In 2024, a manufacturing client lost over R200 000 in rework and missed delivery penalties – because one of their senior engineers had quietly left the company, taking years of critical design decisions with him. No documentation. No accessible rationale. No traceable approval trail. Only vague assumptions about what he “would have done.”

This is not an isolated incident.

As an Engineering Consultant at MECAD Technologies, I’ve seen firsthand how the absence of structured design data can paralyse a team. Collaborating with clients across complex industries, I’ve observed the serious risks companies face when design decisions and engineering knowledge are not properly captured, centralised, or traceable.

In this article, I’ll walk you through the real issue companies face when design knowledge isn’t institutionalised, share stories from the field, and offer actionable strategies for protecting your design intelligence using centralised, automated systems like SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional.

The Real Problem: It’s Not Just People You’re Losing

Let me be blunt: when a senior engineer resigns or retires, it’s not just a gap in staffing – it’s a strategic risk to your business continuity.

These individuals carry years of nuanced decision-making:

• Why a certain material was chosen over another
• The logic behind a unique fastening design
• Exceptions made to design rules for specific client needs
• Approval chains that lived only in emails or hallway conversations

Without a structured system to capture that information, their departure means:

• Repeating failed design experiments
• Guessing at rationale
• Delaying sign-offs due to uncertainty
• Creating inconsistent or duplicate models

Case in Point

One of my clients in the aviation sector relied heavily on a senior mechanical designer for a critical product line. After his resignation, the team couldn’t find the correct configuration of a key assembly. It existed – but only on his desktop. No revision trail. No central source of truth. The team spent six weeks recreating the design and running new tests. The delay cost them a strategic client and R300 000 in penalties.

When we investigated further, we found hundreds of part files with no naming convention, approval status, or history. The company had invested millions in R&D – yet their most valuable asset, their engineering knowledge, was scattered, undocumented, and vulnerable.

Insight #1: Treat Knowledge as Infrastructure

Just like you wouldn’t run a factory without a power grid, you shouldn’t run a design office without a structured data management system. This is where SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional plays a critical role.

It’s not just about storing CAD files. It’s about:

• Capturing the design intent behind each model revision
• Automating the approval process across multiple stakeholders
• Tracking design history and rationale

Ensuring everyone – new hires included – works from the same version-controlled source

What We Recommended

For the client above, we implemented SOLIDWORKS PDM with a custom property-driven data card that captured:

• Design notes
• Materials used
• Revision reason
• Linked emails and PDFs from the decision-making process

This transformed tribal knowledge into institutional knowledge – accessible to the whole team, not just the person who designed it.

Insight #2: Build for Continuity, Not Just Compliance

Most companies wait until they hit a crisis – like a resignation or audit – before they consider formalising their data.

But the smartest organisations take a proactive approach. They understand that structured data equals resilience.

Pro Tip

Set up parallel approval processes inside your PDM system. That way, knowledge isn’t siloed with one person. Engineering, quality, and production can all sign off simultaneously – reducing delays and building cross-functional accountability.

Another client in the custom vehicle space added bill of material (BOM) management and routing logic into PDM. This allowed any engineer joining mid-project to instantly understand the build sequence and design rationale – even if the original designer was gone.

Insight #3: Streamline Onboarding with Process-Embedded Knowledge

A major pain point I hear from managers is how long it takes to get new hires up to speed. Without structured access to historical designs, new engineers waste time:

• Recreating models that already exist
• Accidentally referencing outdated versions
• Asking “where does this live?” 20 times a day

When PDM is implemented properly:

• Every file has context and traceability
• Every change is justified and documented
• Every new employee can follow the breadcrumbs

This doesn’t just save time – it builds confidence. One company we worked with saw onboarding time for new engineers drop from three months to three weeks after implementing PDM with customised training workflows and pre-filled templates.

Conclusion: Don’t Let Your Designs Walk Out the Door

The companies that survive talent transitions and scale successfully are not the ones with the most experienced engineers – they’re the ones with the most institutionalised knowledge.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: design intelligence that lives in someone’s head is a liability. And without a system like SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional to protect that knowledge, you’re not just risking productivity – you’re gambling with your company’s future.

Key Takeaways

• You can’t retain people forever – but you can retain their knowledge.
• A file server is not a data management system.
• Structured design history reduces onboarding time, rework, and risk.
• PDM is a strategic investment in business continuity – not just an IT tool.

If your engineering knowledge isn’t documented, traceable, and accessible, it’s only a matter of time before you feel the cost.

Start capturing your knowledge today – before it leaves tomorrow.