Mike Bray, vice-president of Innovation and DesignSpark at RS, revealed this recently during an update on the platform following the announcement earlier this year that RS was introducing paid-for versions of DesignSpark in addition to the previous free version, which will continue to be available.

RS expects around 90% of its 1.3 million DesignSpark members to stay with the free Explorer version. The paid-for subscription versions – Creator costing £9.99 a month and Engineer costing £14.99 – will add extra capabilities and will be aimed at more demanding users. For example, a cloud-based schematic generator and simulator is being added to the PCB design version. But Bray emphasises that the free version will continue to be developed further.

Users will be able to move between the versions, upgrading to a paid-for version for a short while if a project needs the extra functions.

The mechanical version of DesignSpark is the most popular, used by around 65% of members, followed by PCB design on 35% and electrical on 20% (there is some overlap between users). Bray admits that not much development work has been done of the electrical version for some time, but there are plans to change this.

DesignSpark users are spread around the world, with the largest base being in Japan which accounts for 15% of all users, followed by the UK on 14% and the US on 12%. The biggest user group by age are 18-34 year-olds, who make up more than a third of the total. Students account for about a fifth of users, while professionals make up about 40% – a similar proportion to enthusiasts and amateurs. The DesignSpark Web site attracts five million visitors a year.

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