Converging roles and disciplines in product design means connecting data.
Autodesk has sponsored this post.

A generation ago, a new product appeared after a logical and sequential process. It started with an idea, then moved to design, then to detailing, on to electrical engineers if there were electronics in it, then finally to production or the shop for prototyping. Today’s market, however, calls for hastened design cycles to meet shifting consumer demand, and a degree of agility that allows for customization.
Engineers know that a process can be hastened by doing tasks in parallel, rather than in series.
And progressive product innovation process teams have learned how to simultaneously work on a product design and manufacturing process without it becoming a free-for-all. How they can do so without chaos is a credit to their leadership, their own coordination and collaboration—and a new generation of digital tools.
One company with the digital tools and a place in the forefront of introducing convergence to product manufacturers is Autodesk. The company has long offered the multi-disciplinary Fusion 360, which combines mechanical design and electrical design, as well as integrates simulation and manufacturing all in one platform. The manufacture of parts can either be done with Fusion 360’s integrated CAM tools or through its interface with Xometry, the manufacturing service that takes a CAD model and delivers a finished part—no in-house 3D printing or CNC machines needed.
Fusion 360 is therefore one solution, one database, one format in which all design, simulation and manufacturing aspects of a product can be produced, stored and simultaneously worked on. With Fusion 360 and Fusion Team, collaboration is assured and facilitated by the cloud, where the data resides, accessible to all.
Autodesk defines convergence as the blending of previously separate technologies, processes and data to create new combinations of products, services and experiences that reshape industry structures. In addition, convergence will also connect different roles within a company—or as Autodesk is fond of saying, “connecting the top floor to the shop floor.”
Industry analyst Charlene Li sees four types of convergence (process, technologies, data and industry) as necessary after all the disruption companies have faced in the last two years. “65 percent of companies surveyed report disruption,” says Li, referring to her recent research on hundreds of companies worldwide.
“Expect it to get worse next year,” she adds, again citing responses in her survey.
Companies ought to consider convergence sooner rather than later, says Li. “Don’t wait until you are ready.”
We can definitely help with data convergence, says Autodesk CTO and EVP Raji Arasu, in a conversation with Li recorded at Autodesk University 2021. Arasu sees “connected data” as a key component of convergence.
“Connected data leads to connected teams and connected workflows,” says Arasu. “We can get connected data through data interoperability. Today, our products produce large files. We are trying to break down those files into granular data. We hope that this granular data will help reduce rework and improve production time. Our customers spend a lot of time moving these large files from one product to the other. We want to get rid of that. We hope that one day this plan for data will create efficiencies for our customers not just with Autodesk products, but even with other products that they might be using in their ecosystem and their workflows.”
For more information, see Welcome to the Era of Convergence by Autodesk.