CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
13 March 2009
Implementation Investments
“Green Friendly” White House Playground Set was Designed in SolidWorks by Rainbow Play Systems of South Dakota
First daughters Malia and Sasha Obama got a big surprise after school on Wednesday, March 4th, 2009: a brand-new swing set from Rainbow Play Systems, a Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corporation and Alignex, Incorporated customer.
The “Green Friendly” set, which Rainbow Play Systems have dubbed, “Malia & Sasha's Castle” includes features for both active and passive play, including a "penthouse" with a double bubble, overhead monkey bars, shimmy bars, four standard swings, a race car tire swing, rock wall, step chain ladder, slide, binoculars, periscopes and chalkboard. The design of the set was reversed from the standard design model so that the "double bubble" faces the Oval Office, where President Obama can keep an eye on his daughters at play.
The design for the “Rainbow Castle” branded system was accomplished utilizing SolidWorks 3D Mechanical Design (CAD) software. This manufacturing software allowed the designers the flexibility to develop multiple configurations of parts and subsystems that makes customizing the final design layout a simple process. “SolidWorks helps us provide the customer with the exact play system they are looking for,” said Jon Mattson, Product Design Manager for Rainbow Play Systems.
The 100 percent North American Cedar and Redwood structure was an important selling point due to President Obama drive to promote green energy. Rainbow Play Systems markets these materials as an "environmentally responsible choice". Original Rainbow ® Play Systems contain only “Certified” lumber from 3rd party inspected mills that comply with all Local, State, and Federal harvesting regulations.
A factory crew from the Brookings plant, including Foster, installed the play set along with a “Presidential” picnic table, which was a gift for the Obama’s. The massive wooden table now sits near the swing set and features brass plates etched with the names of all 44 presidents.
A plaque on the play system reads: "Established March 4th, 2009, Malia & Sasha's Castle, Handcrafted with Pride in the Heartland of America, Beautiful Brookings, South Dakota, The Hometown of: Rainbow Play Systems, Inc., God Bless America."
Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, were said to have greeted the swing set with "squeals of joy", according to White House staff. The girls played on the set for almost an hour in chilly weather that afternoon. Their mother went for a swing, too.
About Rainbow Play Systems
Rainbow Play Systems has grown from a small custom job shop in Minnesota to a high-tech manufacturing facility on 130 acres in the heartland of America-Beautiful Brookings, South Dakota. While the scale of our operation has changed over the last 24 years, our focus has not. We continue to pride ourselves on manufacturing the safest, most durable and highest-quality play systems available in America.
About Alignex, Inc.
Alignex is an Engineering technology company that assists their customers in improving their manufacturing process, whether through software solutions or engineering services. Serving Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and western areas of Wisconsin and Illinois, Alignex has been the premier SolidWorks Reseller in the Upper Midwest for 11 years and in business as an engineering technology provider for nearly 20 years. Alignex has helped over 1000 companies make the transition to SolidWorks from a wide variety of 2D and 3D CAD formats.
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