Introducing the New SOLIDWORKS 2016 Ecosystem

As we launch SOLIDWORKS 2016, not only are we launching best-in-class CAD (SOLIDWORKS Standard, Professional and Premium), but also improved functionality for Electrical (2D Schematic and 3D), Simulation (Structural, Flow and Plastics), SOLIDWORKS PDM Standard and Professional (formerly EPDM), SOLIDWORKS Inspection, SOLIDWORKS MBD, eDrawings, MySolidworks and many other products. These include 600+ research projects, 100+ innovations and represent an ecosystem in which companies innovate.

The CAD products have 200+ projects and several key innovations. With SOLIDWORKS 2016, they work together in beautiful ways, like design changes updating simulation, electrical, eDrawings, PDM etc. I want to highlight new products and the new user interface in 2016. For information on product-level enhancements and innovations, read the Sneak Peeks of SOLIDWORKS 2016 on the SOLIDWORKS corporate blog.

Recognizing the growing need among our users for advanced visualization, we are excited to announce that SOLIDWORKS 2016 introduces SOLIDWORKS Visualize (formerly Bunkspeed). Engineers spend 30 to 40 percent of their time creating content for other departments like Marketing, Quality, manufacturing, etc. With SOLIDWORKS Visualize, marketing teams and creatives inside of a company can take design data and create emotional, photographic content for brochures, web etc. This will free up engineers’ time so they can focus on creating innovative products. SOLIDWORKS Visualize standard will be included with SOLIDWORKS Professional and Premium for customers on Subscription only. With SOLIDWORKS Visualize you can create content with life-like material behavior, free web-based visualization content and lighting and shadows that are indistinguishable to reality.

In SOLIDWORKS 2016, we have also completely redesigned the user interface and user experience. When Microsoft released Windows 10, we needed to invest time to make sure the user experience is aligned with this new operating system. Likewise, as Microsoft adds new features, we can take advantage of those relatively quickly. The second technological change is support for 4K resolution monitors. The prices of these high-resolution monitors and laptops will become more affordable to the majority of users over the next 12 months, and the new SOLIDWORKS 2016 user interface scales to 4K and even higher resolutions.

We obsess over mundane things like reducing the number of mouse clicks, mouse travel, etc., and in SOLIDWORKS 2016 the design process is more focused to the graphical area, significantly reducing mouse travel and the number of clicks necessary. Users are telling us they are experiencing a 20% improvement in productivity because of the investments we have made into the re-architecture and introduction of Breadcrumbs.

Also introduced in SOLIDWORKS 2016 is PDM Standard. The goal is to democratize product data management by leveraging the best-in-class PDM Professional (EPDM). This will be available to all users on subscription with SOLIDWORKS Professional or Premium.
Our Beta customers tell us that SOLIDWORKS 2016 offers fantastic value by improving productivity and helping them to create innovative products. We hope that you will take advantage of SOLIDWORKS 2016 to innovate and create best-in-class products for your company as well.

For a deeper dive into all the new features and enhancements in SOLIDWORKS 2016, be sure to explore the SOLIDWORKS Launch site.