MCADCafe Weekly (9/20/2012): Dassault Systemes Launches SolidWorks 2013

On September 10, 2012 Dassault Systèmes introduced SolidWorks 2013 with new and improved design applications to enhance collaboration, speed model creation and simplify the product development process. With more than 200 customer-driven improvements including powerful design tools and new drawing capabilities, sub-model simulation, cost estimation, network rendering, and wider sharing and increased connectivity, Dassault Systèmes is demonstrating its commitment to helping its SolidWorks customers create the right value for their own users.

Powered by Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform, SolidWorks 2013 combines ease of use with broad customization allowing new users to learn fast, and experienced users to quickly become more productive at previously complex and sophisticated tasks. Building on the success of the last 20 releases, the new offering covers the range of SolidWorks applications for 3D design, simulation, technical communication, product data management, and sustainable design.

“SolidWorks allows me to get my job done faster than any other CAD package on the market,” said Robert Conley, owner of Interactive Cad Solutions. “In my line of work, I have to get jobs done quickly to make a profit, and SolidWorks allows me to do that. I’m really looking forward to the Previous Release Interoperability feature in SolidWorks 2013 to allow me to better share designs with my customers and more quickly get to a final product.”

“With SolidWorks 2013 we’ve upheld our tradition of listening to our customers by providing enhancements and functionality to help them simplify their lives and create the best products. The new additions to core geometry and expanded product offerings demonstrate our continuing investment in our flagship product,” said Bertrand Sicot, CEO, SolidWorks, Dassault Systèmes. “SolidWorks 2013 empowers innovative design with application specific tools that help users quickly define, share and validate the form, fit, and function of their designs. We look forward to watching our customers make their ideas a reality at a more rapid pace.”

SolidWorks 2013 highlights include:

Powerful Design Tools

SolidWorks 2013 makes it easier to bring engineers’ ideas from concept to manufacturing with new tools for more efficient simulation, and expanded environmental and cost analysis. In addition to the following enhancements, the recently announced SolidWorks Plastics and SolidWorks Electrical packages help users make more informed decisions that result in simplified designs, reduced mistakes, and faster time to market.

• SolidWorks Costing – Allows customers to automatically cost more types of parts, create more accurate quotations, and stay in budget with improved cost data and new APIs.
• SolidWorks Sustainability – Quickly compares the financial impact of raw materials and the environmental impact of a design decision during the development process due to new raw material impact tools.
• SolidWorks Flow Simulation – Takes the complexity out of flow designs by allowing users to visualize fluid flow around multifaceted geometries and more easily compare analysis results between multiple design configurations.

Faster Model Creation

Additional new offerings help users create and modify complex geometries faster and easier, providing more efficient 3D models and 2D drawings.

• Conics in Sketcher – Full control over shapes for smooth transitions between existing geometries.
• Intersect Feature – Quickly add or remove geometry without sketching.
• Varying Dimension Patterns – Allows users to save time creating patterns, increase design flexibility, and reduce the number of features needed for models.
• Section View Assist – Speed the creation of production drawings for faster and more consistent section views.

Improved Performance

The following new tools allow users to optimize the performance of a SolidWorks installation and maximize design team productivity.

• CAD Administrator Dashboard – Simplify management and troubleshooting of multiple SolidWorks users within a company from a single aggregated view.
• Simulation Sub-Modeling and Incremental Meshing – More accurately perform precise simulation analysis for specific areas of large and complex models faster and more efficiently.
• Network Rendering for PhotoView 360 – Save time with faster rendering of photorealistic images by networking multiple computers to share the computational load.

Enhanced Collaboration

To address the dispersed nature of most design teams, SolidWorks 2013 optimizes collaboration with improved connectivity, enhanced viewing capabilities, and expanded sharing of designs and data.

