ImpactXoft and Dassault Systemes Strategic Alliance Announcement Confirms Dr. Hiromi Araki as Industry Visionary

With the ImpactXoft and Dassault Systemes strategic alliance, announced September 30, Dassault Systemes recognizes the importance of the Functional Modeling^TM, Functional Object Representation^TM, and Design Intent Merge^TM technology, which Dr.Hiromi Araki President and CEO of Toyota Caelum Inc (TCI) recognized over three years ago.

Attilio Rimoldi, President and CEO of ImpactXoft, met with Dr. Araki in Nagoya, Japan in 1999 and demonstrated his prototype, which included the above-mentioned technology. Dr. Araki, who was a well-known advocate of collaborative design and developer of the TeamCAD system, immediately saw the potential of this technology for collaborative product design. In March 2000, TCI entered into a joint development partnership to develop applications, based on both company's technology, know-how, and experience. "Araki-san and TCI's support were crucial to ImpactXoft through its formative and often difficult years. Araki-san and I, from the beginning, shared a common vision for the future," said Attilio Rimoldi, President and CEO, ImpactXoft. "During the first three years of ImpactXoft's existence, Araki-san has been our best friend and biggest supporter. Araki-san and TCI introduced Araki's software development methodology, which was from the Toyota lean manufacturing techniques, into our design process. The high quality XXen/IX Design products resulted from employing these techniques."

ImpactXoft is a private, venture-funded software company introducing innovative applications that change the way people and companies develop products. The IX SPeeD^TM Suite is an award-winning enterprise solution for Simultaneous Product Development^TM (SPD), enabling all constituents involved in the product lifecycle to concurrently design, modify, evaluate, and produce quality products with unprecedented speed. Based on a web-centric architecture and proprietary technologies, IX SPeeD revolutionizes the way designs are created, shared, and ultimately manufactured, empowering companies to drastically reduce their time to market and gain a competitive edge. ImpactXoft has developed IX SPeeD Suite in partnership with Toyota Caelum Inc. leveraging the experience and know-how of both companies. For more information, visit our website at: http://www.impactxoft.com.

Toyota Caelum Incorporated (TCI) was created in 1985 as a department of the Toyota Motor Corporation for system support of their suppliers. In 1993, having targeted on the world wide MDA (including CAD/CAM, CAE and CAT) market, TCI became an independent subsidiary that develops, sells, and maintains service of MDA design solutions. TCI manages a direct sales force, as well as over 100 dealers and sub-dealers throughout Japan and North America.

IBM Expands Express Portfolio with New Product Lifecycle Management Solutions for Medium-Sized Manufacturers

Medium-size manufacturers will benefit from PLM Express solutions delivering rich functionality and rapid deployment at an affordable price

IBM recently extended its portfolio of Express offerings created specifically for medium-sized customers by announcing PLM Express solutions. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is a strategic approach to creating and managing a company's product-related intellectual capital, from its initial conception to retirement. These first IBM PLM Express solutions are ideally suited to the product development needs of specific manufacturing segments including industrial components, tooling suppliers, industrial machinery, mobile equipment, plastics manufacturing and consumer goods.

IBM's Express portfolio is comprised of hardware, software, services and financing and is the first in the industry designed to meet specific criteria for medium-sized businesses with respect to function, ease-of-use, management and price. The offerings within the new IBM Express portfolio will assist medium-sized businesses -- companies with between 100 and 1,000 employees that often have fewer IT skills and tighter budgets than larger enterprises -- in their transformation to on demand businesses using IBM's open standards-based technology.

Sold and serviced through IBM and IBM's extensive, locally based PLM Business Partner network, PLM Express solutions consist of CATIA Version 5, the leading collaborative product design software, and SMARTEAM for product data management developed by Dassault Systemes. These applications will be offered as part of a customizable total solutions package that includes IBM WebSphere Application Server - Express middleware for a secure and robust web services delivery platform; IBM hardware including IntelliStations for top CATIA and graphics performance, and eServer for secure storage of product designs and shared access to the applications. The package also includes options for systems management, enhanced user support, application training and flexible low-rate financing options to ensure a smooth implementation at an affordable price for rapid and substantial return on investment.

As part of the Express launch and its commitment to the growing mid-market PLM customer base, IBM is reinforcing help desk support with a new 'how to' hotline. All PLM customers regardless of size will now have worldwide access to 150 dedicated PLM Express end-user support representatives, providing call center support in 20 languages during business hours and web support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The PLM Express solutions were designed and developed to meet the needs of customers in their particular industry - so customers only pay for functionality they require. The PLM Express platform enables efficient and collaborative product development and data management both internally and with customers and suppliers. Product data can be managed even between different design systems reducing manufacturing costs, speeding the delivery of new products to the marketplace, and improving the quality of service and product maintenance after the sale.

