CADfidential

Behind The Scenes in the World of CAD

3D buy

Dassault Systèmes paid about 12 million euros to acquire Virtools SA, a developer of 3D interactive Web applications that give live behavior to 3D content. For example, a user can experience the shopping behavior of a typical consumer in a supermarket or visualize the ergonomics of a driver as he or she drives a car through a city. Virtools customers use the software in industrial design, marketing, 3D Web-based CRM applications, multimedia applications and video game development.

Behind the curtain

Alibre 'fessed up to being behind the X-CAD promotion, which promised free CAD software to all who signed up at www.x-cad.net as long as 100,000 people signed up. That number was reached, so all will receive copies of Alibre Design Xpress. "Alibre Design Xpress is really the culmination of a long-term vision: to make 3D accessible to everyone, not just those willing to pay thousands of dollars," said Alibre's Greg Milliken. "We've always had a goal to liberate the industry." www.alibre.com/xpress

When you go on vacation this summer, will you stay in touch with work through e-mail, cell phone and/or other means?

Tablets take off?

Market research firm In-Stat predicts that Tablet PCs will take off in the next few years, with the worldwide market growing from $1.2 billion in 2004 to $5.4 billion in 2009. Vertical markets such as healthcare, real estate, insurance and sales force automation will drive the growth. Help will also come from technological advances such as a next-generation Tablet PC operating system integrated in Microsoft's Vista (formerly Longhorn) operating system.

Winning Ways

Training takeover

INCAT International, a provider of software solutions and services to automotive, aerospace and industrial manufacturers, acquired CAD Potential (Cadpo). Cadpo develops the i.get.it learning management system, which is part of the SAE Automotive CAD Certification program for users of UGS NX and CATIA. In addition, INCAT acquired Cadpo's consulting services, branded Ready5, which deploy a cross-trained team of engineering, manufacturing and PLM experts to provide on-site or off-site training and services. http://www.incat.com, http://www.cadpo.com

Last days

Autodesk will no longer support its AutoCAD 2002-based products effective January 16, 2006. Those include Architectural Desktop 3.3, Land Desktop 3, Mechanical Desktop 6, VIZ 3/3i, Map 2/3, Raster Design 3, Civil Design 3 and Survey 3. Inventor Series 7 heads off into the sunset on October 15, 2005.

Hard at work

GITA (Geospatial Information & Technology Association) won a $700,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to study workforce readiness for jobs in the geospatial sector. The department's High Growth Job Training Initiative has identified the geospatial sector as one of 12 that is projected to have far-reaching impact on the U.S. economy.