29T14:34:31.866Z","2026-10-29T14:34:31.948Z",235895131200227,"674fd280-3dcf-4908-8883-e692bf0398e1",{"_uid":13,"body":14,"date":855,"fold":856,"unit":945,"intro":946,"title":954,"author":955,"sidebar":956,"category":1029,"end_date":17,"location":17,"metadata":1036,"component":1039,"thumbnail":1040,"past_event":435,"disable_toc":435,"hide_author":435,"toc_entries":1044,"english_only":435,"hide_sidebar":435,"redirect_url":17,"hide_from_feed":435,"show_date_range":435,"is_external_page":435,"open_graph_image":1045,"external_page_url":17,"include_open_graph":385,"block_search_engines":435},"015c4825-95f3-4f19-abd8-1dcd8091b8a2",[15,19,386,444,446,612,645,647,793,795,809,818,849],{"_uid":16,"height":17,"component":18},"fc3725b4-7fbc-4e55-9c67-90291430fe64","","element-spacer",{"_uid":20,"body":21,"alignment":17,"component":384,"is_full_width":385},"d6494edd-4bb7-4c9f-ba48-c2d26b77a7c2",{"type":22,"attrs":23,"content":25},"doc",{"backgroundColor":24},null,[26,68,77,97,105,118,205,221,229,237,256,264,272,280,288,300,312,324,336,350,358],{"type":27,"attrs":28,"content":29},"paragraph",{"textAlign":24},[30,37,51,57,63],{"text":31,"type":32,"marks":33},"In this blog series, we have previewed and examined our original research report, ","text",[34],{"type":35,"attrs":36},"textStyle",{"color":17},{"text":38,"type":32,"marks":39},"How Manufacturers Meet the Growing Demand for Engineering Data",[40,46,49],{"type":41,"attrs":42},"link",{"href":43,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://pages.techsoft3d.com/engineering-data-insights?utm_campaign=48796445-2026%20Build%20or%20Buy%20Research&utm_source=Website&utm_medium=Main%20Banner","_blank","url",{"type":35,"attrs":47},{"color":48},"#3E9DFD",{"type":50},"italic",{"text":52,"type":32,"marks":53},".",[54,56],{"type":35,"attrs":55},{"color":48},{"type":50},{"text":58,"type":32,"marks":59}," ",[60,62],{"type":35,"attrs":61},{"color":17},{"type":50},{"text":64,"type":32,"marks":65},"As part of this, we sought to understand if companies prefer to build custom software solutions to meet their demands, or look to existing commercial products to provide the features they need.   ",[66],{"type":35,"attrs":67},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":69,"content":71},{"textAlign":70},"left",[72],{"text":73,"type":32,"marks":74},"When asked whether they preferred to build or buy, most organizations do both. ",[75],{"type":35,"attrs":76},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":78,"content":79},{"textAlign":70},[80,85,92],{"text":81,"type":32,"marks":82},"The respondents represent large, established companies, each with more than $1 billion in revenue, and demonstrate ",[83],{"type":35,"attrs":84},{"color":17},{"text":86,"type":32,"marks":87},"that both building and buying are a regular part of how they get engineering software into the hands of the people who need it. ",[88,90],{"type":35,"attrs":89},{"color":17},{"type":91},"bold",{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":94}," ",[95],{"type":35,"attrs":96},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":98,"content":99},{"textAlign":70},[100],{"text":101,"type":32,"marks":102},"This post looks at how that works in practice, examining what factors influence those decisions, what they've built and bought recently, and what each approach costs them. ",[103],{"type":35,"attrs":104},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":106,"content":107},{"textAlign":70},[108,114],{"text":109,"type":32,"marks":110},"This piece is the sixth in our series previewing our original report \"How Manufacturers Meet the Growing Demand for Engineering Data\". Check out the previous posts in this blog series:",[111,113],{"type":35,"attrs":112},{"color":17},{"type":50},{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":115},[116],{"type":35,"attrs":117},{"color":17},{"type":119,"content":120},"bullet_list",[121,139,156,173,190],{"type":122,"content":123},"list_item",[124],{"type":27,"attrs":125,"content":126},{"textAlign":24},[127,135],{"text":128,"type":32,"marks":129},"Why Engineering Data Has Become a Strategic Manufacturing Asset",[130,133],{"type":41,"attrs":131},{"href":132,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://www.techsoft3d.com/resources/blog/why-engineering-data-has-become-a-strategic-manufacturing-asset/",{"type":35,"attrs":134},{"color":48},{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":136},[137],{"type":35,"attrs":138},{"color":48},{"type":122,"content":140},[141],{"type":27,"attrs":142,"content":143},{"textAlign":24},[144,152],{"text":145,"type":32,"marks":146},"The Hidden Cost of Engineering Data