Frequently asked questions

Yes. Within a project, you will work with one of our project managers. Our project managers are mechanical engineers, so they bring strong technical knowledge. In addition, a Lead Engineer is technically responsible within each project. As a customer, you will be in contact with at least one of the project managers and the Lead Engineer.

In practice, we often work with parties selected by the customer, for example for controls or hydraulics. If the customer would like advice, MechDes also has a strong network and can recommend suitable partners.

We use various in-house tools to run simulations and (dynamic) analyses, allowing us to predict how a machine is expected to perform. It is also possible to have a test setup built to validate the concept in practice.

We also use Additive Manufacturing to test our designs. By 3D-printing parts, we can quickly and effectively verify whether they meet functional requirements and optimize directly where needed.

At MechDes, we have two main disciplines: Mechanical Engineering and Structural Engineering. We also have sufficient knowledge of other disciplines such as hydraulics and control systems to manage specialized partners within projects.

A good example is the climbing crane we designed and calculated for Lagerwey.

In consultation with the customer, MechDes can deliver test setups for concept validation. Beyond that, limited hardware delivery is possible.

MechDes has experience across many different markets and sectors, including:

• Energy and Offshore (e.g., cranes, mission equipment, tools, offshore machine building, turbines)
• Infrastructure and Water (civil engineering)
• Intralogistics (e.g., distribution centers, order picking, palletizing)
• Automation (machine building with robots)
• Lifting and Handling (e.g., grippers, tools)
• Mobility, Automotive & Transport (e.g., tooling and welding jigs)

Secondment is possible. That said, we prefer to execute projects from our office in Harderwijk.

Within MechDes, we have experience with well-known 3D packages such as SolidWorks, Inventor, Catia, Solid Edge, and Siemens NX. We perform FEM calculations in ANSYS Workbench. In addition to the software mentioned above, we also have licenses for 20-sim and ANSYS Discovery. We can also provide animations and visualizations, for example in Delfoi. The best-fitting software is selected based on the customer’s needs. For PLM and PDM we offer several options, including Windchill and SmarTeam. It is also possible to work remotely on the customer’s systems.