"We have been looking for an affordable PLM system for a few months, but between software and implementation costs we couldn't justify it even with our customers urging us to do so," said Mike Saputo, President, Jomico, a family-operated precision sheet metal job shop based in St. Louis. "With this new PLM Express offering everything is bundled to eliminate the high costs that can be detrimental to a small company like us. Now, PLM is a tangible goal instead of a long term vision."

Fausto Bellamico, general director, EMAK, a gardening and forestry equipment manufacturer, explained "As a mid-size enterprise with 500 employees, we need a full-scale IT solution, encompassing hardware, software and services that's sized and priced to fit. We supply outdoor maintenance equipment to customers around the world, and we can't afford any down time to install new systems. IBM delivered and installed a complete solution, including the world's leading product design software, CATIA V5, and the compatible and scaleable SMARTEAM product data management software running on powerful IBM IntelliStations that replaced our slower Hewlett-Packard desktops. We expect express return-on-investment through reduced engineering time, automated document production, and more efficient manufacturing processes. We thank IBM for supporting our mid-size business with big company technology at a small company price."

IBM's new PLM Express offerings are available immediately.

Christine Lemyze, vice president Marketing, IBM Product Lifecycle Management, said, "IBM delivers the best in PLM technology and with certified business partners in 160 countries; we support it with the most experienced global network of PLM professionals. Together, we are removing the traditional barriers of expense and complexity to make our offer even more accessible to medium-sized companies around the world. Aside from ease of use and affordability, the value add of the PLM Express offering is its capacity to provide an integrated set of solutions combining powerful PLM applications with IBM middleware and hardware, along with best-in-class support from local business partners and preferential financing terms. These are the key strategic components that set our offering apart from the competition and will help customers win in their own industry."

Dassault Systèmes' PLM Skills Initiative Creates Global Education Program for Product Lifecycle Management

Education Partners Program includes more than 500 instructors. CATIA Certification Program now available in multiple languages.

Dassault Systèmes, the world's leading developer of product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions, announced that its Education Partner Program (EPP) has achieved record reach and that its Certified Professional Program (CPP) is now available in multiple languages. Both programs are part of an integrated PLM skills initiative to help companies and individuals maximize the value of Dassault Systèmes solutions.

Six months after the launch of the EPP, 45 companies have joined the program and offer training services on Dassault Systèmes PLM solutions CATIA®, ENOVIA^TM and SMARTEAM^TM. EPP courseware is developed concurrently with Dassault Systèmes' software, reflecting its design intent and maximizing system utilization. Therefore, companies with the EPP label can deliver, in the local language of 30 countries, via more than 500 experienced instructors and 250 classrooms, up-to-date and consistent education to help users maximize their PLM skills.

Dassault Systèmes' CATIA Certified Professional Program provides customers and users with a globally valuable index for measuring and promoting their CATIA knowledge. The certification exams are now available in English, Japanese, French and German and can be taken in more than 3,500 testing centers. Companies, including Dassault Systèmes itself, use the CPP as a means to manage the CATIA skills of their employees.

"While we had some concern over an approach based on multiple-choice questions for the exams, I'm glad to say that we now whole heartedly endorse it," said Tim Draper, CAD Manager, Boc Edwards. "The exams provide a very rigorous and challenging assessment of the candidate's knowledge. I am certainly now considering using them for both internal professional development of our designers and for screening of prospective new employees."

"Not only are the exams thorough and challenging, they are a great way to internationally certify your CATIA skill set," said Craig A. Larson, a certified CATIA specialist and an experienced CATIA instructor at MSC Software. "I thought the test was very well done, with multiple-choice questions that are very visual."

"The ever-growing coverage of the Education Partner Program, combined with the enthusiastic adoption of the Certified Professional Program, has created a pervasive PLM knowledge ecosystem," said Philippe Forestier, executive vice president Alliances, Marketing, and Communications, Dassault Systèmes. "It strongly increases the value of PLM to our customers by helping them make the most of our solutions. The success of these programs has encouraged us to invest in them further." Dassault Systèmes courseware is available only through Dassault Systèmes or its EPP members. Details about the Education Partner Program and Certified Professional Program are available at http://plm.3ds.com/en/education.