Bottlenecks",[147,150],{"type":41,"attrs":148},{"href":149,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://www.techsoft3d.com/resources/blog/hidden-cost-of-engineering-data-bottlenecks/",{"type":35,"attrs":151},{"color":48},{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":153},[154],{"type":35,"attrs":155},{"color":48},{"type":122,"content":157},[158],{"type":27,"attrs":159,"content":160},{"textAlign":24},[161,169],{"text":162,"type":32,"marks":163},"Why More Manufacturers Are Expanding Access to CAD Data Beyond CAD Applications",[164,167],{"type":41,"attrs":165},{"href":166,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://www.techsoft3d.com/resources/blog/why-more-manufacturers-are-expanding-access-to-cad-data-beyond-cad-applications/",{"type":35,"attrs":168},{"color":48},{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":170},[171],{"type":35,"attrs":172},{"color":48},{"type":122,"content":174},[175],{"type":27,"attrs":176,"content":177},{"textAlign":24},[178,186],{"text":179,"type":32,"marks":180},"Why Manufacturers Are Rethinking Build vs. Buy for Engineering Data",[181,184],{"type":41,"attrs":182},{"href":183,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://www.techsoft3d.com/resources/blog/why-manufacturers-are-rethinking-build-vs-buy-for-engineering-data/",{"type":35,"attrs":185},{"color":48},{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":187},[188],{"type":35,"attrs":189},{"color":48},{"type":122,"content":191},[192],{"type":27,"attrs":193,"content":194},{"textAlign":24},[195],{"text":196,"type":32,"marks":197},"Top 5 Findings from Our Engineering Data Research",[198,203],{"type":41,"attrs":199},{"href":200,"uuid":201,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":202},"/resources/blog/top-5-takeaways-from-our-engineering-data-research-report","dd4c07bc-79b0-485e-b0a7-19b195c61f9f","story",{"type":35,"attrs":204},{"color":48},{"type":206,"attrs":207,"content":209},"heading",{"level":208,"textAlign":70},2,[210,216],{"text":211,"type":32,"marks":212},"How Manufacturers Make the Call on Build or Buy",[213],{"type":35,"attrs":214},{"color":215},"#383838",{"text":93,"type":32,"marks":217},[218],{"type":35,"attrs":219},{"color":220},"#0F4761",{"type":27,"attrs":222,"content":223},{"textAlign":70},[224],{"text":225,"type":32,"marks":226},"Participants were split roughly evenly on how formal the build vs. buy decision is at their company. About half follow a clearly defined process, with one describing a set of yes-and-no criteria laid out like a fishbone diagram. Others weigh each project as it comes up, or, as one participant put it, \"it's all actually case by case.\"  ",[227],{"type":35,"attrs":228},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":230,"content":231},{"textAlign":70},[232],{"text":233,"type":32,"marks":234},"The research made clear that whether the decision was more or less formulaic, there are rarely company-wide stances that settle a build vs. buy decision in advance. The prevalence of practice of judging individual applications and needs as they come about goes along way in explain why so few companies end up just building or just buying.  ",[235],{"type":35,"attrs":236},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":238,"content":239},{"textAlign":70},[240,245,251],{"text":241,"type":32,"marks":242},"While there is a clear split on formality, the companies interviewed were more consistent on how they brought multiple teams into the decision process. ",[243],{"type":35,"attrs":244},{"color":17},{"text":246,"type":32,"marks":247},"Only two of 15 companies left these decisions to IT,",[248,250],{"type":35,"attrs":249},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":252,"type":32,"marks":253}," with the rest involving engineering, operations, IT, and procurement in the conversation.  ",[254],{"type":35,"attrs":255},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":257,"content":258},{"textAlign":70},[259],{"text":260,"type":32,"marks":261},"In at least two companies, engineering sets the requirements before any commercial evaluation starts. An engineering leader in electronics and high tech explained the reasoning of this choice quite simply, saying, \"Engineering drives the input because they are the ones who are developing the products.