JELD-WEN

JELD-WEN makes millions of door and window options available online as accurate renderings and models. From its start in 1960 with just 15 employees, window and door maker JELD-WEN has been synonymous with manufacturing quality. Today, the company employs roughly 21,000 people, and its reputation for designing and making high-quality residential doors and windows remains strong. Looking to better meet changing customer expectations, the company’s digital marketing team is dedicated to creating an online experience that matches the quality of JELD-WEN’s many products.

Challenge

When an architect is trying to identify the perfect window option for a house they are designing, it can be frustrating when a manufacturer only offers online images (or Revit design models) of a single style. For example, a manufacturer may only depict an example of the sash style of a window online, and not the casement or bay styles that are also offered. This makes it difficult for the architect to visualize and pick the right style. Unfortunately it’s an all-too-common problem for architects because in order to provide images of every option, manufacturers like JELD-WEN would have to keep more than 100,000 files per major product line updated. Because it’s been traditionally rare to make every option available in an online image, purchasing choices have been complicated for consumers and architects alike. JELD-WEN wanted to change the way it has been done previously, and improve the customer experience, by making all product lines—and their associated colors, styles, and material variations—available for online exploration.

How JELD-WEN solved it with Forge

The JELD-WEN team realized that the traditional workflow for making images and models of product options available online wasn’t sustainable. It took as long as 3 months to update the more than 100,000 files associated with any major update to a product line. Seeking to transform that process, JELD-WEN decided to use Forge to more automatically provide accurate visualizations of product options.

The JELD-WEN team worked with Autodesk to create a Forge-powered product configurator. Product models still originate with the JELD-WEN design and engineering team—but now, when final, that team uses Fusion 360 product development software to connect design models to the Forge-powered online configurator. The Forge Data Management API then manages that data as it moves through the configuration process. The Forge Model Derivative API prepares the data so that it reflects customer choices and can be retrieved by the Forge Viewer, which then makes the models viewable.

Using the configurator, a consumer or architect can go online, select product options, and see the exact product requested. They can zoom in and view details— getting as granular as examining joints and wood grain. The Forge APIs driving the solution automatically generate the requested visualization without the JELD-WEN team ever having to create it manually. Accurate visualizations come directly from approved production models, but in a format that’s readily viewable online. Architects can even download automatically generated Revit models of product options for use in their designs.

Forge highlights include the following:

• Cuts the time required to get product lines online from 3 months to a few days
• Helps consumers and architects choose the correct JELD-WEN doors and windows
• Saves the digital marketing team more than 700 hours of work per product line, freeing time and resources to drive sales with brochures and ads

APIs and Services

Viewer

Model Derivative API