Lightweight By Design

Dear Desktop Engineering Reader:

In industries like automotive, aerospace and consumer products, weight and shape optimization have absolutely nothing to do with the startling reality that Oprah Winfrey can now eat bread. Still, there's a startling new reality in weight and shape optimization rushing toward design engineering that the wise will make a lot of bread out of. Today's Check it Out link takes you to a must-see, on-demand webinar covering what you need to know about weight and shape optimization. It won't cost you any dough.

“Trends in Lightweight Design: Shedding Excess Weight from Products” is a visionary discussion hosted by DE's Kenneth Wong and sponsored by Stratasys. It features three panelists who really know their stuff. What the panelists have to say will grab and hold your attention from their opening remarks to sign-off.

The gist of the discussion is that trends like topology optimization, advanced materials and 3D printing of metals and composites are driving what will be the next generation of design and manufacturing.

Similar to the transformation wrought when upfront analyses changed everything for designers and analysts, upfront topology optimization will be a part of the engineering toolset. It will demand a retooling of your approach. Instead of conceiving a part then running it through tests, you'll start with a set of conditions – loads, materials, stresses, boundaries and so forth – and the software will optimize a design idea that you lead to where it needs to go. It's interactive human and machine collaboration.

Couple that with advanced materials – “atoms to autos,” one panelist says – and 3D printing. 3D printing already enables you to make parts that couldn't be made before because of expense or complexity. The flip side of that is CAD often cannot design what 3D printing can do. This emerging approach will. And it is here where developments in topology optimization, materials engineering and 3D printing technology will converge to, yet again, redefine how the design engineer works.

Changes in fundamental technologies are always difficult to effectuate for developers and end users. So this sea change is not gonna happen next week. But it will happen.

“Trends in Lightweight Design: Shedding Excess Weight from Products” is the most engaging hour of techno-talk that a nerd like me could ask for. Hit today's Check it Out link, strap in and enjoy in this on-demand webinar. This is quite the ride. Exciting stuff.

Thanks, Pal. – Lockwood

Anthony J. Lockwood

Editor at Large, Desktop Engineering

Watch "Trends in Lightweight Design: Shedding Excess Weight from Products"