I use Keycreator from the simplest part drawing, to the complete machine drawing, to the exploded view that I export into our parts manuals. Keycreator's value allows a small company draw big.

I have been using Keycreator for 20+ years. Staring with just 2D and growing with the software to 3D modeling. There are many functions that make my work easier, starting with the fastener and structural shape library to the export of .pdf and images. Bending sheet metal and shelling solids are two functions that I use daily, along with .dxf to laser cutters.

Imports from .iges and .step files can be challenging at times, depending on how they were saved.

The SW gets constant updates, it is always compatible with new Windows versions with no problem to setup and use.

It is not the most expensive product, but it's also not the cheapest.

Our company is a specialty electrical mfg. solving unique applications, one off parts.

I am very familiar with the software, using it since CadKey ver 3.0. Flexible for designing

Sheetmetal, it will form something and will not unfold the part it just formed. No option to change metal thickness unless you unfold the part. BOM is hard to use. Training documentation is not very easy use.

KeyCreator is an essential software package for our custom tool & die shop. Since most of our work is unique and doesn't often get repeated (if ever), it's critical for our CAD software to get the job done efficiently and accurately. For the most part, KeyCreator fulfills that mission, with a few glaring gaps. The fact that it's non-parametric removes the worry that by changing one feature I risk screwing up other aspects of my geometry unintentionally.I do wish that the KeyCreator development team were more approachable with bug fixes and functionality improvements, and that some of the issues I have reported through the years would actually see improvements rather than being completely disregarded.

We have found that using a non-parametric 3D CAD modeling software in our custom tool & die work is preferable in most instances to using a parametric modeler like Solidworks. There have been a number of times we have received Solidworks or geometry in other parametric formats from our customers, and when they made a minor change to something it screwed up other aspects of the geometry because they didn't have their constraints set correctly. The worse thing is that they didn't know it, and I discovered it during my work. In the custom tooling world, those kinds of things can be catastrophic.In general terms, I have always found the interface to be reasonably easy to use, although there are some things that could be drastically improved. Most of the basic entity generation functionality works largely as I learned how to do things as a draftsman on the drafting table, so the process is generally straightforward.

The feature generation and documentation (drilled and/or tapped holes, fasteners, etc.) is mostly an imported functionality set from the old Draftpak suite they imported into CADkey years ago. They have done very little to improve it, it's pretty buggy and there are some large holes in the way it works. Compared to other CAD software I've played with, KeyCreator's functionality in this area is substandard. Like most software these days, the documentation and help system are terrible, and often haven't even been updated to match the current version of the software.

I have been very pleased with this product and have been a power user for most of my career in Engineering. I have trained many users through the online University. Designers can work to their level of comfort and utilize past experience in other software to achieve the desired results with KeyCreator. So, if you are familiar with using a design tree approach, 2D extrusions, sheets and vectors, it doesn't matter, they are all available .

I have been using this software for over 30 years. From the early days of Cadkey, where you had to construct your solids by building wire frames, to the current KeyCreator product where you are designing with real solid elements. The software has the power to handle the most complicated of designs with the simplicity of tasks that achieve the design. Menus are intuitive, and well organized. The best feature by far is that you only have 1 file to manage. Your solid model, assembly and drawing are stored in 1 file. In these days of remote locations and outsourcing having to manage multiple files, as is the case in other software, is a treacherous road.

The biggest shortcoming in my opinion has been the software help. Sometimes the self-contained help search in the software can get you out of trouble, but more often than not it is rather geeky. The online support, examples and tutorials are great, they need to be expanded into the fringes of the software where reside some very powerful tools.

I have seen many benefits from keycreator and one that really comes to mind is the translators built in. I have been able to take work from many different customers using many different CAD programs. Most all documentation these days must be in electronic format so the ability to send files back to my customers which they can easily open I think has been a big plus. I use Keycreator on a daily basis for many different kinds of projects and it has never failed me. I have to say that there are many design projects I would have never been able to take on if it was not for the ability to work with just about any format out there as well as the ability to send back files to my customers that they can work with. Kubotec is constantly updating and improving Keycreator and over the years I have seen great new features added which save me a lot of time and that is kind of the whole point saving time since we all know time is money.

There are a few very powerful features in Keycreator which I use constantly one being box move the other being dimension driven editing these two features save me a lot of time in the kind of design work I do. I also like the fact that it comes with translators built in, enough of them so that I have never had an issue importing files from my customers.

