When it comes to design reuse, we’ve had such grand plans. There’s always been a need. It might vary by industry, but designers and engineers rarely start a new design from a clean sheet. Why would they? Most product improvements are incremental and evolutionary, not revolutionary. The best way to meet short deadlines is to …
Technology Insights
Direct or Parametric: Which is the Best for Winning New Business?
There you are, at the conference table across from the prospective customer. They’re sitting back. You’re leaning forward. Rapid fire questions fill the room. One of your tasks is to answer them with surety — to make them feel comfortable that your company can fulfill their needs completely.
Simulation Needs Parametric and Direct Modeling
In recent years, much has been made about the relevance of direct modeling on simulation activities. Somewhere along the way, many have forgotten how parametric modeling is just as important. In this post, we’ll take a look at why simulation activities need to be enabled by both.
PDM is a Personal Productivity Tool
Ready for a rousing debate on Product Data Management (PDM)? It may not be the most compelling topic, but reading up on it has its uses. In a pinch, it’s a surefire way to get to sleep on time. It’s a fine alternative to watching paint dry. And make no mistake, if you’re ever trying …
The Splintering Needs of Engineering Simulation
A couple weeks ago, I found myself in an interesting conversation. I was talking with a software executive who was considering starting up a new software company in the simulation space. His most basic question was “where is the greatest need in simulation today?” I’ll be frank; I struggled to answer. Not because all of …
The Diverging State of PDM
A little more than a year ago, I wrote post titled The PDM Revolution is Upon Us, Brought to You by CAD in the Cloud, which postulated what would happen as some PLM providers moved their CAD offerings to the cloud. Fast forward to today, and things haven’t quite played out as I suggested.
Direct Modeling is Better at Capturing Design Intent
If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the past five years, it’s that debate gives you new perspectives. Such was the case coming out of a webinar I presented in that was titled The Pros and Cons of 3D Modeling Paradigms: Direct Modeling and History-based Modeling. Brian Thompson of PTC and Dan Staples of Siemens PLM discussed which modeling approaches best fit the concept design and detailed design phases. The whole webinar is good, but the Q&A session at the end is where the real discussion began. That got me thinking about this topic.
PDM Capabilities: The Right Fit for Small Organizations
Technology can be a powerful thing. But is it always a good fit for every organization? The proposed advantages and benefits may sound appealing, but sometimes new tech can actually introduce more bureaucracy and disruption than it solves. In today’s post, I’ll look at what aspects of PLM and PDM systems make sense for smaller …
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Putting a Finer Point on Multi-CAD
Multi-CAD. Multi-CAD. Multi-CAD. It is all the rage today. You hear about it on webinars. You see it flashed at user conferences. It’s in many an eBook. But the more discussions I see on multi-CAD, the more I wonder if folks are really talking about the same thing. You see, there are many different facets to multi-CAD.