All in with CAD/CAM

Industry executives discuss the advancements, changes, and challenges in the CAD/CAM industry. Participants concur on the importance of having a skilled workforce, and the need to continue educating customers so they move out of their comfort zone to work with the latest releases and advancements.

Four years ago, the staff of Today’s Medical Developments hosted a CAD/CAM roundtable during WESTEC, featuring a group of industry leaders. Today, we ask many of the same participants – together with a few new ones – their perspective on the CAD/CAM industry and their outlook for the coming years.

Concerns at that time rang out that, “The market is already saturated with CAD/CAM, everybody has got one or more systems already.” Alternatively, their concern was, “The problem in the CAD/CAM industry for all of us…is the workforce…I cannot find skilled people…five years ago [2003] 100% of my R&D work was done in the United States…now [2008] 40% is done outside the United States.”

Now, it is time to hear from our roundtable participants.

TMD: Are finding skilled workers a concern for our company regarding R&D, and a concern regarding the pool of skilled workers utilizing your software?

Picklo: Finding skilled workers is not a concern for our company, but we hear from customers that it is a continuing problem in the manufacturing industry.

Mund: As for our own internal R&D needs, we have been fortunate in finding perfect fits when we need them.

We have seen that finding skilled machinists is a concern for shops everywhere. There is a sense that shops are seeing fewer young people enter the industry, even though today’s machine shops can be among the most exciting and creative places to work. This is why we focus on CAD/CAM education so much at CNC Software – it is important to educate students about the benefits of manufacturing and manufacturing jobs.

McMinn: The best new graduates will always be in demand and Delcam runs an internship program that provides them with a good exposure to our company. We have high standards so we interview carefully for these positions so it is quite a competitive process. Most of these interns go on to become full time employees so this program allows us to attract high quality employees in a competitive environment.

Regarding our customers it is true that there is an increase in demand for qualified operators and manufacturing engineers. With in-sourcing increasing we expect this demand to continue. Many of our customers are asking for more consulting and training services and Delcam is continuing to expand its team of qualified application engineers to meet this demand. The sale of our services in the United States nearly doubled last year and we expect similar demand in 2012.

Mathews: Yes, finding skilled workers is a major concern in both arenas. The domestic hiring pool is quite obviously shrinking in terms of technically competent engineers, a trend we saw throughout 2011 as we actively expanded our team and continue to do so in 2012.

In addition, yes, there is definitely concern regarding the pool of skilled workers utilizing CAM software in manufacturing. I think the two go hand-in-hand and there are several reasons for this shortage. Among those reasons are that manufacturing is not generally viewed as being as glamorous as many other jobs and its relative unpopularity is exacerbated by the fact that technical positions are challenging...and workers have been scared away from the field because for years we have heard that all manufacturing is going overseas and is therefore a poor career choice.

Gibbs: Yes, although this is a bigger problem for our customers than for us. Gibbs has a very low turnover rate. Our top R&D people have been here a long time, some more than 20 years.

Machinists and NC programmers are another story. For example, in the late 60s L.A. schools had a very strong Industrial Arts program that I enjoyed myself. This is where my introduction to machine shops was before going on to study Engineering and Computer Science in college. I was unusual in my study mix, as the aim of Industrial Arts was at non-college-bound students. Of course, all that has changed now. Industrial Arts, or shop class, is all but gone in today’s schools. Budget cuts coupled with the philosophy that everyone should go to college have left a hole in the niche that used to be filled with people that enjoyed working with their hands.

Fishman: Finding good people in R&D is always a challenge. Really, there can be no bigger challenge to any organization today than recruiting the right personnel and talent. As our company has grown into a world leader and our development staff is our industry’s largest, attracting talented engineers is perhaps easier than when we were smaller.

For our customers, finding skilled labor is probably much more of a challenge. Simply put, today, parts and machine tools are getting more complicated, yet the people available to manufacture these parts and operate these machines are becoming harder to find. This challenge is probably one of the biggest drivers of our business’ growth. Since our customers are finding it harder to grow their production by adding people, because those people are just nowhere to be found, they are growing by investing in productivity enhancing software like PartMaker to allow their existing staff to be more productive.

Sivitter: I think this varies geographically both for us and our customers – it really depends where you are in the world as to whether you find a pool of skilled people. There is also a difference in their desires/expectations from CAD/CAM and their desire to be adventurous in its use – pushing the envelope or working very conservatively within the capabilities of the software.