For the kind of work I do I can not honestly say I have run into any cons with Keycreator I have been using it since about 1998 it was called something else back then but it is the same program and despite all the other CAD software out there I never considered switching to anything else. Keycreator is a perfect fit for the kind of design work I use it on it is very reasonably priced tech support has always been awesome. I really can not say I have any complaints about it.

CadKey was the first CAD program I used, and I am partial to it. We use it for 2D drawing and 3D projections, as well as output for CAM programs (primarily waterjet and laser) and it works very well for us. It also provides a very quick means of checking machining trigonometry and jig/fixture design.

Having used KeyCreator since the 1980s when it was called CadKey, I appreciate the consistency of the platform and the power of the drawing components. Although the user interface evolves with new versions, it is always possible to set up a new installation with previous interfaces. We also use other CAD/CAM software, but find that KeyCreator is preferable for coding waterjet and laser programs.

The odd glitch in the program can be irritating, but customer support has been able to provide work-arounds. The cost is a major consideration, and in the last couple of years we have moved to a 2D version to compensate.

I use it to create various parts, molds, 3D printed parts, fixtures, etc.

I found it relatively easy to use this program after using another software for over 30 years. It's reasonably powerful in the tools it offers, and very forgiving and I like that you can back-track and try something else if it doesn't give you the results you were looking for.

The help function is lacking, they should show examples of the tool you are asking for help with and walk thru each option explaining how, and when, to use them. This is one of my biggest complaints with the software. I also would like to see it retain the values from the last time you used a tool, some of them do, but many do not. When copying items it would be great if it would evenly space the copies between two selected points, that would save a lot of time.

I never had a problem with KeyCreator as program neither as license manager for the old versions. adding users to access license manager easy. creating travel license for out of office easy and self managed.

But last version is a disaster by all mean, from point view of Tool Makers they all agreed on that also from license manager keep stopping the services on server for some reason, I opened 2 tickets and one call for support where I had to leave a message but no one called or replied back on email!!! support was better year ago.

Keycreator has been my go to software for Tool and Die design for over 25 Years

KeyCreator - for me has been a powerful intuitive easy to use and customize software for my Tooling designs. Strong translators allow me to read all customer files . Freeform modeling with out constraints of a history tree are a designers dream.

I feel the " older " functions ( Draft Pak ) are lacking severely for functionality - needs a major overhaul - to many steps required for screws and fasteners - should be automated.

File translations give us a huge advantage over competing businesses. Building the model is similar to working in the shop with milling, welding which makes it very intuitive for those of us that work in both designing, machining, welding and building machines.

We get models from Europe that I have no idea how they were created. With KeyCreator I can always open them and work with whatever type or vintage they are. If there is any problem with the model I can have it sent as a STEP or IGES and work it out. Having used this software for a long time I like the Classic Interface using the F keys. A person memorizes the sequence of keys and it is like playing the piano. For example, 6 6 4 1 1 to move entities to another level. 4 1 1 1 to move an entity. I still use the custom control bar with icons but the F keys are very fast for common repetitive tasks.

I would like to see a very basic version that our maintenance techs could use to sketch up welded frames ducting and simple machined parts. They may only use it once a month but a simple version for a few hundred dollars would help them out. They would have the option to upgrade when they start using it more.

I have used KeyCreator for 10 years so I have loved it, but the difficulty working with Solidworks files is almost an insurmountable problem at the moment.

The price is good compared to Solidworks. The interface is relatively easy to use. The customer service response time is sometimes good, and other times very difficult.

The biggest problem KeyCreator has is that the industry standard in 3D modeling has gone to Solidworks which means that Kubotek needs to be able to interface with it. That appears to be a challenge. Most of my customers use Solidworks so it becomes a challenge to interface with them. Also, it is really easy to have files become messed up (meaning extra lines, faces warped, etc.) and not so easy to fix.

Awesome software-- we have seen this software develop since early 1990's- keep up the good work!

-Ease of changing (Box Move)-Quick-Does not have to use parametric features (not history driven)

-Please add a reference dimension quick button/check box so we do not have to add ( ) manually.-We also use SW for the analysis package- at one time you were developing this capability?

I have been using this software since I was 20 years old. It was called Cadkey. Now I'm 54. I mainly design all the plastic products that we manufacture in this software. As I mentioned, what I liked the most of it is its intuitiveness, I mean is very logic. Other CAD software doesn't have such intuitiveness, so it is very difficult to find the function you are looking for. Even though the rest of my designers use other CADs (because they are used to them), I have no problem to import their drawings, neither to export mine to them with the format they requiere.

The easy of use and how intuitive it is.

When handling too many entities, it is sometimes slow. In the past there use to be tutorials for each function, directly recorded in the software folder.

