SOLIDWORKS World is always a fun event to experience the excitement and passion of the SOLIDWORKS community and SOLIDWORKS World 2015 was no exception. There were so many interesting and exciting things going on at SOLIDWORKS World 2015, it is hard to pick just 5, but here are 5 things among the many that stood out to me.
1. A change in leadership
Following the announcement from January 15, 2015, Gian Paulo Bassi made his first appearance at SOLIDWORKS World as CEO. Former SOLIDWORKS CEO Bertrand Sicot was promoted to Vice President Sales of Dassault Systèmes’ Value Solutions sales channel. Gian Paulo Bassi moves into the CEO role after 4 years as SOLIDWORKS Vice President of Research and Development.
Gian Paulo expressed his excitement for leading SOLIDWORKS into the future and enabling new possibilities for SOLIDWORKS users. His passion for the future of engineering, growing the community, technology, and SOLIDWORKS is very obvious. As an example, he painted a vision for SOLIDWORKS where it enables a platform for engineers to innovate by taking advantage of the latest sciences. Looking to the future, he said, “We want to create a platform where we can create instant networks around all of our professional interests.”
2. SOLIDWORKS users are designing some very cool products
Several products designed in SOLIDWORKS were highlighted at the event. Many of these products are so innovative that even just a decade ago, they would have seemed like science fiction.
Here are just a few examples:
- Thalmic Labs demonstrated their MYO armband which allows you to control a device simply with arm movements. Applications that can be controlled include music, games, presentations, and of course SOLIDWORKS.
- Seffi Udi shared an incredibly inspiring story describing how he has used SOLIDWORKS and 3D printing to help him overcome his disabilities. Among the work he has done, he has designed and produced a device so that he can design in SOLIDWORKS using his mouth.
- Parrot showcased their high tech, highly maneuverable drones.
Henri Seydoux CEO of Parrot explained how SOLIDWORKS has helped them innovate,”I am a software engineer, not an ME, but thanks to SOLIDWORKS I can show my team what I want to invent in 3D.”
3. SOLIDWORKS Industrial Designer
SOLIDWORKS is releasing its next product based on the 3DExperience platform, SOLIDWORKS Industrial Designer (SWID). SWID is an industrial design tool that brings flexible modeling to a collaborative design platform. It is intended to complement SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD. It joins SOLIDWORKS Conceptual Designer as the two SOLIDWORKS products based on the 3DExperience platform. More can be found on this strategy here.
Parrot, one of the SWID Lighthouse customers said that they had been trying to design the shape of their drone for 7 years, but with SWID, they were able to create the desired shape in only a few minutes.
4. Engineering Matters
SOLIDWORKS emphasized how important design and engineering are to our future. Monica Menghini, Chief Strategy Officer at Dassault Systèmes, reinforced the business value with,”Design is vision, shape is the result….Design is the new business plan.”
Bre Pettis, founder of Makerbot Industries, shared his view of the engineering community,“Today’s CAD users are now the leaders. You have the ability to have a deep impact on people’s lives….While every one of you is intelligent, consider what you can do together as the world’s most powerful design community.”
With powerful statements like this, it was hard not to feel excited about the potential for engineers. There are so many exciting opportunities for innovation that will drive business success, but it is engineers who can make it happen.
5. SOLIDWORKS is very active in supporting our future engineers
I was very impressed with how often there was mention of getting kids excited about engineering, and in particular girls. Bre Pettis set the stage for this on day 1 when he said,” For those of us with daughters, it’s our job to inspire them to become the next generation of engineers…There are too many dudes in this room.”
Marie Planchard, Education Community Director, discussed the many programs SOLIDWORKS is involved in to encourage kids to consider engineering. She specifically spoke about getting more women interested in engineering. She introduced the co-founder of Roominate, Bettina Chen. Roominate creates toys, that introduce kids to mechanical engineering concepts such as structures and pulleys as well as electrical engineering circuits. The toys are especially targeted for girls to build houses, rockets, and helicopters.
SOLIDWORKS is also a sponsor of Fab Labs, which promotes design and innovation for high schools, colleges, and businesses. It is a program that enables young inventors with resources, tools, and a knowledge network so that they can bring their innovative ideas to fruition.
In addition to these take aways, I should also mention Dr Michio Kaku also gave an extremely inspiring talk about the future. Based on what is currently happening in physics labs, he has projected what the future will look like. His summary slide sums it up best.
Overall, there was a lot for SOLIDWORKS users to feel good about, both for their careers as enigneers as well as for being part of the SOLIDWORKS user community. SOLIDWORKS World 2016 will be in Dallas January 31 – February 3.