multibody model: use ref. planes or body surfaces to drive key features?

Hi there,

I'm building a multibody part with 3 parts:

PCB solid body

Top Enclosure solid body

Bottom Enclosure solid body

The PCB has components that drive enclosure ribs / holes etc.

To build a well-made model parametrically, can I simply use the surfaces on the PCB solid to drive the dimensions on the enclosure, or should I use those surfaces to create reference geometry such as a plane, and build my enclosure features using the reference geometry?

I see that if the specified part were to change, I'd have to change the component, which would introduce a new face, which would break those links.

Any other issues to consider when approaching these types of references?

Thanks

Travis

SolidworksPlastics And Mold Design