Design and Technology
information alongside community content, skills and training resources.
Creator and Engineer
Moving to the next level – and for those users looking for even more advanced tools and resources such as pro-makers, start-ups and SMEs – further DesignSpark options are available featuring tools with enhanced features. Creator offers the same tools and resources available in Explorer but also provides an enhanced version of DesignSpark Mechanical. This includes a 3D Mirror tool and detailing tools to annotate parts and create manufacturing drawings, and enhanced part libraries that provide further intelligence on component capabilities and status. Creator level members also have access to more advanced skills, training and content on DesignSpark.
Engineer is for the most demanding users such as professional-level design engineers and OEMs. Engineer offers the same enhanced features of DesignSpark Mechanical available in Creator and expands significantly on DesignSpark PCB with a new advanced feature set, including the use of blind and buried vias for high- density PCB design, custom pad shapes, differential pair routing for high-speed signals, a panels editor, and hierarchical schematic block capability. As with our
www.cieonline.co.uk. Flexibility
We believe that the full suite of capabilities available to paying subscribers is typically worth in the region of £1000. But, through this subscription model, RS is offering this at an entry price level equivalent to the monthly subscription one might pay to a home entertainment TV streaming platform. As part of the transition to the new model, a free trial period allowed members to try out the Creator and Engineer packages with their enhanced or fully featured versions of the DesignSpark tools, enabling them to assess these additional capabilities and providing them with the opportunity to decide which option best suited their needs. We have anticipated that most members will only require Explorer. But DesignSpark has a large universe of users, and we are already seeing many looking at the proposition and deciding the more advanced tools are what they need. And importantly, they are available at a fraction of the cost traditionally associated with tools that deliver these kinds of features and capabilities. Although we’re still in the early stages of this platform evolution, early feedback from members has given some weight to these expectations. For
Creator tier, Engineer subscribers have access to complimentary skills, training and content on DesignSpark.
example, a sizeable number of users from different regions across the world have already elected to gain access to the more advanced tools available in the Creator and Engineer options.
Other feedback – especially from hobbyists and makers – has been perfectly in line with our expectations that Explorer will suffice for their needs most of the time. However, they have a great deal of interest in the more advanced tools, though they do not necessarily require access to them every day. And this raises a very important point that addresses this issue directly: users will have the flexibility to move between different subscription options. For example, a user may require the more advanced tooling available with Engineer during key design phases of a project. But this requirement may only last a period of a few months, after which time they have the flexibility to step down their requirements to Creator or Explorer. A key aspect of the new model is that RS can reinvest this subscription revenue stream in upgrading the tools and at all levels, which means all members will benefit. We’re looking at further improving the parts library in the very near future, which is just one example of how we are looking to bring increased resources to all the members.
Activist engineering
There is another important aspect to mention in the DesignSpark story and its development. At its essence, collaborative responsible engineering is our purpose, and we aim to be an enabler of what we are calling the activist engineering paradigm. Much of the ‘raison d’être’ of DesignSpark is to help engineers on their journey to become more aware of the difference they can make in sustainable and responsible activism in engineering. And by this we mean looking at how engineers can help make a difference to individuals, groups, businesses, society and our planet in general. There are some key DesignSpark projects that exemplify this mission, such as The Washing Machine Project or the air-quality projects. Beyond this, we are also looking at how RS and DesignSpark can help engineers to design and make more sustainable products that last longer and are more repairable. This also aligns to the ESG (Environmental, Societal and Governance) RS strategy, which is a key plank in the way we want to do business.
DesignSpark Explorer, Creator and Engineer and details on subscription pricing are available at:
rs-online.com/designspark/home. The DesignSpark tools are supported by the DesignSpark software team and by the online DesignSpark engineering community.
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