Case Study: Macro Plastics, Inc achieves 10–25% material reduction and faster product development with SolidWorks

Optimizing the Design of Plastic Agricultural Bins With Solidworks Simulation

Macro Plastics, Inc., the leading North American manufacturer of large plastic agricultural bins, faced rising plastic costs and the need to reduce material while maintaining strength across a 70-model product line. To meet this challenge the company adopted SolidWorks design tools (Standard, Professional and Premium) and specifically leveraged SolidWorks Simulation Premium analysis software for integrated FEA-driven design optimization.

By using SolidWorks Simulation Premium as a development tool to optimize ribbing, wall thickness and load performance, Macro Plastics now predicts behavior during design and resolves issues before molding. SolidWorks helped cut development time from months to weeks, triple new product offerings, reduce product weight/material usage by 10–25%, and save 30–60% in capital costs while enabling rapid fixes for field failures.

Macro Plastics, Inc

Todd Turner

Senior Product Development Engineer