CAD Manager's Newsletter (#181)

Special Alert: It’s that time of year again, when I launch my CAD Manager’s Survey to measure the latest metrics and take the pulse of the marketplace where we all work. I’ve taken some reader feedback to heart this year and have restructured the survey to consider more workplace factors. Thank you so much to those who helped make the survey better. The CAD Manager's Survey 2007 is online now
and awaiting your input.

I encourage all newsletter readers to participate in the survey because more responses ultimately yield more accurate results. It should take no more than 10 minutes of your time to complete.

Get training for yourself and you'll avoid becoming obsolete. Follow these steps to get started.

As a CAD manager you’re always training others, but how much time do you really spend learning new skills? Do you have a learning plan for your career, or do you simply try to keep up with new software as it comes out and tread water as best you can? Most CAD managers fit into the latter category, and that’s a shame, because if you don’t challenge yourself to learn new skills, you’ll eventually become obsolete.

Over the next few issues of CAD Manager’s Newsletter, I’ll focus on the entire process of CAD manager learning, from planning through resource identification to scheduling the time to learn. Along the way I’ll pass along many tips and tricks I’ve used to help myself continually learn new skills, in hopes that you’ll be able to use some of them in your own career. Read more>>

:: CAD Manager's Q&A

Sometimes it just seems like everything is in disarray and chaos rules. What can I do to rein in the disorder and get some control over my day?

Robert Green replies: I’ve always felt that the best way to deal with disorder is to call attention to it, get other people on board with you, then work toward a resolution. Chaos won’t simply go away; it has to be managed like any other problem. I’ll pass along a few tips I’ve used to gain some measure of control.

I’d also like to point out that every CAD manager I know has felt this way at some point in their career! Read more>>

Submit your questions to Robert Green atrgreen@greenconsulting.com.

:: Resources

Cadalyst Job Search

Looking for a job? The Cadalyst Web site offers a job search section with extensive listings of CAD-related jobs in the United States. You can do a custom search with your own key words or search the listings by state.

Send us the address of your favorite Web site or other resource and a few words about why you like it. If we publish it, we'll send you a Cadalyst t-shirt! E-maileditors@cadalyst.com.

:: Events

Webcast: The Future of PLM: Decision Support Across the Value Chain
September 13, 2007
11 a.m. PDT
In this Webcast, AMR Research and Right Hemisphere will discuss recent findings on how new technologies in visual communication and collaboration are enabling transformational efficiencies in NPDL business processes. Read more

Fiatech BIM & ISO 15926 Harmonization Workshop
September 17, 2007
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Much progress is being achieved in the use of BIM and IFCs in major building projects and in the use of ISO 15926 in process plant projects. Despite the overlap in scope, the two standards are being developed largely in isolation. This workshop aims to initiate dialog between the experts of these two standards along with companies that plan to use both, and software vendors. Read more

Fiatech ADI Training workshop
September 20, 2007
Minneapolis, Minnesota
This training will teach attendees how to map their legacy's system data to the ISO 15926 standard data exchange model using the mapping tools developed in the FIATECH Accelerating Deployment of ISO 15926 (ADI) project. Read more

Micro and Nano Systems Conference
October 1-4, 2007
Lancaster, UK
This series of events will showcase the technical advances in the field of Micro and Nano Systems Engineering through the European Network of Excellence in Design for Micro & Nano Manufacture and related programs. The event will also address technology access, services, and opportunities in the field for small and medium-sized industries and provide larger, user companies with a forum to assess advances in the field and opportunities for uptake. Read more

MSC Software Corporation's 2007 Americas VPD Conference
October 11-12, 2007
Detroit, Michigan
Gaining Competitive Advantage through Engineering Productivity is the theme of this virtual product development (VPD) conference, dedicated to providing attendees with the latest information on the strategies and technologies they can use immediately to enhance concept development, design, simulation, testing, manufacturing, and business performance. Read more

Click here to view the complete calendar of events at Cadalyst.com.