MCAD/CAM

Aerospace Designers Tell Us about Must-Have Tools

The range of PLM and CAD-integrated solutions are critical for aerospace companies to keep pace with efficiency.

by Barb Schmitz

Build a lighter, stronger, cheaper airframe—with fewer components—and the world will beat a path to your door. Put the right tools into the right hands and you’re halfway there.

To help manufacturers toward that end, a myriad of software tools—many closely integrated with CAD tools—are being used to create digital prototypes of entire aircraft, to view and manipulate parts and assemblies of parts in digital design review sessions on the Web, and to simulate the reentry of NASA’s next-generation crew capsule into Earth’s atmosphere. And all this is taking place while manufacturers meet and exceed the strenuous flight-testing and certification processes required of them as they cut significant time and expense out of the overall design cycle.

To find out how designers are doing that, we asked a handful of them what tools they considered indispensable. Their answers gave us an inside glimpse into the vital issues facing companies designing, building, and supporting aerospace products today