• Previous Release Interoperability – Collaborate with customers, suppliers, and internal teams with the ability to open SolidWorks 2013 files directly with SolidWorks 2012 (SP5). Users can work more efficiently and improve collaboration and file exchange, reducing delays and easing the transition to the latest release.
• SolidWorks Enterprise Product Data Management Workflow – Route documents and contact users more efficiently to reduce delays and accelerate time-to-market.
• DraftSight/SolidWorks Enterprise PDM Integration – Access DWG files within SolidWorks EPDM from the DraftSight user interface, and leverage 2D into the design process.
• eDrawings — Users can measure, select and markup designs from anywhere using a mobile device.

Availability and Pricing

For more information about SolidWorks 2013, including video demonstrations, visit: http://www.solidworks.com/launch. SolidWorks 2013 is available worldwide through SolidWorks authorized resellers. Contact a SolidWorks authorized reseller for pricing. To locate an authorized reseller in your region, please visit: http://www.solidworks.com/locateVAR/

Commentary By Jeffrey Rowe, Editor

Right after Labor Day, I, along with a number of other CAD media members (old school press, new school bloggers) were invited to an pre-launch event sponsored by Dassault Systemes SolidWorks at its new HQ in Waltham, MA. The purpose of the event was to introduce SolidWorks 2013, the 21^st edition of the software. The new facility is quite modern, but the former one in Concord had more personality as an historic building and setting, but that’s just me. Oh well, time marches on. It was also strange not to see the SolidWorks name on the new building, but that is because the company is co-locating other DS divisions within the building (such as 3DVIA, ENOVIA, etc.), as is done at other DS facilities around the world, so Dassault Systemes is the name on the building.

It’s hard to believe that SolidWorks is in its 21^st release, but it is. According to Bertrand Sicot, SolidWorks’ CEO and Gian Pallo Bassi, SolidWorks’ VP of R&D, the 2013 release is “the best ever,” and a “very good vintage”. Outwardly, at first look, these claims seemed a bit of a stretch, but upon closer inspection throughout the day, SolidWorks 2013 does have significant additions and enhancements, including (just to name a few, since there were over 200 in SolidWorks alone):

SolidWorks Costing – Something I consider to be the “sleeper” capability of 2012 because of its potential impact the top and bottom lines, as well as an engineering tool that upper management can understand and appreciate. It’s gotten better and more comprehensive for 2013. Automatic cost estimation estimates part manufacturing costs using built-in cost templates. These manufacturing templates are customizable, allowing entry of specific manufacturing costs and data, such as material, labor, machine speed and feeds, and setup costs.

Sketcher Conics – Conics are planes through cones that produce three conic sections – ellipses, parabolas, and hyperbolas. These can be mathematically complex but are very useful for controlling shapes for smooth transitions between existing geometries. Nice time saver while sketching.

Interoperability – You can open SolidWorks 2013 files directly with SolidWorks 2012 (SP5). This was done to ease the transition to the latest release. Still, no native interoperability with CATIA and nothing appearing on the horizon.

SolidWorks Plastics – SW Plastics is an extension of SolidWorks’ simulation business and is available in two flavors:

• SolidWorks Plastics Professional – For plastics part designers, it helps optimize parts for manufacturability in the early stages of design. It is embedded within the SolidWorks CAD environment so you can analyze and modify designs at the same time you optimize for form, fit, and function.
• SolidWorks Plastics Premium – Gives those who design or build injection molds a way to optimize them. You can create and analyze single-cavity, multi-cavity, and family mold layouts, including sprues, runners, and gates. You can also balance runner systems and estimate cycle time, clamp tonnage, and shot size for optimizing feed system design.

Prices for the various plastics packages range from ~$5000 to $14,995.

SolidWorks Electrical – A database system for electro-mechanical design available in three flavors:

• SolidWorks Electrical — 2D schematic design tools for developing embedded electrical systems for machines or products. It has built-in symbol libraries, manufacturer part data, and 3D component models. Automated management tools streamline design of PLC connections.
• SolidWorks Electrical 3D — Integrates electrical schematic design data from SolidWorks Electrical with the 3D model of a machine or other product. You can place all electrical components in 3D, then connect everything and determine lengths of wires, cables, and harnesses.
• SolidWorks Electrical Professional — A single package that combines the 2D electrical schematic functionality of SolidWorks Electrical and the 3D integration of SolidWorks Electrical 3D.

