How 3D Modeling Software Changed Engineering

November 24, 2025

Safa Ahmad

Brooklyn Technical High School 

11th Grade

Engineering at its roots

Engineering encompasses a wide variety of branches that specialize in all the fields that have built our world to what it is today. Whether that be architectural, environmental, electrical, or many more, they require the same basic necessity of planning. Building successful and efficient objects, systems, and structures entails designing and prototyping. 

Traditionally, engineers have done so by first crafting blueprints with handmade tools and then steadily evolving from the 16th to 19th century, where more developed utensils such as T-squares and advanced compasses were being utilized. Due to all processes being done by hand, the engineering design process was much more tiresome and susceptible to inaccuracy. Still, the majority of the biggest wonders of the world were built from the hand-drawn plans and blueprints of traditional engineering, illustrating sophisticated techniques and beautiful craftsmanship.

It wasn’t until the early 1980s, when computers first began to develop, that the first 3D modeling software was launched. In 1983, Autodesk would release AutoCAD, permanently changing the direction of engineering and the operation of bringing a sketch to life. 

What is 3D modeling software?

3D modeling software is a platform that allows engineers to combine detailed sketches of their prototypes and systems into one cohesive project. Software such as SolidWorks, SolidEdge, and many CAD platforms, including Inventor and Fusion, contain tools and features that build the draft of what our engineers wish to materialize. They create visualizations and allow for the manipulation of constraints and properties in order to test and analyze models in a virtual setting. 

The development of computers and Microsoft has aided in the progression of online resources for engineers and created a functioning world on our screens that gives anyone the means to outline and develop an idea, big or small, and create something worthy of changing the world.

In what ways has it changed engineering?

The benefits of using this softwares are immense. They have developed quickly since their first releases in the previous millennium and now work on a more reliable and detailed foundation. This allows for collaboration on a single file, increasing productivity and giving project managers the ability to schedule and assign tasks. Furthermore, anyone from any part of the world can access the same project file, allowing work from home or even work from another country. 

The computer also ensures that all measurements are precise and that all computations are correct and in compliance with the entire design. This reduces costs heavily, and the online storage of these designs also allows for thier recycling and reuse in the future. 

Why should you care?

At one point or another in your life, you have had to put yourself in the mind of an engineer and find a solution to a problem that is faced not just by you, but by the world. No matter how miniscule the problem may have been, the engineering design process is what helped reach a solution. 3D modeling software helps not just reach solutions but create the unthinkable and make the impossible possible. 

These software programs are an incredible tool and a testament to the highly developing times we live in. Take advantage of the world around you and allow yourself to immerse in the wonderful and mesmerizing industry that is engineering.