Innovation is quickly become the differentiator between market success and absolute failure in product design. Consumers have a plethora of choices today and are increasingly looking for products that are tailored to their specific needs and tastes. In addition, traditional manufacturers are being challenged by a new breed of competitors, those being smaller, more nimble […]
Why CAD Standards are Still Important
Product developers often caught up in the latest wiz-bang technology on the horizon and often let the simplest and most fundamental things slip between the cracks. Are you busy pondering the infinite possibilities of cloud computing? Or perhaps you’re imaging what will be possible with 3D printing of prototypes? Or thinking over how your company […]
In-House Prototyping: 3D Printer or CNC Machine?
Physical prototyping of parts has traditionally caused major bottlenecks in the product development cycle. Though somewhat of a necessary evil to build physical prototypes for testing, the process by which they are created causes significant delays in development and drives up over design costs. Traditionally when design teams need a part prototyped, they outsource it […]
How Mass Customization is Changing the Manufacturing Industry
Henry Ford, once rather famously said, “The customer can have it painted any color he wants, as long as it’s black.” Back in 1909 that type of business model worked. Customers clamored for the low prices offered by economies of scale, rather than a more expensive product that fit their unique needs. Ford was able […]
Growing Product Complexity Driving Demand for Simulation Software
Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is an advanced computer simulation technology used in engineering analysis. FEA is primarily a product design and testing technology, which is used to predict structural failures that occur in materials due to unidentified flaws such as stress. Based on finite element method (FEM)) technique, FEA simulations are conducted on parts and […]
Tech Innovations Spurring Revival of U.S. Manufacturing
A lot has been written in the press lately about the comeback of U.S. manufacturing. Several factors come into play here. Cost creep in China–due to rising inflation and wage expectations–means that as soon as 2015 the U.S. could be in cost parity with Chinese manufacturing. Fears regarding IP security have also forced manufacturers to […]
TransMagic Facilitates 3D CAD Comparison with MagicCheck R2
Dealing with the challenges of multi-CAD design environments has become a reality for nearly all product engineers and designers today. It’s nearly impossible to find a company that uses only one CAD system. Even those that do standardize on one system, chances are that they work with suppliers and partners who use a different system, […]
7 Career Advancement Tips for Engineers
There’s more to being a successful engineer than being good at math and science. Regardless of whether you graduated in May or 20 years ago, there are tips and strategies you can employ to increase your chances of career advancement, some of which might be surprising. So let’s take a look at some of these […]
Siemens Forms Partnership to Help Customers Automate Engineer-to-Order Processes
Manufacturers are under the gun increasingly today to develop more customized products for customers. Also referred to as “mass customization,” creating products with specific functionality for special niches of customers is at odds with traditional mass production methods that have been in place for years. In order to respond, companies must adapt and change both […]
Finding Better Ways to Manage “Big Data”
Some of the big buzzwords in the industry today are big data and the Internet of Things (IoT). Though sometimes the buzz that’s generated doesn’t always translate to real-world success, it’s hard to not believe that big data and IoT won’t in someway change the way change the way companies operate. The vast amounts of […]
Siemens NX Helps University Design Better Soccer Players
With all the excitement at full tilt with the 2014 FIFA World Cup underway in Brazil, the whole world seems to have gone soccer-crazy, with many people hitting local fields to practice their own ball-handling skills. At Graz University of Technology in Austria, that includes robots. The university is designing and building robots to be […]
GrabCAD Announces Integration with PTC Creo and Workbench Summer 2014 Release
It appears the folks at GrabCAD have been quite busy. The Cambridge-based startup is making two significant announcements today: the integration of its Workbench cloud-based file management platform with PTC Creo CAD software and the release of Workbench Summer 2014. Since PTC Live Global was just held this week in Boston, we’ll start with that […]
ETRAGE Announces PTC Windchill-SharePoint Integration App