CimatronE’s Micro-Milling Solution enables safe and efficient machining with very small tools, and working at very tight tolerances, in order to achieve an extremely high level of accuracy and surface quality. (Photo: Cimatron Technologies)

Rusk: There are a number of ways Siemens PLM Software is looking to address this challenge of ensuring that companies can implement the latest technologies. Our GO PLM program, provides PLM technology to more than one million students yearly at nearly 11,200 global institutions, where its use is at every academic level – from grade schools to graduate engineering research programs. In addition...we have made available Student Editions of our NX and Solid Edge products, making it easy for students to learn our products in their own home.

In addition, we continue to focus our efforts on making our tools easier to use and implement. Developments, such as synchronous technology, allow engineers to develop designs quickly and easily, focusing on the design task rather than the tool. With direct manipulation of geometry and dynamic feedback of the impact of changes to a model, use of CAD is much easier.

Therrien: [This is] not much of an issue for us.
 

TMD: During the roundtable participants noted that users typically become comfortable with the initial version they learn to use, and therefore they do not advance as newer versions come out – not learning to utilize, fully, the software’s capabilities. Is this still true today, and if so, what is or is not being done to address this?

TOP: NX delivers simulation results faster, having a direct impact on product decisions. (Photo: Siemens PLM Software) MIDDLE: Ease of use is a guiding principal in the development of FeatureCAM. (Photo: Delcam) BOTTOM: Dynamic Mill gives the user the ability to utilize the entire flute length of the cutting tool while maintaining more consistent cutting conditions. (Photo: CNC Software)

Picklo: Cimatron works closely with its customers to keep them current on the versions. Because much of the development in new versions is on customer feedback, they are anxious to run the latest version. To keep our customers informed we offer monthly tooling tips newsletters and webinars, and host user group meetings.

Mund: This will always be true with some people, and sometimes that is the right choice for a shop – their software might fit what they need to do. However, for shops that are either expanding or looking to boost efficiency on the jobs they have, it is beneficial to stay up-to-speed with the latest version as technology develops. We make sure that our latest tools help pull more efficiency out of the shopfloor.

McMinn: There may be a few shops working with outdated software but most Delcam customers are competing globally and they cannot afford to lag their global competition. There are so many enhancements in each release, which provide a competitive advantage, they really cannot afford to be working with an old version. Delcam has worked hard to communicate all of the new technology in each release in our learning zones on Delcam.tv so customers can easily see the value they get for the maintenance investment.

Mathews: Yes, it remains true that customers often become familiar with and comfortable with one version of the software and are sometimes unmotivated to learn newer versions that would allow them to take full advantage of some of the best tools available.

In our experience, this tendency – ultimately a tendency of human nature to become comfortable with any particular habit – serves the customer well until they find there is a need to change. We see this quite a bit in manufacturing, a field in which those who succeed remain competitive by utilizing innovation – by embracing innovation and having it excite them. No one wins in manufacturing today by doing it the way it always was.

Manufacturers who thrive not only see excitement by what they do, but they are pioneers who are constantly searching for ways to become faster and better at what they do. We recognize that we need to help our customers succeed, especially when they are taking a leap in adopting new forms of potentially disruptive technology, such as multi-tasking machining, a field in which ESPRIT excels. In recent years, we have added new methods of support that provide an additional safety net for those making the jump from ‘just so-so’ to major success.

Gibbs: The percentage of our customers on maintenance, those receiving all the latest versions and software improvements, is up since 2008. This is after we correct for those customers who are no longer in business. [Although] 2008 and 2009 were tough on manufacturing, the last two years have been good for manufacturing, spurring competition among the survivors, placing a premium on productivity, and opening the door for upgrades to a better CAM product.

