Show Report - SolidWorks World 2006

More than 200 new functions will debut in SolidWorks 2007 when it ships this summer, the company revealed. Among them will be 3D scanning capabilities inside SolidWorks Office Premium, push-and-pull design changes, d rawing annotation (balloons, hole tables, notes and leader lines), 50% smaller file sizes and 3D PDF capabilities.

The new SWIFT (SolidWorks intelligent feature technology) platform will help designers move from 2D to 3D, offering functions such as the ability to create tolerance schemes. New Power Assist functionality will automatically add 3D annotations to SolidWorks models, laying them out in a drawing view. New PDM capabilities will appear in the core product, and COSMOSMotion will be added at no extra charge to SolidWorks Office Premium.

Dozens of other new products lined the aisles in the Partner Pavilion, showcasing the goods and services of around 100 companies. The most buzz at SolidWorks World -- as well as the crowds in the exhibit hall -- surrounded the new NextEngine 3D scanner ($2,495), which can quickly scan physical objects and create high-resolution digital models for use in SolidWorks 2007. At $2,495, the price “democratizes 3D scanning,” said SolidWorks CEO John McEleney. In just minutes, he demonstrated, the unit scans existing products and joins front, back and side models and translates them to SolidWorks without loss of detail.

SolidWorks COO Jeff Ray reported that the largest market segments served by SolidWorks are consumer products, mechanical products and machinery. The medical equipment segment is growing at the fastest pace, he said. The company reported it has more than 1,000 resellers today.

Click here for a full report of new products on display at SolidWorks World 2006.