ETRAGE, a systems integration and design process automation company, announced at PTC Live Global that it’s releasing Windchill EasySearch app for PTC Windchill PDMLink for CAD files and documents. A little background on ETRAGE: The company has been building solutions for PTC customers that help automate viewable file creation and management, integrate PTC Windchill with […]
PTC Releases Creo Elements/Direct v19.0
Another announcement made at this year’s PTC Live Global event was the release of PTC Creo Elements/Direct 19.0, direct modeling software that now includes productivity enhancements in modeling, drafting, collaboration and data management. As mentioned in the Creo 3.0 blog, the company also unveiled new technology it’s calling Unite technology that better supports multi-CAD environments. […]
Creo 3.0 Announced at PTC Live Global
Amid the excitement of users, partners, analysts and members of the press–along with hundreds of Boston-based employees, PTC announces the release of Creo 3.0. Among the most impressive of its enhancements and feature upgrades is what PTC has dubbed Unite Technology. Designed to help its customers overcome the struggles of dealing with CAD data in […]
Design Technology Behind the Scenes at 2014 World Cup
Every four years, national soccer–or football as the rest of the world calls it–teams from across the globe duke it out to determine the best square on the planet. An estimated one billion viewers will be glued to their seats watching the action that kicks off today in Brazil, nearly 900 million more than who […]
ETRAGE Demonstrates a Better Way to Share Files with SubContractors
ETRAGE LLC, a systems integration software company, will be presenting a solution that will make it easier for companies to provide access to 2D and 3D design files for their subcontractors at this year’s PTC’s Live Global Conference in Boston, June 15-17. The presentation will describe the process of how ETRAGE customer COM DEV Ltd. […]
Multiphysics Simulation Helps Miele Optimize Induction Stove Designs
Edited by: Barb Schmitz Less than a decade ago, if you were to ask a master chef which type of cook stove he preferred, he would have answered gas, without question. Now, however, Miele has provided both professional chefs and at-home cooks with another, better option: the induction cook stove. Induction cook stoves are known…
Graebert Ports its CAD Solution to All Mobile Platforms
Becoming the first CAD vendor to port its CAD software to all four mobile operating systems, Graebert GmbH announced last week that its ARES CAD software package will soon run on Google’s Android-based tablets (code-named Radon). The product will be officially released in the Fall. So far the reviews in terms of performance have been […]
How Crowdsourcing Can Help Innovate New Product Design
Great ideas can pop up anywhere. At the dinner table, in casual conversation with friends, or they might come to you in the middle of the night mid-REM stage. Regardless, of how and when they crop up, several new exciting trends have evolved over the past few years that have made it easier then ever […]
Luxion Releases KeyShot 5 Rendering Software
Rendering software is increasingly being put to use by design engineers to create downstream product collateral used to support, maintain and sell products–often before the product even exists in physical form. Rendered 3D models are also created and used early in the design process to speed the process of obtaining customer or management approval. Rendering […]
IronCAD Offers Free Training to Customers and Prospects
IronCAD, a provider of design productivity solutions, announces that its new introductory training program is now available for free to anyone evaluating IronCAD solutions. The program offers users best practices training aimed at improving the customer experience in design and collaboration by showing how to design better products, faster. Individual components of IronCAD 2014 can […]
Bombardier Uses Mentor Graphics Software for Electrical Wiring Design
Electrical systems and wire harness design is a complicated process. It’s even more complicated in the aerospace industry where all manufacturers must comply with a multitude of federal regulations. The Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part 25 Electrical Wiring Interconnection System (EWIS) mandate is now necessary for certification of new civil aircraft. With the FAA’s and […]
Autodesk Adds CAM Capabilities to Fusion 360
Advances in digital design and rapid fabrication technology coupled with crowd funding are pushing the edge of what’s possible and empowering more people to transform their innovative designs into products. Autodesk has been quick to respond to this so-called “maker” trend and last week introduced Spark, an open software platform for 3D printing. The goal […]
Dassault Unveils 3D Simulated Heart
In an exciting breakthrough in the study of heart disease and its treatment, Dassault Systèmes today announced its role in the creation of the world’s first realistic 3D simulation model of the human heart. The model was developed by a multidisciplinary team of heart experts working to combat cardiovascular disease. The goal of the “Living […]