TOP: ESPRIT’s full-spectrum functionality includes programming for 2- to 5-axis milling, 2- to 22-axis turning, 2- to 5-axis wire EDM, multi-tasking mill/turn machining, and B-axis machine tools. (Photo: DP Technology) BOTTOM: Vero Software designs, develops, and supplies software enabling mechanical design and manufacturing software specialized for a range of niche sectors. (Photo: Planit CADCAM Software/Vero Software)

Fishman: Sadly, this is still probably true, to a large extent. What Delcam’s PartMaker has done to combat this phenomenon as to more actively engage our customers through a variety of media to keep them abreast of the latest innovations in our product. These efforts include:

• Regular customer newsletters
• On-line Learning Zones with documentation and video about new releases
• Improved documentation, both written and video, of new products features
• Weekly, free technical update webinars, which are also recorded and made available for download
• Extensive use of our user forum and other social media
• Numerous, intimate and in person user conferences around the country

We recognize that when it comes to learning about new technology, one size does not fit all. Some people are auditory, some are visual, and some are tactile. You need to communicate to all three learning styles to have the maximum impact on a diverse customer base.

Sivitter: I think this is still generally true. From a vendor’s perspective, training and tips for greater productivity are more easily available today, via the web, rather than traditional classroom training. However, individuals, managers, and owners have to become better informed of what is possible, as well as more demanding. If the user is becoming comfortable then someone needs to demand some discomfort.

Rusk: This is a challenge that all vendors and customers face – how to introduce new technologies without disrupting current business. At Siemens PLM Software, with our NX product, we have adopted an evolutionary approach to our innovation. We protect our customer’s data and workflows as we move forward and introduce new tools and approaches to design, where users can use the approach they are familiar with until they build confidence in the new tools. We continue to invest in customer communication activities, such as our PLM Connections user events, where we bring together our customers and help them understand not just the new approaches but the value the new approaches can bring. Our field teams, both direct and channel partners, work with our customers to help them understand how new working approaches can bring benefits to their processes.

In addition to this work, our educational services team have been using on-line tools to make it easier for our customers to learn about new releases without the need for traditional classroom training. Services like our Learning Advantage site offer on-demand training for subscribers. We also work with our services partners to help them deliver more training tips via the web for our customers.

Finally, we have leveraged the increase in availability and acceptance of multi-media tools in our technical documentation making our help tools more interactive, such as and including narrated movies that deliver examples of how to use the new capabilities.

All of these approaches can help bridge the learning gap and encourage the use of new technologies as we develop it.

Therrien: This is always a challenge. Our customers are very busy, and it is always difficult for them to find the time to discover what is new. Therefore, the ability to access the key, new capabilities that will help them most is what is important. At SolidWorks, we have developed an extensive What’s New section inside our software that includes categorized listings of important new functionality that can be easily searched. We also include short tutorials that help users get up to speed on the functionality that is of interest to them most.

Additionally, our resellers are trained in all the new functionality and hold local events for users to help them understand the new capabilities that might be most applicable to them. SolidWorks itself also hosts various events and webcasts as another way of engaging users to get them up to speed.

PartMaker’s solids-based surface machining strategies support 3-, 4-, and 5-axis surfacing strategies. (Photo: Partmaker/Delcam)

TMD: What do you see as the biggest enhancements coming in the next five years for the CAD/CAM software industry?

Picklo: [The next five years will see] automation, standardization, and flexibility to meet customer changes/demands.

Mund: The biggest enhancement coming in the next few years is a continued aggressive push for intelligent toolpaths. Intelligent smart toolpaths dynamically adapt to part shapes and cuts, but they also allow for user knowledge when needed. There is flexibility for users to input their own expertise, if wanted.

McMinn: The CAD/CAM industry will continue to see more consolidation as the industry matures. Customers are demanding that their CAM vendor satisfy all of their manufacturing needs and provide a solution globally. Such solutions are typically provided by a larger company.

CAM systems must make less of a distinction between milling and turning. This distinction is certainly becoming less clear for machine tools, but many CAM systems still treat these two disciplines quite differently. Delcam has invested and will continue to invest a lot of development to allow a customer to create turning and milling operations with equal ease, to mix, match, sequence, and synchronize them as needed.

In five years there will most likely be little programming from 2D. It is becoming so affordable to create 3D models that CAM programming will be performed almost exclusively from 3D solid models. Delcam has been a leader in recognizing manufacturable features from solids and we will continue this development.

Mathews: Within the coming five years, the CAM industry will be focused on enhancing ease-of-use, speed, graphics, simulation, and automation. However, the greatest challenge will be capturing the vast amount of machining intelligence and finding an easy and quantifiable way to make it usable, and therefore valuable, to the average programmer. The ultimate goal is to make the CNC programming process completely automated while retaining the control that machinists need. This feat of automation would include speeding up the manufacturing process while making suggestions that ‘assist’ the programmer throughout.

