BlachSolid is an application whose main task is to help the user control the manufacturing costs during sheet metal part design in SOLIDWORKS. The add-in gets all necessary data from the model for preliminary cost estimation: sheet-metal processing e.g. sheet-metal forming, cutting, punching, bending, etc., sheet-metal coating e.g. protective and decorative coatings, functional coatings, and other. Cost estimation by using BlachSolid involves: defining type of material, production capacity and choosing cutting operation of the model; selecting proper Calculator; complementing the selected Calculator with the information about the cost component and other data that can be taken directly from the 3D model of the part; saving the calculation on the Cost List. BlachSolid enables the User to: calculate costs in the selected operation mode: create many cost Analyses in one Project saved on the PC hard drive; add and delete references of the analyzed SOLIDWORKS model to the Analysis; set default values for cost Calculators, adjust parameters of the calculation to conditions prevailing in the enterprise, generate summaries in a form of clear and readable reports.
