How Eric Leafquist Changed the World in Engineering Education

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My longtime colleague and friend, Eric Leafquist is retiring from Dassault Systèmes. Although most know Eric as the “Electrical Guy” Senior Product Manager for SOLIDWORKS, Eric was also the product manager for SOLIDWORKS EDU since the beginning. In 2005, I met Eric when I stated at SOLIDWORKS and never realized how much my life and the lives of those involved in engineering education would change that primarily involved 2D drawing tools or drafting boards.

Eric worked with R&D, QA, the EDU Sales team and me to take the SOLIDWORKS commercial products and transform them into the SOLIDWORKS Education Edition, the SOLIDWORKS Student Edition, the SOLIDWORKS Student Design Kit (SDK), and the SOLIDWORKS Engineering Kit (SEK). First was CD’s then DVD’s and finally download for students. There was SOLIDWORKS CAD and COSMOS (SOLIDWORKS Simulation) to start. Then Eric managed to incorporate almost everything SOLIDWORKS sold commercially including SOLIDWORKS Premium, SOLIDWORKS Simulation Premium, SOLIDWORKS Flow Simulation, SOLIDWORKS Sustainability, SOLIDWORKS Electrical , SOLIDWORKS Composer, and Photorealistic rendering.

What really transformed engineering education was Eric working SOLIDWORKS R&D, schools’ IT Managers and individual educators to make our software easy to install and duplicate amongst huge networks. The network installation procedure made it possible for schools to install in a classroom, a campus or multi-campus environment. Eric made hundreds of visits to customers to keep improving our software and installation. With his pulse on commercial SOLIDWORKS users, he knew the SOLIDWORKS job skills students would need when they graduated.

Eric also transformed our company with his strength and constant support of his daughter, Erica. Along with his wife, Kathy, The Erica Leafquist Fund at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute focuses on helping fund research into new treatments for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (A.L.L.).

As a veteran bike rider of the Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) on Team Dassault, Eric has raised funds for cancer research and motivated hundreds of employees, VARs and customers to participate – becoming the leading charity athletic fundraising event in the USA.

Eric, I know every time I look out my window and see a beautiful sailboat going by, I will be thinking of you! I will be forever grateful for what you helped to create for millions of students and cancer patients. God bless.

 

 

Marie Planchard

Marie Planchard

Senior Director, Early Engagement, 3DEXPERIENCE Works at Dassault Systemes
Marie Planchard is an education and engineering advocate. As Senior Director of Education & Early Engagement, SOLIDWORKS, she is responsible for global development of content and social outreach across all levels of learning.
Marie Planchard

@marieplanchard1