Customer Stories
Evolution of an inventor
While drafting today’s press release, we spent time speaking with X-Finger inventor Dan Didrick and learned more about how he got his start helping people. Believe it or not, it was trying to scare the pants off of people. As a child, he loved using materials from his father’s dentist office to make movie-quality monster masks. By seventh grade, the budding special effects artist was selling his instructional video on mask-making through creepy Fangoria magazine.
Allmand Bros. accelerates parts manual development with 3DVIA Composer
I wanted to provide some more information on one of the customers profiled in the press release we issued on 3DVIA Composer V6R2011x. Nebraska-based Allmand Brothers Inc. might not be a household name, like the similar sounding band, but the
... ContinuedBen Gulak and team design the next wave of personal transportation using SolidWorks
What do an electric unicycle that transforms into a full street bike and a skateboard/tank hybrid have in common? The answer is a guy named Ben Gulak and his team of co-conspirators.
Ben comes from Toronto, Canada. He’s currently a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he’s a mechanical engineering major. When he’s not attending classes, he manages not one, but two, companies.
... ContinuedBaker Drivetrain uses SolidWorks to accelerate design times by up to 75%
You might remember that back in 2009 we launched a section on our website dedicated to Baker Drivetrain, a new customer at the time. These guys work on some really cool parts for motorcycles–in fact, they developed the world's first
... ContinuedAtomik Cars: electrifying the Fiat 500 with SolidWorks
It’s been a busy few months for me, but between taking on a new job, SolidWorks World 2011 and traveling between the US and France, I’ve still managed to visit a few great SolidWorks customers. There’s one in particular that
... ContinuedWatchmaker Franck Muller Uses SolidWorks to Update a Centuries-old Craft
The Swiss watchmaker, Franck Muller, has established its reputation as a “watchmaking genius” by creating some of the world’s most complicated and sought-after timepieces. The company continues to elevate the state-of-the-art in watchmaking by designing each new model with increasing
... ContinuedFive Questions Friday with Anne Yust of Micromedics, Inc.
Name: Anne Yust Title: Engineering Document Control/Drafting Company: Micromedics, Inc., a company that develops, manufactures and markets FibriJet® Biomaterials Applicators for dispensing biomaterials such as platelet gel and tissue sealants. Job description: Support Engineering Department with drafting and document control
... ContinuedHowe & Howe use SolidWorks to shorten fabrication time by 1000%
Michael Howe, star of the Discovery Channel’s “Black Ops Brothers, Howe & Howe Tech,” and President of Howe and Howe Technologies, Inc., recently took time out from his busy schedule to discuss how SolidWorks software is helping him, his twin
... ContinuedCane Creek Chooses SolidWorks to Optimize Design
If you’re a dedicated cyclist, you’re familiar with Cane Creek Cycling Components, famous for its headsets. If you are not, like me, you have no idea where to find the headset on your bike. So I did some research. According to Wikipedia, it’s the “set of components on a bicycle that provides a rotatable interface between the bicycle fork and the bicycle frame.” Sounds like a crucial part.
... ContinuedFive Questions Friday with Rachel York of Applied Robotics, Inc.
Name: Rachel Diane York
Title: Mechanical Draftsman
Job description: Responsible for routing and completion of Engineering Change/Support Requests submitted to the Engineering Department.
Company: Applied Robotics, Inc. Applied Robotics is a leading global provider of specialized end-of-arm tooling and connectivity solutions designed to meet unique application and market needs, and bringing new levels of flexibility and efficiency to bear on the industrial material handling process.
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
1) Why do you choose to do the work you do?
I grew up the only child of a man who could fix anything, almost to the point I would want to break things just to watch him work his magic. Watching him tear things down and build them back up to something even better made me want to take everything apart, just to see how it worked. Worse case scenario: Dad could fix it.
My mother encouraged my curiosity; whenever something broke, a can opener, garage door opener, radio, lawn mower, whatever it was, she would always give me the chance to mend it before it was deemed a lost cause and handed off to my dad. My favorite part of what I do is seeing the ‘insides’ of machines and applying what I know about how one works to fix and improve, or even help create another. The greatest challenge of all is wanting to be a part of creating something that can’t be improved, simply because it was perfect the first time – come on, it could happen!
... ContinuedNew SolidWorks case study: ElliptiGO elliptical bikes
Ironman triathlete Brent Teal recently took a break from training to do a SolidWorks case study on how he developed the ElliptiGO, the world’s first elliptical bike. ElliptiGO Inc. was founded to create a low-impact alternative for distance runners. By
... ContinuedFive Questions Friday with Chris Petersen of Wolverine World Wide
Name: Chris Petersen
Company: Wolverine World Wide
Title: CAD/CAM Manager
I started the CAD department in 1986 using specialized CAD software for the footwear industry running on a smoking hot 2 Mhz PC-AT with a 20 megabyte hard drive. Not even one of our current SolidWorks part files would fit on that drive today.
... ContinuedCelebrating the Patron Saint of…Engineering?
In my short tenure at SolidWorks I have learned that more things are connected to engineering than I ever thought possible. Take St. Patrick’s Day. I could tell you about all the beer mugs or beer taps or Irish products designed with SolidWorks, but that would be expected. But, did you know that the patron saint of Ireland is also considered the patron saint of engineering?
It’s at the bottom of the Wikipedia listing, hidden among the ways in which different cities celebrate. An engineering college in Rolla, Missouri has been celebrating St. Patrick, the legendary snake chaser, for the past week – in fact, the past century. After a little digging, I found out that the Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) is one of our customers, and gave them a call.
... ContinuedBionic Builders premiers tonight in Canada
One of the highlights of SolidWorks World 2011 was the presentation by Casey Piretti and Bill Spracher, otherwise known as the Bionic Builders. I just found out that those of you in Canada can catch the premier of the series tonight at 8:00 pm ET on Discovery Science Canada.
... ContinuedToday is National Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day
Today is a very special day here in the US, especially for those of us here at SolidWorks—Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day. If you’re not familiar, this is a day intended to spotlight engineering as a real career opportunity for girls and women, sponsored by the National Engineering Week Foundation.
... Continued