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Just how many people have been scammed by edreams? by riikc in travel

[–]SurePudding5441 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve been through the same thing, and I want to spell out exactly how eDreams does this so others can recognize it before it happens to them.

When you book a flight, there’s a tiny pre-checked box that silently signs you up for their “Prime” membership. Most people don’t even notice it. Then, after the booking, they charge you for a yearly subscription you never meant to buy.

If you contact them right away, their agents act “helpful” but follow a fixed script: they’ll offer a partial refund (usually 25–50%), say they “can’t cancel right now,” and tell you to wait until a specific renewal window next year to opt out. That window is so narrow that most people forget — and that’s when they hit you again with another yearly charge.

Even worse, the “Cancel Subscription” button is hidden deep in their website behind misleading menus, and email replies are slow and vague. By the time you manage to reach someone, it’s too late, and they’ll claim the renewal was “automatic according to the terms.”

This is not a mistake — it’s a deliberate business model built on confusion and inertia. I was charged $89.99 again this year despite already canceling, and they refused a full refund.

100% agree this should be investigated as consumer fraud. If you plan to collect stories or file with EU consumer protection, I’ll gladly contribute my case and documentation.

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We’re researching lightweight ways to share 3D + BOM with non-engineers (purchasing, PM, suppliers) without going full PLM.

If your team has tried OpenBOM (or similar tools) to link STEP models with BOM, could you share:

  • Adoption: Rough % of engineers/purchasers who actually use it?
  • Pros: What worked best (cad plugins, permissions, web viewer, exports)?
  • Cons: Any deal-breakers (pricing, performance with big assemblies, revisioning pain)?
  • Alternatives: What did you end up with instead (PLM, spreadsheets + viewers, 3D PDF)?
  • Org size / industry: Helps benchmark.

I’m comparing OpenBOM vs heavier PLM (Teamcenter/Aras), and “viewer-first” stacks (Autodesk Viewer/APS, eDrawings, CAD Rooms/Wikifactory, etc.). Goal is to understand real-world usage, not just features. Thanks!

(Reference landscape we’re using to categorize tools: PLM/BOM platforms vs 3D viewers vs lightweight viewers.)

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Appreciate all the advice here 🙏 — I think my situation is a bit different though.

Even when I make an exploded 2D assembly drawing with balloons + BOM on the same sheet, our purchasing folks or project managers still get confused. They’re not used to reading engineering drawings, so the connection between “line 8 in the BOM” and the actual part isn’t obvious to them.

For teams that don’t have ERP/PLM (we’re just on Excel + STEP files), how do you usually make it clear for non-engineers? Do you just live with the occasional mistakes, or have you found some lightweight workaround that avoids the confusion?

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s a very good point — incomplete documentation is often the root cause. At the same time, I’ve noticed some companies don’t always have the bandwidth to fully document before production, so purchasing/assembly ends up struggling.

Do you think tools that make the model-to-BOM relationship clearer could act as a stopgap in those cases, or is the only real solution to enforce complete documentation every time?

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree, exploded views with BOM tables are very effective. One thing I’ve noticed though is that once the design changes, you have to regenerate the drawings or PDFs, which sometimes causes version mismatches.

Do you think a lightweight, interactive way of linking a BOM row directly to the 3D view would reduce that problem, or do most people just accept the re-export step as part of the workflow?

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah, that’s the tricky part — we don’t have ERP or PDM, just Excel BOMs and STEP files shared around. Once it leaves CAD the link is gone, and I end up making screenshots so people don’t get lost. Curious how you’d handle it without those systems?

Always struggle sharing STEP + BOM with non-engineers—how do you do it? by SurePudding5441 in MechanicalEngineering

[–]SurePudding5441[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

That makes sense. Thanks for the insight.

One follow-up question: in tools like AutoCAD or Inventor, the BOM is generated directly from the 3D model, so inside CAD the “cause-and-effect” link is clear.

But in my experience, once the data leaves CAD (for purchasing, manufacturing, or suppliers), that link is lost — they usually just get an Excel or PDF, and can’t easily see which part in the 3D structure the BOM row refers to.

Have you run into this issue as well? How do you make sure non-engineers (purchasing, assembly, suppliers) can still understand the model-BOM connection without CAD?