CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
26 March 2008
Acquisitions
SolidWorks Acquires CircuitWorks Provider Priware
SolidWorks Corporation announced it has acquired U.K.-based Priware Limited, a SolidWorks Gold Partner and developer of CircuitWorks™ software, which bridges the gap between electronic CAD and mechanical CAD software. The acquisition gives engineers around the world a platform to integrate electronic and mechanical designs for the millions of electronic products developed every year.
“The electronics industry is inherently becoming more complex, meaning we as engineers are increasingly challenged to arrange for proper interaction between electronic components and their mechanical environment,” said Gert Lamberts, project manager at security and electronic control unit supplier N.V. Nedap (http://www.nedap.com). “Working in separate programs with PCB makers slows the process and increases the chance we’ll have to re-work something. The integration of SolidWorks and CircuitWorks is a marriage of high-performing tools that lets us innovate and collaborate, rather than simply recreate new products.”
Previously, much of electronics development involved designing the product to fit around the electronic components. SolidWorks and CircuitWorks together let engineers design PCBs to fit inside ever more stylized product frames, whether an MP3 player or the dashboard of a new car.
For example, a mechanical engineer can use CircuitWorks to include a PCB design (in industry-standard IDF and PADS file formats) in the SolidWorks solid model of a new global positioning system (GPS) device to help ensure the PCB is not too close to any metal contacts. SolidWorks Routing would allow the engineer to create the wire harness to connect to the PCB. The engineer would also be able to gauge how the PCB will stay in place using COSMOSWorks® design validation software, and check heat flow using COSMOSFloWorks™ thermal dynamics analysis software.
The acquisition further establishes SolidWorks software as an indispensable platform for developing highly complex mechatronics systems, which combine electrical, mechanical, and information processing components found in consumer electronics and robotics. SolidWorks and CircuitWorks combined let mechatronics engineers use digital modeling to improve product quality, reduce prototyping, and streamline development.
“Very few products made today are purely mechanical,” said SolidWorks CEO Jeff Ray. “As products become ‘smarter’ with more complexity, electronic components are increasingly driving the design. The lines are blurring between electronic and mechanical industries, and this acquisition is a natural step toward helping engineers be more innovative and proficient in this changing climate.”
Availability and pricing
CircuitWorks is immediately available as a component of SolidWorks Office Premium. It will be provided to existing Premium customers at no additional charge.
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