Solutions for life

After six years or so of getting used to PLM as the 'catch-all' acronym for high end manufacturing technology, the alphabet soup that characterises technical software marketing seems to be nurturing a challenger.

Seasoned industry commentators Ralph Grabowski and Jeff Rowe in the US have recently suggested that a potential replacement is 4DV. This is defined as 4D (3D + Time) integrated with Virtualisation — physics-based, animated 3D rendering of CAD models.

, arguably the pioneer of PLM as we know it, is leading the charge with Virtools4. With this you can create and experience the work behaviour of an employee in a manufacturing plant, or visualise the ergonomics of an operator as he drives a forklift through the factory.

'This new release demonstrates Dassault Systemes' ambition to democratise 3D,' said Dassault's executive vice-president, Strategy R&D, Dominique Florack. 'The new Life Platform brings to the market a unique solution to deploy 3D experiences pervasively on personal computers, games consoles, intranets and the web, and shows our commitment to bringing the power of 3D to all communities.'