\"  ",[262],{"type":35,"attrs":263},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":265,"content":266},{"textAlign":70},[267],{"text":268,"type":32,"marks":269},"For these organizations, product management and the commercial teams then decide whether those requirements are better met by developing internally or by buying off the shelf. ",[270],{"type":35,"attrs":271},{"color":17},{"type":206,"attrs":273,"content":274},{"level":208,"textAlign":70},[275],{"text":276,"type":32,"marks":277},"Where Manufacturers Draw the Line Between Building and Buying ",[278],{"type":35,"attrs":279},{"color":215},{"type":27,"attrs":281,"content":282},{"textAlign":70},[283],{"text":284,"type":32,"marks":285},"When Tech-Clarity asked for recent examples, the projects which participants chose to build were closely tied to their own products and engineering methods. Examples of features built internally included: ",[286],{"type":35,"attrs":287},{"color":17},{"type":119,"content":289},[290],{"type":122,"content":291},[292],{"type":27,"attrs":293,"content":294},{"textAlign":70},[295],{"text":296,"type":32,"marks":297},"Simulation capabilities such as plasma modeling ",[298],{"type":35,"attrs":299},{"color":17},{"type":119,"content":301},[302],{"type":122,"content":303},[304],{"type":27,"attrs":305,"content":306},{"textAlign":70},[307],{"text":308,"type":32,"marks":309},"3D modeling for parts their primary CAD tool couldn't handle ",[310],{"type":35,"attrs":311},{"color":17},{"type":119,"content":313},[314],{"type":122,"content":315},[316],{"type":27,"attrs":317,"content":318},{"textAlign":70},[319],{"text":320,"type":32,"marks":321},"A product configurator that generates a CAD model from a customer's requirements ",[322],{"type":35,"attrs":323},{"color":17},{"type":119,"content":325},[326],{"type":122,"content":327},[328],{"type":27,"attrs":329,"content":330},{"textAlign":70},[331],{"text":332,"type":32,"marks":333},"A virtual workbench for checking how a new engine component fits into a vehicle chassis. ",[334],{"type":35,"attrs":335},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":337,"content":338},{"textAlign":70},[339,345],{"text":340,"type":32,"marks":341},"Companies tended to purchase in areas where features were more common across manufacturers",[342,344],{"type":35,"attrs":343},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":346,"type":32,"marks":347},", including PDM and 3D format conversion tools, a solution connecting 3D data with MES, digital twins of the factory, a 3D rendering product, and multi-physics analysis software. ",[348],{"type":35,"attrs":349},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":351,"content":352},{"textAlign":70},[353],{"text":354,"type":32,"marks":355},"Interestingly, simulation appears on both lists, which suggests the deciding factor for this topic depends on how specific a capability is to the company using it, whichever category of software it falls into.  ",[356],{"type":35,"attrs":357},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":359,"content":360},{"textAlign":70},[361,366,373,379],{"text":362,"type":32,"marks":363},"This matches the two main reasons for building that we discussed in our ",[364],{"type":35,"attrs":365},{"color":17},{"text":367,"type":32,"marks":368},"last post:",[369,371],{"type":41,"attrs":370},{"href":200,"uuid":201,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":202},{"type":35,"attrs":372},{"color":48},{"text":58,"type":32,"marks":374},[375,377],{"type":41,"attrs":376},{"href":200,"uuid":201,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":202},{"type":35,"attrs":378},{"color":17},{"text":380,"type":32,"marks":381},"filling in the gaps commercial tools fail to cover and protecting sensitive engineering knowledge. ",[382],{"type":35,"attrs":383},{"color":17},"copy",true,{"_uid":387,"colors":388,"padding":389,"contents":390,"component":436,"background_image":437,"background_video":442},"caaedd99-e6cd-4df0-ae5e-c2756a504fa1","color-gray","padding-small",[391],{"_uid":392,"body":393,"alignment":17,"component":384,"is_full_width":435},"0d9f246d-ff8f-4721-ba09-0d9cfd385d79",{"type":22,"attrs":394,"content":395},{"backgroundColor":24},[396],{"type":397,"content":398},"blockquote",[399],{"type":27,"attrs":400,"content":401},{"textAlign":70},[402,410,412,413,419,429],{"text":403,"type":32,"marks":404},"Want to explore areas you can build instead of buy? ",[405,408,409],{"type":35,"attrs":406},{"color":407},"#FFFFFF",{"type":91},{"type":50},{"type":411},"hard_break",{"type":411},{"text":414,"type":32,"marks":415},"Get ideas in our post, ",[416,418],{"type":35,"attrs":417},{"color":407},{"type":50},{"text":420,"type":32,"marks":421},"10 Effective 3D Applications You Can Build for Internal Use",[422,426,428],{"type":41,"attrs":423},{"href":424,"uuid":425,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":202},"/resources/blog/10-effective-3d-applications-you-can-build-for-internal-use","de95d17f-adb9-4b36-8997-8be2f07e82d4",{"type":35,"attrs":427},{"color":407},{"type":50},{"text":430,"type":32,"marks":431},", based on real developer experiences.  ",[432,434],{"type":35,"attrs":433},{"color":407},{"type":50},false,"backdrop",{"id":438,"alt":17,"name":17,"focus":17,"title":17,"source":17,"filename":439,"copyright":17,"fieldtype":440,"meta_data":441,"is_external_url":435},111096511565685,"https://a-us.storyblok.com/f/1023536/1920x1080/4105ca092b/darker-blue-wave-test.png","asset",{},{"id":24,"alt":24,"name":17,"focus":24,"title":24,"source":24,"filename":17,"copyright":24,"fieldtype":440,"meta_data":443},{},{"_uid":445,"height":17,"component":18},"e954d6c6-efe1-4338-a227-116ed7636146",{"_uid":447,"body":448,"alignment":17,"component":384,"is_full_width":385},"f2d2f96e-8fff-4e49-b1c5-d6b61a168d50",{"type":22,"attrs":449,"content":450},{"backgroundColor":24},[451,459,467,475,483,502,510,518,537,545,553,561,593],{"type":27,"attrs":452,"content":453},{"textAlign":24},[454],{"text":455,"type":32,"marks":456},"Regarding the latter, an industrial machinery leader told us, \"When we have very sensitive information that must be kept protected from outside, we choose to develop new software for intellectual property protection reasons.\" ",[457],{"type":35,"attrs":458},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":460,"content":461},{"textAlign":70},[462],{"text":463,"type":32,"marks":464},"In summary, manufacturers are far more willing to purchase generalized features that fall outside their specialized area of focus. Companies will use their expertise to fill gaps the market can’t fill, or to protect their IP. ",[465],{"type":35,"attrs":466},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":468,"content":469},{"textAlign":70},[470],{"text":471,"type":32,"marks":472},"Unsurprisingly, one of the single biggest drivers of these decisions is cost.  ",[473],{"type":35,"attrs":474},{"color":17},{"type":206,"attrs":476,"content":477},{"level":208,"textAlign":70},[478],{"text":479,"type":32,"marks":480},"Why Manufacturers Buy, and When Building Is Worth the Cost ",[481],{"type":35,"attrs":482},{"color":215},{"type":27,"attrs":484,"content":485},{"textAlign":70},[486,491,497],{"text":487,"type":32,"marks":488},"While ",[489],{"type":35,"attrs":490},{"color":17},{"text":492,"type":32,"marks":493},"cost was the most common reason participants chose to buy rather than build",[494,496],{"type":35,"attrs":495},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":498,"type":32,"marks":499},", the responses show how much value the right vendor can bring beyond a lower up-front fee and the product itself.  ",[500],{"type":35,"attrs":501},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":503,"content":504},{"textAlign":70},[505],{"text":506,"type":32,"marks":507},"One respondent highlighted the significantly lower maintenance cost, which is naturally cheaper when the burden is distributed across a vendor's customer base.  ",[508],{"type":35,"attrs":509},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":511,"content":512},{"textAlign":70},[513],{"text":514,"type":32,"marks":515},"Another company chose to buy partly to manage what it called the \"capability debt\" of cybersecurity, reasoning that it couldn't keep pace with attackers on its own, and yet another acknowledged that the R&D behind commercial products is more substantial than anything it could fund internally. ",[516],{"type":35,"attrs":517},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":519,"content":520},{"textAlign":70},[521,526,532],{"text":522,"type":32,"marks":523},"While the exact factor that makes licensing existing software varies by use case, there is a common theme: ",[524],{"type":35,"attrs":525},{"color":17},{"text":527,"type":32,"marks":528},"buying leverages the resources of another team, allowing teams to focus on their own specialties rather than the development, maintenance, security, and R&D of the feature they’re purchasing.",[529,531],{"type":35,"attrs":530},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":533,"type":32,"marks":534},"  ",[535],{"type":35,"attrs":536},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":538,"content":539},{"textAlign":70},[540],{"text":541,"type":32,"marks":542},"Building comes with the costs we covered in our last post: slower deployment, higher upfront spend, and a team to maintain the application for as long as it's in use. In exchange, participants get complete control over the tool, without the threat of a sale to an unexpected competitor or sunsetting of a crucial capability ",[543],{"type":35,"attrs":544},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":546,"content":547},{"textAlign":70},[548],{"text":549,"type":32,"marks":550},"Most of them judge that control to be worth paying for in a handful of places, which is how a company can build applications where a capability is specific enough to justify it and still buy close to 80% of what