GibbsCAM software delivers precision and high speed capabilities required for complex medical parts. (Photo: Gibbs & Associates)

One of our goals is to achieve unprecedented automation, quality, and consistency in CNC programming with the ESPRIT KnowledgeBase. ESPRIT’s KnowledgeBase gives you the power to leverage your shop’s most important strategic assets – its best machining practices developed during the years – for maximized productivity and a sharpened competitive edge.

It allows manufacturers to accumulate shop-wide machining experiences and refine their best practices by using real-world input that can be applied automatically. This allows manufacturers to free CNC programmers from repetitive parts programming, giving them time to focus on strategic process planning to further best practices improvements. ESPRIT’s KnowledgeBase provides a push-button approach for any programmer or operator to determine the best method to machine a given part or feature by automatically selecting the most appropriate machining cycles, cutting tools, and machining parameters.

Gibbs: [The next five years will see] better software for MTM support, better cutting and tooling technology integrations for faster cutting, and continued growth in 5-axis machining.

Fishman: I would not want to give away all of our secrets! You will have to stay tuned to our releases to get an answer to this one.

Sivitter: I think it is in the areas of further virtual prototyping and manufacturing automation where the biggest strides will be made. For instance, we are not going to have to make one to know it will work in the field. It will have been tested extensively before we ever go to production. As far as automation, toolpath creation will increasingly happen in concert with designing the part; add a feature and the toolpath comes with it.

Freebrey: The future of CAD/CAM will be based on the introduction of design intelligence into the software and maximizing the use of the industry innovations and cutting edge technologies. Advances in PC hardware, design/engineering machining, and cutting tools will result in CAD/CAM suppliers optimizing their offerings. PC hardware technology is vital to CAD/CAM development. Without advancements in hardware, complex full-machine simulations and high tolerance toolpath calculations would not be achievable. The cost of multi-axis machining centers is also reducing and it is becoming easier to purchase higher spec machine tools that, in return, require the need for advanced toolpath strategies.

SolidWorks product development solutions help designers in the medical field reduce design cycle time and costs, while still focusing on quality and reliability to increase patient safety and reduce liability. (Photo: SolidWorks)

Lots of development during the last few years has seen automation of machining at the forefront of development, with automatic recognition and machining of standard feature types including holes, pockets, and bosses, even to the extent of choosing the correct machining methods based on size and type of geometry.

This will only become more advanced in the future where any component will have the machining method chosen not only be simple criteria, but by even more advanced rules defined by the system. The choice of strategies and tools used, based on the component and what tools are available to the user, will allow for the system to choose the best machining methods – including the number of setups to keep machining time and setups down to a minimum.

Although CAD/CAM companies cover most industries, they often have similar strategies and methods for manufacturing in the general engineering sector. We have already started to see companies switch some of their resources to developing niche products, moving into areas where market growth can be predicted to move forward in the future.

Ultimately, the future of CAD/CAM will be driven by market demands, vertical applications with industry intelligence, and software automation.

Rusk: Current CAD solutions only address a small percentage of the overall product development process.

This coverage will grow during the next five years, bringing more of the early design process into the coverage, capturing and sharing design intent from the voice of customer through to the end deliverable.

With the changes our customers are facing in their products, for example the innovations that are occurring in medical equipment with more use of computer technology to monitor and manage patient conditions, we are seeing a demand for even closer integration between multiple disciplines including mechanical, electrical, and software. This will include increased levels of simulation for complex products to validate, truly, that a design meets its original goals.

New material innovations lead to the ability to manufacture more complex shapes, which will lead to the need for enhanced manufacturing tools, not just CAM technology but on the shopfloor. At Siemens PLM Software, we believe that with our knowledge in machine tool controllers and our CAM solutions, we will be able to help companies get more from their investment in manufacturing technologies.

Therrien: Our customers want even tighter integration between design, cost estimation, and manufacturing software – the ability to take advantage of information already contained in the 3D design model to speed up CAM programming and improve downstream collaboration.

 

Our industry experts have many more thoughts on the CAD/CAM market. To read Part Two, please visit OnlineTMD.com/tmd0312-cadcam-roundtable-part2.aspx.