Solid Edge users take center stage at SEU14
In his keynote presentation this morning at SEU14, Karsten Newbury focused on the design accomplishments of our Solid Edge users. Karsten talked about how Solid Edge users are re-imagining what’s possible, transforming their businesses and the world that we live in. From skis for Olympic competitors, to water pumps for subsistence farmers in developing countries, to the latest spin-off from the scooters craze, here are some highlights from his presentation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwBqmnlr730
Stöckli are a Swiss based designer and manufacturer of skiing equipment and a long time user of Solid Edge. Karsten showed an excellent video that highlights how they combine advanced technology with traditional craftsmanship, and the way they work closely with athletes to give them an edge in their individual disciplines. Stöckli have a database of ski designs in Solid Edge and from this the final shape and the material hardness distribution are automatically calculated for different ski lengths. Where it used to take a day to create a ski design it now takes one hour. Personally I just love how they say “Stöckli”, it seems like a word made for a Swiss-German accent!
From the Swiss mountains to the warmer climes of Africa and my favorite Solid Edge customer story for some time – Flexipump. Flexipump is a simple but very effective handoperated pump design for developing countries. David Hutton started using Solid Edge at Bath University in the UK where all of the 1,000 engineering students have access to Solid Edge software. As David says “Our primary aim is to make the Flexipump available to farmers at an affordable price and to see them and their farm’s thrive through the increased irrigation the pump can provide. Appropriate irrigation can create significantly higher crop yields, putting more money in farmer’s pockets which can be spent on school fees, medicine and ultimately expanding their farms”. David recognized a real problem with previous pumps that often lay unused due to mechanical failures and unavailability of spare parts.A particular design focus for the Flexipump was ease-of-maintenance; replacement parts can be made locally from readily available materials to ensure that pumps are always in service. Karsten’s reference to the impact of well designed products that transform the world around us is really demonstrated here!
Finally to Razor Scooters and a great new product called the “Crazy Cart”. A company like Razor is a key reminder that in today’s environment, re-imagining what’s possible is not only a way to survive in a competitive market – it’s a way to thrive and take the lead in your industry. Crazy Cart’s designer Ali Kermani demonstrated the cart on stage and then told the story about the issues he faced in convincing industry leaders that this was a viable product. SEU14 attendees will get to try out the prototype adult Crazy Cart that was designed in Solid Edge – significantly reducing the development time for this new product.
Karsten concluded “Our Solid Edge users are pushing the limits and re-imagining what’s possible with their designs every day”, I think these customer stories support this claim admirably.
