Dassault: We Design Cars Like Nobody Else

What with Autodesk going on and on about how their software designs cars (well, their Alias software makes prospective cars look pretty), I figure Dassault figured it was time to shot some large statistics against the HMS San Rafael:

...CATIA ...was used in the development of over 80 percent* of all the vehicles on display at the 2010 LA Auto Show...**

(I wonder who did the other 20%, NX?)

Who's Your Daddy?

To ensure Autodesk knows who's not the upstart, Dassault added this line:

It has long been recognized that implementation of CATIA allows automakers to reduce vehicle development cost and bring product to market more quickly. 

The company felt the need to also present its green credentials:

The use of the CATIA solution has proven exceptionally strong (85%) in the Green Ride & Drive vehicles, which are experimental models that offer high efficiency, low environmental impact or run on a variety of alternative fuels.

Heh, love the inclusion of the word "experimental." 

Source.

Update

In unrelated news, Toyota adds second Woodstock shift, 800 workers to be hired to help double production of RAV4 SUVs.

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* Numbers based upon LA Auto Show confirmed vehicles as of November 23, 2009

** If you wondering about the many ellipses, here is the actual sentence in the press release:

Dassault Sysemes (DS) (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, today announced that CATIA, the company's solution for virtual design, was used in the development of over 80 percent* of all the vehicles on display at the 2010 LA Auto Show, open to the public through December 13, 2009. 

What we editors don't do to make your reading lives easier!

Comments

[al Dean]

Problem with this press release and many others relating to automotive process is that they use words rarely used in the field.

There's very little design. It's Styling (which is Alias' stronghold) and Engineering (Catia's domain). Throw ICEM Surf, which is still used traditionally in technical surface development and which Dassault now own, and it's a complex thing, usually treated with complete disregard by vendors jumping on the bandwagon.

[MikeC]

Have you heard any rumors that Chrysler is moving to UG?

[Mook]

Engineering definitely falls within the "design" process, as does CAD. Catia is considered to be a "CAD" system, which is used primarily by non-engineer designers, although I'm sure in some situations degreed engineers use Catia also. Abaqus is heavily used for engineering analysis in automotive design, arguably the most widely used FEA product in that market, and Abaqus is now part of Dessault too.

Alias appears to be used exclusively in conceptual design. Once the nitty gritty drawings and parts lists need to be generated, Alias doesn't appear to be a viable tool. Maybe Inventor? Autodesk quietly acquired Moldflow and Algor (FEA software) a year or two back. Haven't heard much about their plans or strategies for those non-CAD product lines. My guess is that the acquisitions looked good on the executive powerpoint, but in reality a poor fit with ADSK's dealer channel, development expertise (they're a CAD company with no in-house analysis software experience), and existing product lines.

[M Koss]

Note also that the release says "used in the design" and not "used to design" - two very different things. CATIA may have been used to design certain parts, or used by suppliers. I'll bet it sure wasn't used to design the wiring harnesses!