Ninety-nine per cent of CAD managers operating within the electrical engineering sector have no intention of changing their main CAD solution in the next 12 months, according to recent research conducted by The Business Advantage Group. Twelve per cent of these managers said the idea had been raised but not seriously considered. Only one out of seventy organisations questioned was definitely considering switching its 'main' CAD solution (that for which it has the greatest number of seats). These findings concerning the reasons behind sticking with a particular CAD solution in the electrical engineering sector were conducted with managers responsible for CAD functions at 70 UK-based sites.
The research also found that when presented with a list of reasons for continuing to use a CAD solution, and asked which were important factors for them in sticking to their main current package, seven out of ten said that they believe that they have the best package for their needs, while three out of ten said that the cost of purchasing an alternative was prohibitive, (respondents could identify more than one factor). None of the managers said that the cost of retraining on a new CAD package was the major factor.