All manufacturers have processes and inevitably these processes have bottlenecks that need to be analysed, simulated and improved. Process Analysis 360, builds on the Factory Design Suite Portfolio by helping engineers and systems designers study and optimise manufacturing processes from any web0-enabled device. This is not a CAD product. You design a layout by drag and dropping block diagrams and…
The AMWU has give Holden a deadline by the end of shift today to confirm rumours that they will announce pulling out of Australia by 2016. Apparently the announcement was meant to be this week but will be held off until after Christmas. Ian Macfarlane says he has spoken to Holden and they deny the reports. Apart from Ian,…
Autodesk have launched CAM 360 and you can try it here. It’s the only CAM that combines CNC Programming (Generator & Editing), Tool Path Simulation, and Design with real-time collaboration and online project and data management. It’s based on HSMWorks technology which they acquired about 13 months ago and comes with Fusion 360 too which will allow to to do 3D CAD…
Revit Interoperability: Getting your 3D Mechanical CAD to work Revit CAD files & BIM-MEP AUS Compliance. The AEC (Architecture, Engineering & Construction) sector has long been using Revit for their 3D design of buildings and structures, but what happens if you’re a manufacturer of pumps or you fabricate staircases and your client requests files in Revit? How do you…
HSV use Autodesk software for two main reasons, Visualisation & Surfacing. With Autodesk Showcase they explore different design and styling options without creating a physical prototype for each option. Not only does it allow them to explore options, they use it to spot issues with the finish and correct them. Since Showcase is a real time renderer, they also use…
The Dollars Dips Down & New Projects Are Announced The Aussie dollar has dropped 6 cents in 6 consecutive weeks and is trading at 91 US Cents on expectations that the US Federal Reserve will taper their stimulus measures, which is good for Australian Manufacturers who rely heavily on exporting. It’s a speculative market with nothing formally announced, but there’s…
Cloud Based, Parametrics, History Free, NURBS, T-Splines and more… for $40 a Month??? About 4 years ago, the Autodesk’s EPT (Emerging Products & Technologies) Group were given a project to build the next generation 3D Mechanical CAD Modeller from the ground up and in June, 2013, Fusion 360 was born. It’s runs on thin client architecture, so it’s cloud…
The Final Report will be out in March but can the Automotive Industry wait that long? With the Productivity Commission (PC) reviewing the industry and releasing preliminary finding in on December 20th, 2013 but with the final report coming out on March, 2014, the Abbott Government won’t make any decisions til then, but S.A. Manufacturing Minister, Tom Kenyon, says the industry can’t…
The Recent Acquisitions of VSR & Delcam Make It a Serious Player It’s pretty clear what Autodesk’s goal is; World Domination! It’s got it’s fingers in every industry that uses software for engineering and design. In Automotive, Autodesk’s acquisition of Alias, gave it a foot in the door, adding Class-A Surfacing tools to their MCAD portfolio, and in many countries,…
Autodesk ReCap Photo: Making Images a Virtual Reality What do you get when you cross unlimited cloud computing and cutting edge digital stitching? A 3D Mesh. Add Auotdesk Project Momento for analysis and correction and Mesh Enabler to convert the mesh into a 3D Solid, now you’ve got something you can work with. Autodesk ReCap for laser scanning is already included…
Will Additive Manufacturing Get Australian Manufacturing Competitive Again? The short answer is no, not today, but there is hope for the future. The only problem is will it get here quick enough to save the industry… Ok, here’s the argument for TiAM (Titanium Additive Manufacturing); you have two factories, one in China, one in Australia. There’s 10 TiAM Machines,…
Check out Autodesks next phase in 3D CAD Modelling using LEAP Motion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-1YPgMxECk The Leap Plug-In for Maya is available here: http://area.autodesk.com/MayaLeapPlugin
Australia one step closer to being carbon tax free Today the House of Representatives have voted in favour of the carbon tax repeal bill. Controversially, the speaker ruled against Labour amendment proposals where they wanted the bill to have an ETS, saying they didn’t have the power to move the amendments. Most vocal were Labours Tony Burke, Anthony Albanese…
Autodesk taking the cloud by storm with CAM In October 2012, Autodesk acquired HSMWorks, a Solidworks CAM add-on. A year later it announced HSMXpress is available for download and integrated into Autodesk Inventor. So there’s two versions, HSMXpress and HSMProfessional. Xpress is a free 2 1/2 D Axis CAM, which is CAM on the X/Y plane and Professional will…
Will Direct-Injection Carbon Engines (aka Brown Coal Innovation) be replacing traditional generation methods in the Latrobe Valley? The technology has been around for a while now and in essence, it’s making coal in a suitable liquid form and using that liquid like you would for petroleum and generating power on a mass scale to deliver base load power. It…
First HSMWorks now Delcam – what is Autodesks strategy? In October 2012, Autodesk bought HSMWorks, a year on, they have integrated 2 1/2 Axis CAM called HSMXpress, free for Inventor users and look to be releasing HSMWorks on subscription cloud based version for 3 axis or more. Delcam is a mature and reputable offering with more than milling and…
Autodesk Acquire Graitec for Structural Steel & Concrete Fabrication and Detailing On October 2, 2013, Autodesk annouced they acquired Graitec who have AutoCAD add-ons for structural steel and concrete. A while back they acquired a polish company for an AutoCAD structural steel detailing package, re-branded it AutoCAD Structural Detailing (ASD) and eventually incorporated it into Plant Design Suite Premium and Building Design Suite…
Digitising Concept Sketch Designs Change… hard to do but necessary when the world around you changes and it’s challenging to move from what you know to something better and having to re-learn, but it doesn’t have to be. Designs usually start with a pen and pad and a lot of erasing and design changes and variations, which is why…
The Tasmanian Manufacturing Landscape CAT are moving their operations to Thailand and I’ve heard that the Tassie operation is their most expensive to run, so does it come as a big surprise when many companies on the mainland are moving their operations offshore to stay competitive. They say orders are down significantly, so why will moving to Thailand increase…
Autodesk Releases Features in Inventor that are Long Time Coming It’s Beta time for Autodesk Inventor users and what a release it is! What’s it got? The NDA says I can’t tell you, you’ll have to go here to download it. What I can say is that Autodesk are making it better with not just enhancements but new technology and better…
