New features in ARES Mechanical 2025 prove that Graebert’s software for mechanical design in DWG is a mature, robust solution that continues to grow.
During Graebert’s neXt event this year, Robert Graebert, Chief Technical Officer at Graebert GmbH, and Dani Ramiro, Marketing Manager at Graebert Japan, provided a detailed overview of ARES Mechanical, including the exciting new features shipped with the version 2025. In this article, we’ll cover the highlights of the presentation, but if you’d like to see the full-length keynote, you can watch a replay on YouTube: “2D Mechanical Drawings in DWG: ARES Mechanical Product Overview.”
The keynote covered the following topics:
The Importance of Supporting Legacy 2D Mechanical Drawings in DWG
ARES Mechanical is Graebert’s solution for mechanical design in the widely used DWG format. It combines powerful CAD tools based on ARES Commander with a full set of industry-specific features to quickly create and modify 2D mechanical drawings.
ARES Mechanical supports legacy mechanical drawings created in AutoCAD Mechanical (up to version 2021 of the AutoCAD Mechanical DWG file format). This means ARES Mechanical offers an affordable, practical way to continue working with these mechanical drawings, without being restricted to a single CAD program.
Existing Part References, Parts Lists, Bills of Materials, Balloons, and Symbols are all supported, and are fully compatible with AutoCAD Mechanical. Customers often need to update parts information in part references and produce updated drawings. With ARES Mechanical, these legacy files can be updated and maintain their compatibility with AutoCAD Mechanical when saved.
Why ARES Mechanical Is an Excellent Value
Since ARES Mechanical is based on ARES Commander, it has a familiar user interface, giving users the ability to work with the command line, layers, and customized workspaces, plus much more. They can also choose to display features in toolbars or a ribbon, as desired.
ARES Mechanical includes a Mechanical Workspace, which contains a specialized set of tools for mechanical design. These standardized tools are important to keep consistency across designs, drawings and manufacturing processes.
With this in mind, ARES Mechanical assists with the creation and modification of mechanical drawings according to all leading standards, including ISO, ANSI, DIN, BSI, and JIS.
Furthermore, the support for layer groups and the Mechanical Layers Manager offer significant time savings where these features are commonly used. For example, users may automatically separate layers by parts — even in legacy AutoCAD Mechanical drawings.
In addition to its native support for DWG, ARES Mechanical supports a wide variety of other file formats, including AutoCAD Mechanical DWG up to 2021, PDF, and some of the most common 3D file formats, such as STEP and IGES.
Mechanical Content
Using standardized mechanical content for mechanical design and manufacturing offers several advantages, such as improvements in consistency and efficiency.
ARES Mechanical includes standard mechanical parts to produce accurate drawings, such as hardware, screw connections, and various hole types. The 3DFindit Palette integrates an extensive library of CAD models from more than 6,000 suppliers directly into ARES Mechanical, allowing users to insert Part References as well.
The ARES Mechanical Toolbox allows users to insert standardized mechanical parts with just a few clicks.
Mechanical Annotations
Mechanical annotations are vital for communicating important information throughout the design and manufacturing process. ARES Mechanical includes standard mechanical annotations that can be read and modified from AutoCAD Mechanical, including Part References, BOMs, Parts Lists, Balloons, Frames, and Symbols.
Part References are fully customizable and can be inserted from the Mechanical Annotate ribbon tab.
The Nesting Manager
Traditional 2D CAD software relies on manual methods to prepare drawings for metal cutting, but the Nesting Manager in ARES Mechanical offers precise automated nesting instead, minimizing scrap and optimizing part placement. Users can adjust multiple parameters such as plate size, minimum part and plate clearance, and parts multiplier. The tool can be run multiple times so users can compare results and select the best option.
Run the Nesting Manager multiple times with different sheet sizes to compare results.
New Features in ARES Mechanical 2025
ARES Mechanical continues to evolve as a solid alternative to AutoCAD Mechanical. Read on to learn about the exciting new features included in version 2025!
Support for AutoCAD Mechanical DWG 2021
ARES Mechanical 2025 now supports AutoCAD Mechanical DWG files up to version 2021.