it uses. ",[551],{"type":35,"attrs":552},{"color":17},{"type":206,"attrs":554,"content":555},{"level":208,"textAlign":70},[556],{"text":557,"type":32,"marks":558},"Building and Buying Inside a Single Application ",[559],{"type":35,"attrs":560},{"color":215},{"type":27,"attrs":562,"content":563},{"textAlign":70},[564,569,575,580,588],{"text":565,"type":32,"marks":566},"In another post in this series, we discussed how problems like reading CAD formats correctly and rendering large assemblies are usually ones a vendor has already solved. ",[567],{"type":35,"attrs":568},{"color":17},{"text":570,"type":32,"marks":571},"Even when building a custom solution, this report shows how teams still outsource some features",[572,574],{"type":35,"attrs":573},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":576,"type":32,"marks":577},", advising companies to ",[578],{"type":35,"attrs":579},{"color":17},{"text":581,"type":32,"marks":582},"take advantage of existing components, SDKs, and building blocks",[583,586],{"type":41,"attrs":584},{"href":585,"uuid":24,"anchor":24,"target":44,"linktype":45},"https://www.techsoft3d.com/resources/blog/4-reasons-developers-should-use-software-development-toolkits/",{"type":35,"attrs":587},{"color":48},{"text":589,"type":32,"marks":590}," wherever they can.  ",[591],{"type":35,"attrs":592},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":594,"content":595},{"textAlign":70},[596,601,607],{"text":597,"type":32,"marks":598},"Whether the decision is about an entire solution or a single feature, the core guiding principle remains the same: ",[599],{"type":35,"attrs":600},{"color":17},{"text":602,"type":32,"marks":603},"Build when you need control and specifics; buy when the market saves you from reinventing the wheel on proven, existing technology",[604,606],{"type":35,"attrs":605},{"color":17},{"type":91},{"text":608,"type":32,"marks":609},", even within a single application. ",[610],{"type":35,"attrs":611},{"color":17},{"_uid":613,"colors":388,"padding":389,"contents":614,"component":436,"background_image":641,"background_video":643},"b0a0cd0c-d3e7-4991-b819-234da5515026",[615],{"_uid":616,"body":617,"alignment":17,"component":384,"is_full_width":435},"92476dc6-cdca-457a-b0f4-6c6b925453fa",{"type":22,"attrs":618,"content":619},{"backgroundColor":24},[620],{"type":397,"content":621},[622,632],{"type":27,"attrs":623,"content":624},{"textAlign":70},[625,631],{"text":626,"type":32,"marks":627},"\"Most of the applications our customers build are already hybrids. They license the pieces every manufacturer needs and put their own engineers on the logic that's specific to how they design and test their products. Deciding where that split sits is usually one of the first real design decisions in the project.\" ",[628,630],{"type":35,"attrs":629},{"color":407},{"type":50},{"type":411},{"type":27,"attrs":633,"content":634},{"textAlign":70},[635],{"text":636,"type":32,"marks":637},"– Eric Vinchon, Senior Director of Product Strategy at Tech Soft 3D ",[638,640],{"type":35,"attrs":639},{"color":407},{"type":50},{"id":438,"alt":17,"name":17,"focus":17,"title":17,"source":17,"filename":439,"copyright":17,"fieldtype":440,"meta_data":642,"is_external_url":435},{},{"id":24,"alt":24,"name":17,"focus":24,"title":24,"source":24,"filename":17,"copyright":24,"fieldtype":440,"meta_data":644},{},{"_uid":646,"height":17,"component":18},"ca0c7916-037d-4d1b-9426-65370dd819da",{"_uid":648,"body":649,"alignment":17,"component":384,"is_full_width":385},"8c77bc46-d997-44dc-b429-e345c462cc2e",{"type":22,"attrs":650,"content":651},{"backgroundColor":24},[652,660,668,676,712,720,728,736,744,752,760],{"type":27,"attrs":653,"content":654},{"textAlign":24},[655],{"text":656,"type":32,"marks":657}," Consider the virtual workbench mentioned earlier, which evaluates whether an engine component fits within a particular vehicle chassis. ",[658],{"type":35,"attrs":659},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":661,"content":662},{"textAlign":70},[663],{"text":664,"type":32,"marks":665},"The application's primary value lies in its ability to assess the fit of a new component within a specific design. That specialized functionality may justify investing internal engineering resources to develop it. ",[666],{"type":35,"attrs":667},{"color":17},{"type":27,"attrs":669,"content":670},{"textAlign":70},[671],{"text":672,"type":32,"marks":673}," While still essential for the application to work, features like accurately reading CAD data and rendering the 3D model are needed in almost every engineering application, so licensing those parts would let the team put its development time into the fit logic. 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