During SolidWorks World 2015 we had the opportunity to talk with several SolidWorks staffers and executives during the conference.
One of the SolidWorks executives we sat down and chatted with briefly was Kishore Boyalakuntla, Director, Product Management, SolidWorks. The topic we wanted to focus on with Kishore was the SolidWorks position on cloud computing.
He started off by saying that the cloud plus connectivity are some of the vital things that equal what Dassault Systemes calls the 3DEXPERIENCE, the company’s business experience platform. To be honest, the true definition, meaning, and significance of exactly what the 3DEXPERIENCE is and where it’s going has continued to elude us until relatively recently. We’re still trying to get our arms wrapped around it.
Although about a year old and the concept continues to evolve, the following video provides a broad overview of the 3DEXPERIENCE.
3DEXPERIENCE Platform User Experience
Until somewhat recently, SolidWorks as a company was relatively reluctant to embrace the cloud to the extent some of its competitors did, but has definitely brought it into the fold as a major part of its future. As a matter of fact, the cloud is quickly moving to the forefront.
Like its competitors, however, Dassault and SolidWorks are coming to grips that yesterday’s software products are becoming today’s and tomorrow’s software services. Delivery and support of these new technologies is not without challenges, but acceptance of cloud computing is accelerating rapidly. For example, Kishore said that SolidWorks conducted a survey in 2011 and only 7.5% of respondents accepted the cloud; whereas in 2014, ~45% accepted it. That’s quite a dramatic change in three years.
As for inherent security questions related to cloud computing, Kishore said that Dassault Systemes continues to address and answer security questions and concerns from its customers.
Keep in mind, though, that SolidWorks is not totally abandoning its historical place on the desktop for the cloud. In fact, for the foreseeable future, SolidWorks will employ a hybrid approach that encompasses both the cloud and the desktop – cooperation and not exclusivity.
Kishore said that acceptance of cloud computing should be aided by the facts that the complexity of products is accelerating and mass production is giving way to mass customization. These realities stress the essential nature of connectivity because design/engineering talents can be widely dispersed and that design is intellectual property (IP) with many stakeholders. The cloud also enables analytics that are not possible or practical using other computing platform environments.
And The Winner Is . . .
During SolidWorks World 2015, IB Systems (the parent company of MCADCafe) collected business cards from attendees stopping by our exhibition booth for the chance to win a Kindle Fire by random drawing. As the show closed, a passerby was chosen to pull out the winning business card.
SolidWorks World 2015 MCADCafe Random Drawing Winner: Arjun Ajjampur
The winner was Arjun Ajjampur. His title is product specialist and is an engineer with a Master’s degree in Industrial Design, and works for a company called solidThinking Inc, which is owned by ALTAIR Engineering. He has been at SolidWorks World twice before, and continues to be amazed at the quality of products and innovation exhibited at the conference and exhibition. He is looking forward to next year’s conference.
Congratulations, Arjun, and continued luck in your career! Hope to see you next year at SolidWorks World 2016 in Dallas, TX.
Astrobotic Update
Last week we blogged about a conversation we had with John Thornton, CEO of Astrobotic and its plans to launching, orbiting, and landing relatively inexpensive payloads on the Moon.
The week we found out that just because the Google Lunar Xprize is hotly contested doesn’t mean that the competitors always have to be at each other up. Astrobotic and Hakuto have announced a partnership that will have Hakuto’s rovers (Moonraker and Tetris) “piggyback” on Astrobotic’s lander when it hopefully reaches the Moon in the second half of 2016. The two sides will still compete when they touch down, but they’re setting it up as a race. Astrobotic notes that it would wait for the other rovers to give them a fair shot and get some extra camera footage. The new allies aren’t saying exactly how they will split the prize if they win, but may the best organization win.
