Solidworks to 3ds max/vray workflow

[philippelamoureux]

My good friend and I would like to start a visualization/design studio together. He is a mechanical engineer and he is also studying to become an industrial designer. I have more of a architecture/urban planning background.

 

He is very good at modelling with solidworks (his software of choice) but doesn't know anything about rendering.

 

My question is : Is it possible to have a decent workflow by modelling in solidworks and exporting in 3ds max to render with vray ?(or octane, corona, etc). I know some 3d programs are quite different and i'm wondering if this workflow would be viable.

 

He would probably model everything that is industrial design-related in solidworks and I would do the architecture scenes in 3ds max, but we would render both types of projects with vray.

 

Thanks!

[Playdo]

A couple of ways I'd suggest. You can export/import as an IGES/STEP. Or if you need a cleaner, more controllable mesh, then export from SW to MoI, and export as an .obj.

[lansd]

My question is : Is it possible to have a decent workflow by modelling in solidworks and exporting in 3ds max to render with vray ?(or octane, corona, etc). I know some 3d programs are quite different and i'm wondering if this workflow would be viable.

 

As the primary provider of all CAD conversion software to 3ds Max users for the last 21 years, SolidWorks to 3ds Max is a very well defined conversion process. I have 30k similar production and design studios doing the exact same thing every day, as it has always been our #1 most requested conversion pipeline since 1996 when SolidWorks came to market. You would be able to achieve the same results as shown here, without having to use IGES or STEP.

 

http://www.okino.com/mainpic13.htm

http://www.okino.com/solutions/solidworks.htm