7 Reasons You Should Use Protocase Designer

There are over 168,000 engineers and innovators from across the world who have downloaded Protocase Designer. This is because it is an easy-to-use design software, with customization, quoting and ordering all in one flow. You can save time and keep your projects on track, without losing momentum.

If you haven’t used Protocase Designer yet, here are seven reasons you should give it a shot:

Ready-to-use Templates

There is an ancient Greek proverb that goes “Well begun is half done.”

Protocase Designer has 85+ templates for enclosures, panels and brackets for you to start with. All you have to enter is the material (and thickness) you want your design to be made in, and your required dimensions.

Protocase Designer will then generate a starting template for you to start customizing.

You can also save your Protocase Designer project in your Personal Library and access it under ‘Personal Templates’. Using this option, you can save your customized template on the software, and use it any time in the future. Another time-saver for being “half done”!

Design Checks for Manufacturability

Did you know that Protocase Designer has design checks built into the software? That’s right – while you work on your design, there are manufacturability checks that will inform you if anything you’ve placed or created on your design cannot be built as is.

In the 3D view, you can click on ‘Check Design’, which can be found under the DESIGN header. When you do so, a window will pop up which will display errors, if there are any. You will find a detailed description of each error in this window. Warnings, if any, will also be shown on this page.

If there are no errors or warnings, then you will get a “Success! No design issues found” message. If you see this, then your design is good to be manufactured with Protocase!

Easy Editing in Protocase Designer

Protocase Designer has a Face Editor for customizing your part or enclosure. It has a ton of features and is incredibly easy to use.

You can add cutouts, graphics, masking, references and exclusions effortlessly while viewing a face in 2D View. There are also tools such as move, trim, pattern, measure, dimension and coordinates available here.

Changing the face view between front and back can also be done with the click of a button. By default, the front face view will be selected.

The Face Editor also comes with a Quick Search option which allows you to quickly find and place an item from our Library.

Library Manager

Protocase Designer has a significant library with hundreds of cutouts, graphics, fasteners, hardware and components. Additionally, you can add your own customized items with the personal library option.

In one click, you can place an item from the vast library directly onto your design.

Do note that you need to select a face and use the Face Editor to add items from the Library Manager to your enclosure. You can’t perform this action while in the default 3D view.

Instant Quotes from Protocase Designer

If your design has no issues, then you can get a quote for your custom part or enclosure immediately. At the top right corner, under QUOTE, you would want to select Instant Quote and click on Go.

Do note that, to get a quote, you will have to be signed into My Account. If you don’t have an account, registration is quick and simple.

When signed in, after selecting Instant Quote and clicking on Go, you will get redirected to a web page with the basic instant quote on your browser. You will find all the pricing information you require here.

There is an option to change the quantity and service level if required. With priority service, the lead time for your order will be 2-3 business days, while with economy service, it will be 10-15 business days. Click on Update so that the changes you’ve made reflect in the quote.

You can also get a summary of the quote emailed to you.

You have the option to deselect some parts and get a quote. Click on the drop-down option under Quote, select Instant Quote Some Parts and click on Go. A pop-up window opens where you can deselect the parts you do not wish to be a part of your quote. Once you’re ready and click on Go, you will proceed to get your new quote.

Easy Ordering

You can proceed to place an order once you are happy with the enclosure and the price that has been quoted.

If you require information to submit to your purchasing department before making the order, under QUOTE, select Purchase Requisition and click on Go.

Conversely, if you do not need to go through your purchasing department to place the order, you can order your enclosure right away. For this method, under QUOTE, you will need to select Purchase and click on Go.

You have the option to deselect parts before making the order. In such situations, select Purchase Some Parts and click on Go.

Remember, as with quoting, to place an order, you need to be signed in on My Account.

Anyone can use Protocase Designer

Traditional CAD software can be difficult to translate to custom manufacturing. With no built-in manufacturing constraints integrated in other CAD software, your options are too wide open to create enclosures and other parts that can’t actually be manufactured.

Plus, if you are an electrical engineer or another type of specialist that doesn’t typically do mechanical design, it may feel really daunting to tackle designing your custom enclosure yourself.

Protocase Designer is easy to use and you do not require design experience to get started. You can start designing in minutes.

We have a bunch of tech tips, which you can go through to understand the software better. If you still have doubts, feel free to get in touch with our team and we’ll be happy to guide you.

On the other hand, if you are an expert, Protocase Designer is still a very convenient tool for you to use. If you value your time and want to work as quickly as possible, Protocase Designer saves you so many design steps in your workflow.

You can download Protocase Designer here.