PowerMill Reviews & Product Details

Versatile and highly user-friendly software. Few, if any, alternatives come close in terms of ease of use, intuitive learning curve, and overall usability. It also offers a solid range of strategies backed by a strong and supportive community. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

One major downside is the presence of several software bugs, some of which have persisted for years without resolution. There also haven’t been any significant software updates in the last 4–5 years, which makes the platform feel somewhat stagnant. Another major drawback is the subscription cost—especially in India—where it can often exceed the profits of small-scale industries, making the total cost of ownership quite high. Additionally, Autodesk PowerMill is quite inefficient in utilizing multicore processors, which limits performance gains from modern hardware and can impact productivity for compute-intensive tasks. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

In our project, we needed to move the endpoint of the robotic arm on a curved surface and so we needed to have the path on that surface. We used Powermill to get the path. One of the good things about Powermill is also you can use it to program industrial robots. There are not a lot of Softwares that could give G-code on a non-flat surface and also could simulate how the robot can do that movement and check the possibility for the robot to do it and at the end give me the data in robot's language. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

In the beginning, it was hard to use and I needed to spend a lot of time to learn how to start using it. I think it can become more user friendly and if I could find a course about how to using the software that would be awesome. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

You have basically everything in this program. 2,3,4 and 5 axis milling.. should I count more ? :) I would like to mention one thing especially. 'Nurbs' machining makes your process super fast. You will have smoother surface you've ever had. You won't need any hand finishing process. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Interface could be better. It's usual Autodesk product's interface but it could be much user friendly for like this program which has so many things inside. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

There are some codes for toolpaths for adding and editing them which is the most thing I've liked. Your project becomes together with your model file which is also positive thing. You have so many guides online. When you face any problem you probably will find the solution online. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Can't say that this program is user friendly because menu bar is so complicate especially for new users. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

- Comprehensive solution

- Easy to study

- Wide range of strategies

- Point distribution is the best way to smooth the toolpath and tool axis, that is essential problem in Robot programming.

- Ability to change non-machining moves (links, leads) without need to recalculate the entire toolpath.

- Simple and power toolkit for robotics programming

- Powerful Macro programming language that is enough to automate most routines in PowerMill. Moreover, Nuget package makes plugin creating simpler. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

- The rate of development reduces after Autodesk has acquired Delcam.

- Subscription is not good.

- Poor online help. I use help file (chm) from 2016 version because it is clearer and more professional

- MultiMove mode (two robots working with same workpiece) is not supported Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

In PowerMill the main advantage in machining 5th axis, a skill that software has for saving time in the machining of complex shapes and in a single machine preparation. In PowerMill are two forms of machining 3 and 5 axis, providing strategies for the additive and subtractive manufacturing of the same.

The key feature of this machining program lies in the wide range of high efficiency cutting strategies such as roughing, finishing, 5-axis machining techniques, the exceptional speed in the internal mathematical calculation and in the power of the tools of editing to ensure optimizing the performance of the machine tool. PowerMill can import models in standard formats from any CAD system such as IGES, VDA, STL, among others and also from its own PowerShape products. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

For calculating trajectories on old equipment

PowerMill quits unexpectedly when calculating trajectories on computers with processors that are not compatible. However, it is only an issue that can be solved as you progress in the development of this program Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

You don't need to change the entire toolpath when you make a mistake or want to change. Also, when you decide on a toolpath, the UI shows how you can adapt the tool so you don't need to redo the whole process from the beginning. These two features make your process easier. No need to say anything about the quality of AutoDesk and their support. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

AutoDesk builds their programs separately. We could have an all-in-one solution, but we can't. After working on an AutoDesk program, they send an email after getting used to the previous program saying, "Hello! Wanna try this one?" and probably all users are like, "Oh, here we go again." Programs work perfectly, but an all-in-one would be better. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Program is the one of the best and you can use so many guides about it. You can program 3 and 5 axis machines. Also you can develop that program ONLINE! You heard me. One of my client from India said they've done it. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

They've changed colors with update. Most of people doesn't like it and they're still using version of 2017 or older. We were used to see menu's color but it's a little bit confusing now. Also I need to say, it's not a big minus for program. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

They're developing themselves greatly. Like, I was user before and I check the updates after done my job with program lately. I saw that they added some pretty good things to make toolpaths and make them edit. Program was user friendly and it still is. AutoDesk feels and knows the users. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I still don't understand why AutoDesk doesn't offer an all-in-one solution instead making different programs for every problem :) Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I'm very happy to used to this program. I was foreign to CNC and 5-axis machining. It was my first program we learned at university. Interface is so simple. You will feel comfortable when you enter the program because they gave you so many space to see your progress and manage it. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I had my own computer issued with this program. Nothing because of it. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.