This means that mechanical entities such as Part References, Symbols, BOM, etc. can be opened and modified in ARES Mechanical, and vice versa, maintaining the legacy data.
Support for AutoCAD Mechanical Symbols
Essential engineering drawing symbols like Surface Finish Symbols, Datum Identifiers, and Feature Control Frames are now supported.
Support for AutoCAD Mechanical Detail Views and Section Lines
Detail Views magnify specific features in mechanical designs; Section Lines indicate the cutting plane through which a section view is taken. ARES Mechanical 2025 recognizes Detail Views and Section Lines created in AutoCAD Mechanical.
JMTools Ribbon
Mechanical drafters frequently invest significant time detailing mechanical parts. To dramatically reduce this time, we have developed a new suite of tools designed to streamline the preparation of these drawings.
ARES Mechanical 2025 includes a new ribbon tab named JMTools, which includes time-saving drafting tools to speed up the creation of 2D mechanical drawings. These include dimensioning tools, drawing tools, and utilities.
For example pressing the “U” key jumps to the next stacked dimensions, ensuring that these dimensions are equally vertically spaced.
After inserting the dimensions, it is possible to seamlessly connect or divide them using the “Join Dimension” or “Insert Dimension” tools. These efficient tools save valuable time by eliminating the need to delete and re-insert dimensions in case of errors.
The JMTools ribbon includes handy tools such as the ability to draw, insert, and break running dimensions with ease.
Because ARES Mechanical is based on ARES Commander, users with an ARES Trinity subscription or maintenance plan can benefit from ARES Trinity features for cloud and collaboration, such as synchronizing files over the Internet, view-only links, comments and markups, and email notifications. (Please note, however, that the mechanical features are not yet accessible in ARES Kudo and ARES Touch.) Visit the ARES Trinity page for more information.
Cloud and Collaboration Features in Action
As an example, if a drafter wants feedback on a DWG drawing from a colleague, the Trinity collaboration features allow the drafter to:
- Save the DWG to their preferred cloud storage service (Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, etc.)
- Create a unique view-only link for the colleague to check online, without the hassle of sending PDFs or email attachments.
- Automatically receive email notifications when comments and markups are added.
Share your mechanical drawings by creating a View-Only link that can be viewed in any web browser.]
In turn, the colleague can:
- Open the generated view-only link in any web browser. The link always ensures access to the latest version of the DWG file.
- Add comments and markups using a free Graebert Account, which don’t alter the original file, but provide additional information.
Share and leave feedback on DWG drawings using the Comments and Markups palette.]
The Future of ARES Mechanical
At the end of the keynote, a Q&A section was held to address questions about ARES Mechanical:
Question:
What are the challenges of maintaining legacy mechanical data today that ARES Mechanical can help to solve?
Robert Graebert’s answer: “Maintaining legacy mechanical data poses several challenges in today’s digital environment, including compatibility issues, and loss of information. Legacy mechanical data may be stored in outdated file formats or incompatible CAD systems, making it difficult to access and utilize.
ARES Mechanical provides support for a wide range of file formats, including not only common standard formats such as DWG and DXF, but also compatibility with AutoCAD Mechanical DWG files, ensuring seamless interoperability with existing data without the need for complex conversions or data migrations.
Not only that, combined with the online cloud and collaboration features of ARES Trinity, users can better streamline their design work, and keep better track of file updates in real time.”
Question:
What does the future for ARES Mechanical look like?
Robert Graebert’s answer: “We aspire to position ourselves as the premier alternative to AutoCAD Mechanical, and our ongoing efforts are dedicated to crafting a superior CAD program capable of seamlessly replacing it. In recent years, we have intensified our software development to ensure compatibility with AutoCAD Mechanical DWG files within ARES Mechanical, preserving all intelligent data intact. I am confident that we have now reached a level of maturity where prospective users will recognize and value ARES Mechanical’s key advantages, including its robust functionality and diverse range of licensing options.”
ARES Mechanical 2025 Free Trial
With ARES Mechanical 2025, you can open AutoCAD Mechanical DWG legacy drawings and make modifications without losing any data. Speed up your 2D mechanical drafting with ARES Mechanical 2025 today!