Manufacturing is in the House—at a SOLIDWORKS Conference

Scenes from 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023, part 4.

3DEXPERIENCE World, the event previously known as SOLIDWORKS World, is focused on manufacturing more than ever—if the exhibits on the show floor are any indication. It is as if to say that SOLIDWORKS, and by extension 3DEXPERIENCE, is not just about design anymore.

On display throughout the show floor are a range of machines and a host of machinists. Some are in shop aprons, ready to patiently explain the basics of machining and robotics to design engineers who may never have set foot in a machine shop. You might expect a version of this at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) but never at a CAD conference.

But at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023, we see robots assembling gears and serving cappuccinos. There are several 3D printing machines, including a Markforged metal 3D printer that has created the blanks for this year’s most sought-after swag: a big metal belt buckle. Gian Paolo Bassi, EVP of EXPERIENCE Works, wears one on stage. We have high-end 5-axis machines as big as a small room that cost as much as a house. There is also a small army of cobots.

Stephen Kha, cobot expert. “They will not take your head off. You could get a bruise, though.”

Stephen Kha, cobot expert. “They will not take your head off. You could get a bruise, though.”

The cobots, all courtesy of Hoosan, are performing a variety of tasks from dispensing coffee to assembling gear trains. The coffee-making is relatively straightforward but amazingly popular. The coffee cobot, a Dr. Presso, was fascinating crowds unaccustomed to such robotics. A similar machine has entertained visitors at SFO for several years. 

More technically impressive was the way a Doosan cobot was able to assemble a planetary gear, gingerly placing a spur gear between three others using a programable touch and feel—as well as a generous chamfer on every spur gear.

Mike Buchli at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023.

Mike Buchli at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023.

Mike Buchli says he is no manufacturing expert, but I beg to differ. He owns his own machine shop, a speed shop for street racers. If he wins the lottery, he plans on getting the CNC machine he stands in front of. It’s only $350,000. It’s not even the most expensive machine on the floor—that distinction is held by the $475,000 Tormach that sits adjacent to us.

What you don’t know about cobots might not kill you, but it could give you a bruise. This I find out from Steven Kha. You might have thought that cobots (a portmanteau of “collaboration” and “robots”) could work side by side with human workers, sans the plexiglass cages industrial robots must operate inside. But as Kha explained to me, cobots can sense the opposing force a person would provide should the cobot’s arm come into contact with them. I get to feel how much opposing force that is: about the force of my little finger. However, this force is felt internally against the motors, not on the surface of the “hand”—so, should the cobot arm be traveling at maximum velocity, “you could get a bruise,” Kha says.

What may have been the most massive machine on display was a plasma cutter, the Tormach 1300PL, a $15,000 behemoth that was effortlessly cutting through a 14-gauge steel plate over a pool of brackish water.

Dassault Systèmes SOLIDWORKS is addressing manufacturing from all angles. Leading a panel discussion on Diversity in Manufacturing was Barb Schmitz. The panel was composed of as many men as women, whereas the ratio in the manufacturing world is less than one woman for every 10 men.

Could this be because manufacturing intimidates women? That occurs to me upon seeing Titan Gilroy on the panel. The burly ex-con turned manufacturing evangelist—“Manufacturing has saved my life,” he says—with his larger-than-life personality could have dominated the panel. Except Titan is more the gentle giant, and is respectful, well-spoken and sensitive to the inclusion of women in the workforce.

“I love women,” he says.

Todd White and Mike Buchli with Todd’s daughter on the main stage at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023.

Todd White and Mike Buchli with Todd’s daughter on the main stage at 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023.

The show took place over Valentine’s Day, and Todd White’s daughter was stealing hearts. Brought onto the main stage holding her father’s hand, the youngster showed (via video on the big screen) how she operated a CNC machine—when she was 10 years old! Her mom and sister in the front row cheer for her. The audience goes crazy.