SolidWorks Gauge-Block Automation

Turn repetitive inspection-tooling CAD into a guided workflow.

Creating inspection gauge blocks for fracture plates required repeatable modeling steps and careful user input. The goal was to shorten that work without removing the engineer from decisions that still required judgment.

Connect a focused interface directly to SolidWorks.

I developed the prototype in C# and built a Windows interface for the required inputs. The application communicated with SolidWorks through its API and generated the gauge-block CAD geometry inside the established engineering environment.

The tool began as a potential SolidWorks add-in, but a standalone Windows application proved to be the clearer prototype path.

A working prototype and a five-fold faster modeling cycle.

The finished prototype reduced the approximate design time for each block from 15 minutes to 3 minutes and demonstrated a practical route for standardizing the workflow.

The project also connected software design, inspection needs, and real production CAD—an overlap that continues to shape how I approach engineering automation.