Being a 20+ user of Keycreator and know the software Inside out and it is a great tool for read and review files from our suppliers / customers. It also a great tool to make quick sketch or 3d reprensentation but Don't expect this tool to be a very robust solution for handling more complicate task of managing files. I think it fits well in small organization that are looking for a good bang for the buck solution

Keycreator is cheaper than ost MCAD software on the market. Easy to install and use one you are use to it you can import and work with almost any CAD file format and use the geometries as they were created in Keycreator.

Keycreator is far from being perfect. The interface is a bit outdated and many of the latest new features are not really well implemented as if there is a lack of cohesion. Layout mode is not the greatest and is not robust or reliable enought for most use (drawing updates create akward results). Defeaturing is one great feature of Keycreator but it is not working all the time.

We really enjoy that we can import and export many different file types. We receive many different file types from vendors and are required to send out different file types to our customers.

There are several bugs that have not been addressed over multiple different versions. We usually find work-arounds for them, but software maintenance is a concern. There are also features that are not present that would be useful, such as easy to use animation and collision detection.

Very easy to use. I like that it is compatible with multiple file types.

The main issue I have is the the online university. The tutorials are helpful but the order is chaotic. I wish it were more organized step by step, from the beginner stage and gradually get more advanced.Specifically there is one feature I think could be added. On a folded model there should be a way to change the sheet thickness without unfolding and re-folding after extruding the sheet.

Started with Cadkey 1.49 I think, taught KeyCreator through version 12. Its a great tool, but got to be harder to teach. A scaled down version for introductory classes, with steps to work up to a full blown version would be an improvement in my opinion. Taught Pre Engineering classes for 39 years, and Cadkey / KeyCreator for about 20 years to Juniors and seniors in high school.

The Old menu driven system was a great system for teaching. It reinforced terms of geometry and helped in problem solving at the student level. All the new icon driven systems are great for the experienced Engineer, but are overkill and discouraging for the beginning students. Icon driven systems can become a video game where students can make all kinds of neat objects without understanding the geometry behind them.

My least favorite part is when a new edition is released, and all of the icons have been changed and its like starting over with lesson plans and handouts.

Have been a user since the early days of CadKey. Has just kept getting better. Does exactly what they claim and customer service is excellent and not ‘big company’.

Simplicity, ease of use, reliability. I also like the fact there are many ways to approach a design task. I tried Solidworks but always felt restricted in my designing. With KeyCreator I always feel I am in control rather than the software controlling me.

Few cons, adjusting display colours can be a bit tedious.

We are sent files generated on many different design platforms, once translated into KeyCreator I can work with them all to prepare my files for machining, assembly and secondary processes such as electrodes. After nearly 30 years of CAD, almost all of it on KeyCreator and it's predecessors I can't really imagine myself using anything else.

Feature driven editing without a cumbersome history tree. Draw and Edit what you want, where you want when you want.

Animation and constrants could use some improvement.

No Design Tree like other software out on the market today, which I believe makes is easier to solid model. I use both SW and KeyCreator, by far I like KeyCreator more.

Most of the time when compressing or flattening a solid part it likes to leave little lines on the flattened shape, which can make it a pain when using the geometry for software like Espirt that uses 2d drawing for programing.

It has been the central plank of my contracting business for well over twenty years.

3D modelling (and 2D drawing and detailing) in a very natural, unconstrained, intuitive manner that is not only easy to use, but very quick in execution in most circumstances.

Bugs (but they all have those) and those few things in which I think I have a better idea than the programmers (you might call them idiosyncrasies).

In tooling development it is very helpful to see tool before fabrication so you know if it is going to work or not.

Easy to use and design creatively because you don't have to make sure everything is connected.

I wish that FEA was better. I have colleagues who say the FEA is not quite as good as ANSYS.

Have been using Keycreator for a very long time, seen many versions & updates. I have a tendacy to stick with a version that is stable with no errors. Reluctant to update as may have issues & current features are suffice.

Ease of use, compatible with other CAD models

Some updates create issues & have errors

I am a tool designer and have used CADkey to KeyCreator for many years and the functionality is very friendly for me. The cost value is important a very robust package for the money.

It is a designers software, very friendly to use. Designs are easy to change and revise, you just get started and alter as you go. The training tools help to understand the feature, the better you know the software feature the more productive you will be.

Exporting to other CAD softwares and have them functional. Like exporting to Solidworks and have the design alterable in Solidworks. The sheet metal functions are difficult for me to use, but maybe that is do to lack of training.