I'm here in rainy Lake Oswego, Oregon for Autodesk Manufacturing Tech Day. Buzz Kross, in charge of the manufactuirng software division, says there are a lot of positive signs that the manufacturing economy is growing. He bases this on estimated current PMI figures. He says Autodesk's growth rate, relative to competitors is: Dassault has grown 26%; PTC has grown 8%; Autodesk's 21%. Autodesk just acquired CF design; acquired Algor a year ago. So some of the growth is in acquisition. As a non-parametric modeler, Fusion is a good front end to simulation -- and an "easy-on" to 3D. Easy to bend shapes and twist them. Eco Material Advisor: lets user optimize on bottom line, material, carbon footprint, and the like. Broad-based simulation tools, which span from Algor technology that works in Inventor to stand-alone Moldflow. Fast growth rates in PDM -- Autodesk Vault can manage all the data from all the products from AEC to CAD.
Autodesk Suites NEW: these are integrated bundles for mechanical engineers and the roadway designer, support industry-specific workflows, yet talk to each other. One example: Product Design Suite; Factory Design Suite. Next to come is suite apps on the Web. The suites all include the Vault, Fusion, and data interoperability.
Product Design Suite at standard level:
direct modeling, visualization
Premium edition adds Inventor Professional and 3dsMax
The Ultimate edition adds Alias, simulation, and routing as well.
Look and feel between the products is said to be similar.
Simmulation
Autodesk Simulation "Associate load" in dynamic simulation is a critical component. "It's the difference between going up to a door and abruptly shoving it open, to have the door open in an easy, natural way, as a user might actually push it.
Ribbon interface forces users to go in a natural step-by-step manner to get the problem solved.
Moldflow: until now design and analysis has been concurrent; now it's integrated. Start with a sketch and start analyzing it as you go. Every time a change is made, the software remeshes and resolves. After every design change, you can now see the effects of the design change.