Hey all,

We are in the middle of a migration to Business Central (formerly known as NAV) and are seeking an ERP connector solution. We eventually want to get to a PDM solution but were trying to avoid that for now in the interest in keeping the CAD side as consistent as possible until we get through the bumps associated with the implementation of a new business system.

The first solution we came across was CADLink, which is all we were looking for, but seemed a really hefty price tag for what it does. We did a little more digging and encountered Agni Link, which seems very comparable in many ways, but the pricing structure is very different, and seems like in the long run, will also get very expensive for what we get out of it. I would be interested for users with CADLink or Agni Link to weigh in with their opinions and experiences using these tools. The main difference from the phone calls/presentations seems to be AL stating they allow an unlimited number of fields to be mapped for export/import and allow users to add and map them. They stated that their belief was that CADLink only allows 6 fields as standard, then starts charging to add anything more.

Please help me get a crash course, as we are supposed to make a decision by today or Monday. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Side note: All of the PDM/ERP connector combo packages I seem to review seem very intrusive on the SW side as Add-Ins that want you to use their tabs for all properties populating and filing activities (auto-numbering, etc.). SW EPDM seems to leave SW to run as SW, but has no connector, so you are still stuck with CADLink $ or something else on top of EPDM costs. ($$$!) Would also be interested in experiences others have with this, as we are headed that way in the next year or two. Is anyone aware of a slick combo package that is not so intrusive into you day-to-day workings with SW? We would be looking for a PDM with a two-way connector. I used Autodesk Product Stream Pro in a past life and the way it synched with the ERP system and you linked all of you documents was pretty effective. Would love something similar, if possible.