CAD and engineering software covers computer-aided design, 3D modelling, simulation and the product data management around them. Manufacturers, architects, construction firms and research groups use it to design parts and buildings, test them virtually and hand drawings to production.
Design files hold a company's technical know-how, often for decades, and engineering work frequently falls under export-control, defence or customer confidentiality requirements. Cloud-based CAD stores that intellectual property and its version history on the vendor's servers, and licence servers or subscription checks can restrict access to your own archive. Lock-in is typically severe: native formats are proprietary, parametric feature trees do not transfer cleanly between systems, and simulation set-ups depend on the vendor's solver. Neutral formats such as STEP (ISO 10303) support exchange and long-term archiving of geometry and product data, but they usually carry the result rather than the editable design intent.
When choosing a European option, ask whether the software runs fully offline or on-premises, how licensing behaves without a connection, which neutral formats can be imported and exported, whether the file format is documented, how data in cloud collaboration is stored and encrypted, and how your suppliers work with it.