Hello
Do you also have a lot of file volume problems when you export in .step (when it works) or parasolid?
I regularly receive files and these are not heavy and when we do them with sw2017, these are 4 to 5x heavier.
What we do: Save each large assembly as a part, option: Ext body only, then we replace them and fix them in the main assembly to try the export.
What do you mean by "file volume issues"?
You say that the files you receive are smaller than yours, are they generated with the same software?
I don't think that the cutting of S/E changes anything about the export in step which is a surface representation, I even have the idea that it can be counterproductive. It's better to make simplified configs
A conveyor "simplify" by filling and merging volumes, will be 50MB while I can receive full production line steps of the order of 50MB as well. a little less detailed, certainly.
Of course this is not done with solidworks for what I receive.
Not the same machine, not the same software, you can't compare anything.
In this area, a simple hole has influence
If it's for file storage/sending problems , don't forget that a step or xt file compresses a lot.