Prices for the various electrical packages range from $5995 to $9995.

SolidWorks as a company said that it has a goal of attaining 2,000,000 users by end of 2012. I believe, like the competition, the 2 million figure is cumulative from Day 1. Even so, that’s a pretty heady goal, and remember, the majority of Solidworks seats are educational, but the company seems determined to meet the number by the end of this year. Speaking of SolidWorks ongoing education mission, the company said it continues to strive to prepare qualified students for commercial customers, and continues to develop education advocates at all grade levels. Overall, customer satisfaction stands at 94%, which is up 5% since 2007.

Looking to the future, the company was careful not utter a word about the “cloud” or V6. The only brief allusion to the “Next New Product” was that it will be complementary to SW, launch in May 2013, and targeted to conceptual mechanical design needs. End of story for now. Bet on it not to be built around the Parasolid modeling kernel (licensed from rival Siemens PLM Software), but rather, CGM from DS sister company, Spatial, and will probably have a V6 moniker. When they say it will be for “conceptual mechanical design,” I take that to mean advanced sketching, and not conceptual in an industrial design context. However, time will tell. Whatever comes out next spring will be interesting.

While eDrawings for the iPad was recently introduced, SolidWorks has big future plans for mobility. Rick Chin, SolidWorks’ Director of Innovation, demonstrated augmented reality on an iPad – a 3D digital product model in a real world context that will be useful to designers and engineers. The model casts shadows and “respects” the positioning of the floor plane (you can’t push the model through the floor). It allows you to interact with the product model and complements prototyping. No time frame was given on when this lab project might hit the market, but it was impressive, nonetheless.

With this pre-launch event, it became obvious that Solidworks is becoming much more than just a traditional CAD tool — other capabilities (costing, simulation, sustainability, etc) work with core SolidWorks capabilities for more closely interacting with the business environment. Throughout the event several company spokespersons said that modeling is NOT design, and vice versa. They also stressed that the design process is a balancing act, and truer words could not be said.

Editor’s Note: When I get signed up for working copies of the above software applications, I’ll provide details on many of the aspects briefly discussed above.

The Week’s Top Stories

At MCADCafé we track many things, including the stories that have attracted the most interest from our subscribers. Below are the news items that were the most viewed during last week.

NX 8.5 Delivers Customer-Driven Enhancements to Help Reduce Time to Market

Siemens PLM Software announced the latest release of NX software, NX 8.5, that includes enhancements and new capabilities that provide increased flexibility and productivity across product engineering and manufacturing.

NX 8.5 for Design – Streamlined workflows and an enhanced user experience help improve productivity, minimize input, and reduce the effort required to accomplish design tasks. NX 8.5 continues to leverage synchronous technology, a Siemens PLM Software innovation that combines direct modeling with dimension driven design, to provide designers and engineers a better way to create and edit designs.

NX 8.5 for Simulation – New optimization tools such as NX Shape Optimization, suggest specific, detailed improvements to an existing design to reduce stress concentrations. NX 8.5 also includes improvements in simulation modeling, structural, thermal, flow, motion and multi-physics analyses to help prepare more accurate analysis models faster, and speed solution time by as much as 25 percent.

NX 8.5 for Manufacturing – NX 8.5 includes the full release of volume-based 2.5D Milling. Also new are functions to support and automate multi-part and multi-stage machining.

NX 8.5 is expected to be available in October. For more detailed information on all the new functionality in NX 8.5, please visit www.siemens.com/plm/nx85.

