You’re Still Modeling That Manually?

How Custom Features Save You from Repetition Purgatory

Designing in CAD should be fun. Design is where creativity overcomes challenges and trade-offs are carefully considered. But let’s be real: most of us spend a huge chunk of time redoing the same tasks, again and again and again. Adding holes with specific offsets. Modifying sheet metal to meet standards. Rebuilding the same patterns from scratch.

That’s not creativity. That’s CAD Groundhog Day.

Enter Custom Features in Onshape — your fast track to automation and sanity.

The Real Problem: Death by Repetition

Every engineering team has its “thing” — design rules, company standards, prep for manufacturing, etc. And while those are critical for consistency and quality, they often come at a cost: time.

That time is spent repeating the same modeling steps hundreds of times a week, and all of that takes away from the work that actually matters.

The Fix: Custom Features

Onshape Custom Features are reusable modeling tools you can create — or grab from the community — that do exactly what you need, without the repetition. And the best part? You can learn to make your own Custom Features tailored to your specific workflow needs.

They’re written in FeatureScript, Onshape’s open-source language for building custom tools directly inside the CAD environment. But you don’t need to be a developer to benefit — thousands of proven features are already out there and easy to plug right into your workspace.

These aren’t macros or design library hacks. They’re robust, shareable, cloud-native tools that feel like native features.

Real Examples, Real-Time Saved

Engineers are using Custom Features to:

• Automatically place mounting bosses for electronics enclosures

• Add SAE Standard Straight Spline on the end of shafts

• Create snap hooks for your plastic parts 
  
  

Once created, these features live right in the Onshape interface. No add-ons, no version issues, no IT help desk ticket needed.

Why Engineers Love Custom Features

Here’s why Custom Features are a game-changer:

• Cloud-Native: No installs. No software updates. Just log in and go. Every update is live instantly.
• Shareable with a Link: Distribute features across teams or your whole org instantly—without IT.
• Collaborative by Nature: Work on feature logic together, in real-time, in the browser.
• No More Maintenance Nightmares: Unlike old-school macros, Custom Features don’t break every time software updates.
  
  

Ready to Work Smarter?

You weren’t hired to click the same five buttons 30 times a day. You were hired to solve hard problems and build incredible products.