Discover how SOCOFER uses SEE Electrical Expert to enhance the reliability of its electrical designs in the railway industry

Today, we are fully benefiting from the tangible advantages of SEE Electrical Expert, and we would like to thank ETAP for the quality of its support throughout our learning and implementation process.
Grégory Léger, Industrial Electrical Designer, SOCOFER

SOCOFER undertook this project to improve the accuracy, reliability, and consistency of its electrical designs while optimizing collaboration within its engineering team. By adopting SEE Electrical Expert, they modernized their design workflow, reduced the risk of errors, and accelerated technical documentation updates to support the production of high performance railway vehicles.

SOCOFER is a French manufacturer specializing in the design, modernization, and production of technical railway vehicles. With several decades of expertise, the company supports rail operators with reliable, robust solutions tailored to the most demanding environments.

Location: Tours, France

Year: 2025

Objectives and methods

Modernizing design processes for greater reliability and safety

SOCOFER was looking for a solution capable of:

  • Producing accurate and detailed electrical schematics, even for complex architectures
  • Reducing the risk of errors throughout the entire design cycle
  • Ensuring consistent documentation, including audits and certifications
  • Facilitating collaboration between designers and project managers
  • Accelerating the updating and delivery of technical documents
  • Meeting the strict standards of the railway sector (traceability, safety, compliance)

SEE Electrical Expert was evaluated in this case study, and SOCOFER discovered that it could meet all of these needs through its unified, structured platform suitable for critical industries such as the production of railway vehicles.

Products used

  • SEE Electrical Expert: An advanced electrical CAD software used to create precise and detailed schematics, to ensure documentation consistency throughout the design cycle, to reduce errors through built-in validation tools, and to support collaborative work through its Concurrent Engineering module.
  • Concurrent Engineering : A SEE Electrical module that enables multiple designers to work simultaneously on the same project with version control, conflict-free updates, and improved coordination across the engineering team.
  • SEE Electrical Expert Training – Level 1 and Level 2:  A progressive training pathway that helps teams build their skills, master the software environment, adopt harmonized working methods, and fully leverage the advanced capabilities of SEE Electrical Expert.

What we delivered

  • A Concurrent Engineering Platform which allows multiple engineers to work in parallel while avoiding version conflicts.
  • Advanced Schematic Editor to enable the creation of precise, structured, and easy-to-maintain schematics.
  • Automated Documentation for the rapid generation of bills of materials, device tags, cable lists, and up-to-date project files.
  • Error Checking & Validation for early detection of inconsistencies and reduced risk of rework.
  • Customizable Libraries & Templates to support the standardization of symbols and optimization of design cycles.
  • An efficient Change Management Workflow for revision tracking, essential for railway compliance.
  • Optimized Skills Development through progressing training programs to enable teams to master the SEE Electrical Expert software

“The Concurrent Engineering module allowed us to work simultaneously on the same project. We avoid downtime, eliminate multiple versions, and everyone moves forward together. The result: shorter design cycles, smoother task distribution, and far fewer synchronization errors.”

Grégory Léger, Industrial Electrical Designer, SOCOFER

Outcomes

  • Error reduction: built-in validation tools help detect issues early, before the manufacturing stage
  • Improved documentation: consistent, audit-ready files for operators and regulatory authorities
  • Faster delivery cycles: fewer revisions, fewer back-and-forth iterations, and more productive engineering time
  • Enhanced collaboration: teams work more efficiently together thanks to Concurrent Engineering
  • Increased compliance: SEE Electrical Expert supports the strict safety, traceability, and quality requirements of the railway industry

“Before, our process was more rigid and we often lost time, sometimes even doing rework. Today, it’s the opposite. The software has become central, our methods are harmonized, and we’ve gained real efficiency. It’s not just a tool — it’s a working method, a shared platform that structures our collaboration.”

Grégory Léger, Industrial Electrical Designer, SOCOFER



Videos

Discover how SOCOFER optimizes its electrical designs with SEE Electrical Expert

SOCOFER, a French manufacturer of railway equipment specialized in the design, modernization, and production of technical rail vehicles, shares its feedback on the use of SEE Electrical Expert within its engineering teams. In this video filmed at SOCOFER’s headquarters in Tours, Mr. Léger explains the key challenges of electrical design in the railway sector. He also identifies the concrete benefits provided by SEE Electrical Expert, including more accurate modeling of electrical schematics, reduced risk of design errors, improved documentation consistency throughout the entire design cycle, and significant time savings in producing and updating technical files.

With SEE Electrical Expert, SOCOFER strengthens the reliability of its railway vehicles and accelerates its design processes in a context where technical and regulatory requirements are increasingly demanding. Watch their full testimonial in this video.


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