Estimating Part Manufacturing Costs in One Minute: ENCY at Taiwan’s IronCAD Summit
DimensionWay demonstrated how its ENCY-based application calculates toolpaths and generates a manufacturing quote, while IronCAD integration lets programmers retain existing operations when a design changes.
How much will a new part cost to manufacture? At DimensionWay’s summit in Taiwan, a demonstration produced an answer in approximately one minute. The company’s custom application, built using the ENCY API, applied a machining template, calculated toolpaths, and generated a quote.
Held October 28 at the Hyatt Regency Taoyuan International Airport, the event brought together approximately 55 attendees. DimensionWay combined the Taiwan debut of the Chinese-language edition of IronCAD 2027 with demonstrations of design and manufacturing applications.
Respond to RFQs Faster
The machining example used a 6061 aluminum part and a three-axis machine setup. A predefined machining template supplied the tools, operation sequence, and cutting parameters for the new geometry.
DimensionWay’s engineers estimated that configuring the same operations manually would take approximately 30 minutes. Applying the template, calculating toolpaths, and generating the quote took about a minute in the demonstration.
Users specify the material and quantity. The application produces a quotation with a time breakdown, material costs, and a price per part. Cutting data, machine hourly rates, setup time, and profit margins can be configured to match the shop’s requirements.
For manufacturers quoting families of similar parts, this approach puts proven machining methods to work on the next RFQ. Programmers spend less time recreating familiar operations before they can estimate the job.
The demonstrated timing applies to this specific example using an existing template. DimensionWay developed the application through the ENCY API as an extension to the standard software.
Keep the Machining Plan When the Design Changes
Another demonstration addressed a familiar problem: the part changes after CAM programming has started.
The IronCAD integration transfers geometry directly to ENCY without an intermediate STEP export. Engineers showed a local design change, updated the model in the CAM project, and recalculated toolpaths while retaining existing operations and machining settings.
That allows the programmer to continue from the prepared process rather than rebuild the job from scratch. It reduces rework during design revisions and when developing part variants. Updated toolpaths still require simulation and verification before machining.
Local Engineering Behind the Workflow
DimensionWay has represented IronCAD in Taiwan since 2011 and also provides ENCY implementation services. Its in-house development team builds custom engineering applications, supported by training and technical assistance through offices in New Taipei City, Taichung, and Tainan.