For Alexander Kiefer, Research and Development Engineer, this harmony is made possible through CATIA on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform a solution that enables him to model, simulate, and visualize every curve, seam, and frame with unmatched freedom.
From the Black Forest to the Digital Workshop: Engineering Comfort
Designing a Rolf Benz sofa is not just about aesthetics: it’s about translating a feeling of comfort into a precise digital model that can withstand real-world demands.
The main challenges are tight timelines, budget constraints and the balancing between aesthetics and quality requirements for strength, durability and product safety, says Alexander Kiefer.
Each new design must embody Rolf Benz’s signature elegance while meeting the rigorous standards of strength, durability, and safety expected of a premium product. This requires a seamless bridge between creative design intent and engineering validation: a bridge that CATIA provides.
By digitizing traditional craftsmanship, Alexander and his team can iterate designs faster, experiment with materials virtually, and ensure that every detail from the wooden frame blend to the smooth organic surfaces of the upholstery: it reflects both beauty and precision.
Modeling the Impossible: Organic Surfaces with CATIA Imagine & Shape
Luxury furniture design demands geometry that feels natural, tactile, and human. For Alexander, this means mastering complex organic surface modeling and CATIA gives him exactly that power.
CATIA comes with a bunch of modeling features with which we can cover many different manufacturing processes of the furniture industry, he explains. From the blending of wooden frames to the surface modeling of complex organic shapes, we can perform all design tasks with CATIA efficiently and fast.
Using CATIA Imagine & Shape, Alexander builds smooth, continuous surfaces that flow seamlessly from armrest to backrest forms that are as comfortable to sit on as they are beautiful to look at. Through visual scripting, he refines subtle details like stitching lines, curvature transitions, and ergonomic contours details that define the emotional connection between product and user.
I have specialized in surface modeling of complex organic shapes for form molding technology and also in product visualization, he adds. Imagine & Shape, together with visual scripting, are the tools I use most often.
These tools allow Rolf Benz to capture the soul of craftsmanship within a digital environment, where imagination is no longer limited by the constraints of physical modeling.
Designing for Reality: Strength, Simulation, and Collaboration
A sofa’s comfort is only meaningful if it lasts. Ensuring durability means testing not only materials, but how design choices perform under daily use. Here, CATIA’s integration with the 3DEXPERIENCE platform allows engineers to run strength simulations using the same model data created during design eliminating data silos and errors.
Collaboration on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform allows us to support the design process with strength simulations under usage of the same data source, notes Alexander.
This approach ensures that every model is both aesthetic and structurally validated before production even begins. The result: fewer physical prototypes, faster decision cycles, and a more sustainable design process.
By working within a single, unified platform, Rolf Benz’s designers, engineers, and manufacturing teams can co-create in real time, ensuring that product development aligns perfectly with production realities.
Bringing Visualization Home: In-House Creativity with 3DEXCITE
Traditionally, high-quality product visualizations were outsourced to external agencies. But by integrating CATIA Imagine & Shape with 3DEXCITE, Rolf Benz has transformed visualization into an in-house capability and in doing so, empowered the very engineers who understand the products best.
With the implementing of CATIA, Imagine & Shape, we enabled the opportunity to create product visualization data for a wide range of use cases, explains Alexander. Complemented by the capabilities of 3DEXCITE, we are now able to insource the service of product visualization to the experts with the best product knowledge in-house, the development team of Rolf Benz.
This shift represents more than just operational efficiency: it’s a cultural evolution. Now, the same team that defines the structural behavior of a sofa also creates its visual identity for marketing and presentation. The line between design, engineering, and storytelling has blurred, giving Rolf Benz complete creative control from concept to showroom.
Through this digital transformation, the company has enhanced collaboration, accelerated workflows, and ensured that every rendered image reflects true craftsmanship, not just a visual approximation.
Conclusion
At Rolf Benz, design and engineering no longer operate in parallel, they coexist in a single, connected digital space.
With CATIA and the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, Alexander Kiefer and his colleagues have redefined what it means to craft luxury furniture: precision-driven artistry supported by seamless collaboration and real-world validation.
By embracing digital craftsmanship, Rolf Benz continues to deliver products that embody timeless elegance and modern innovation—proving that even in the age of automation, human creativity remains at the heart of great design.
FAQ
1. How does CATIA help Rolf Benz design high-quality furniture?
CATIA enables Rolf Benz engineers to create complex organic surfaces and precise wooden frame blends efficiently, ensuring every piece of furniture meets the brand’s high standards for comfort, durability, and elegance.
2. Why is CATIA Imagine & Shape essential for furniture designers?
CATIA Imagine & Shape allows designers like Alexander Kiefer to sculpt freeform, organic geometries that replicate handcrafted forms digitally ideal for luxury furniture requiring both aesthetic appeal and ergonomic precision.
3. How does the 3DEXPERIENCE platform improve collaboration at Rolf Benz?
The 3DEXPERIENCE platform connects design, simulation, and manufacturing teams through a single data source, reducing errors and accelerating project timelines while maintaining consistency across all development stages.
4. What advantages does CATIA offer for visualization and marketing?
By integrating CATIA with 3DEXCITE, Rolf Benz now produces high-quality visualizations in-house. This empowers engineers to showcase designs accurately for presentations, marketing, and customer engagement directly from the original 3D data.
5. How does CATIA contribute to sustainable and efficient product development?
CATIA’s simulation and modeling tools allow Rolf Benz to validate strength and performance digitally, minimizing the need for physical prototypes and reducing waste supporting both innovation and sustainability goals.
