RADAN Solution Marches On—50 Years Strong

Hexagon marks 50 years of RADAN, a sheet metal CAD/CAM solution that has been in steady development and daily production use by manufacturers for five decades. 

First developed in 1976, RADAN was created to solve a production challenge: how to verify punch press programs offline before material reached the machine. 

For 50 years, RADAN has evolved, adapting to new machine technologies, shifting supply-chain dynamics, the company shares. 

“In sheet metal manufacturing, longevity only matters if you keep earning trust,” says Olaf Körner, product manager at Hexagon’s Production Software Division. “RADAN has remained relevant because it continually adapts to manufacturing reality. As machines become more capable, material costs more volatile and skill availability more uncertain, manufacturers need dependable preparation they can rely on, not disruption.”  

RADAN supports punching, profiling, nesting, and bending workflows across a range of fabrication environments. By embedding machine-specific logic, tooling intelligence and verified workflows, RADAN captures operational expertise and makes it repeatable. RADAN links preparation, costing and verification within a unified application environment.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.