Boeing Extends Deployment of Dassault Systèmes PLM Platform and Applications

Boeing Co. has signed a five-year contract to extend the use of Dassault Systèmes’ applications at both Boeing Commercial Airplanes and Boeing Defense, Space & Security. Dassault Systèmes and Boeing’s “Working Together” partnership began over 25 years ago and has resulted in numerous breakthroughs in the development and early deployment of powerful technologies that make game-changing innovations possible. “Boeing and Dassault Systèmes have enjoyed a long working relationship, and we are pleased to extend our contract. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with Dassault Systèmes to create and leverage new innovations that will enhance our product design and manufacturing capabilities,” said Nancy Bailey, Boeing vice president of IT Product Systems. “Dassault Systèmes continues to evolve and mature their solution portfolio to more completely address our needs across the entire product value stream. The Dassault Systèmes PLM solution suite will continue helping us create additional business value for our company.” “Boeing and Dassault Systèmes have enjoyed a unique partnership for over 25 years,” stated Bernard Charlès, president and CEO, Dassault Systèmes. “Both companies share a passion for innovation and for producing breakthrough experiences for our customers. We have also shared a common vision of how we can evolve our applications and Boeing’s processes to fuel remarkable innovation. Boeing has heavily influenced the evolution of Dassault Systèmes’ strategy, from 3D Design to DMU to PLM – and now to 3D Experience. We look forward to our continued partnership.”

Rev 11 release of LMS Virtual.Lab makes virtual simulation even more realistic

LMS International released LMS Virtual.Lab Rev 11, a new version of its solution for 3D functional performance engineering. LMS Virtual.Lab is a multi-attribute engineering platform, combining high accuracy with superior speed, and a highly efficient process for structural integrity, multibody dynamics, noise and vibration and durability. LMS Virtual.Lab integrates a scalable solution for structural modeling and analysis, with advanced model creation and manipulation tools to efficiently generate component, subsystem and full-system models, always innovative for enhancing the user’s experience. LMS Virtual.Lab Motion embeds the new LMS Virtual.Lab Composer supporting drag-and-drop GUI creation, for customization of industry-specific applications and streamlining the multibody dynamics simulation process. For Noise and Vibration, Rev 11 integrates a comprehensive structural FEM solver (coming from the recent SAMTECH acquisition) for fully coupled vibro-acoustic analyses. In addition, supporting high frequency acoustics, the Ray-Acoustics solver extends into the ATV technology. Running acoustic simulations up to the audible frequency range can be done more accurately and simply than ever before, an example being sound system design in vehicles. LMS Virtual.Lab Durability supports more accurate and faster simulation of seam welds through new technologies allowing the inclusion of size effects for seam welds and automatic identification of all typical seam weld topologies in an FE-mesh.

Autodesk Liberates Designers with Industry’s First Cloud-Based Pay-As-You-Go Simulation

Autodesk unveiled Autodesk Simulation 360—a comprehensive set of tools delivered securely in the cloud with a pay-as-you-go pricing model that enables any company to make simulation part of their everyday design and engineering processes. Architects and engineers can gain deeper insight into how buildings, including plants, will perform by simulating air flow to help ensure thermal comfort; analyze environmental effects on bridges and buildings; and test the behavior of structural materials including concrete — all before anything is ever built. Autodesk Simulation 360 is the latest offering to build upon the Autodesk 360 cloud-based platform. By performing computationally intensive simulation tasks in the cloud, designers, engineers and analysts can test multiple “what if?” design scenarios in parallel. The computational power of the cloud also eliminates the need for specialized hardware, thereby removing previous limitations and helping to increase productivity. The Autodesk Simulation 360 software portfolio includes a wide range of cloud-based mechanical, fluid flow, thermal and plastic injection molding tools at an affordable price. Additional benefits include direct geometry exchange; robust meshing tools; extensive material libraries; and proven solver technology to improve simulation accuracy in the areas of greatest concern. In contrast to traditional perpetual licensing, Autodesk Simulation 360’s easy and affordable, pay-as-you-go model simplifies access and offers unparalleled flexibility. For additional information on how to access Autodesk Simulation 360, visit www.autodesk.com/simulationliberation. Additional resources such as simulation experts, on-demand videos and tutorials are available at www.autodesk.com/simulation-360.

 Jeffrey Rowe is the editor of MCADCafé and MCAD Weekly Review. He can be reached at jeff@ibsystems.com or 719.221.1867.

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