ECAD/MCAD Collaboration

Learn how to enable bi-directional collaboration between electrical and mechanical design teams using MCAD CoDesigner in Altium Develop, eliminating the manual file exports, delayed handoffs, and clearance issues that slow down electromechanical product development.

Topics cover the full scope of ECAD-MCAD collaboration for electronics teams: synchronizing PCB designs with your mechanical CAD environment through native plugin integration; transferring advanced copper geometry, extruded copper, and 3D mask layers for detailed mechanical checks and FEA; synchronizing keepouts and rooms so both teams stay aware of restricted regions; collaborating on rigid-flex PCB designs with shared region definitions; exchanging harness wire properties and bundle lengths between ECAD and MCAD for accurate manufacturing documentation; and leveraging native component linkage to preserve full model fidelity across both domains.