SolidWorks Enters The CAD Academy

October 18, 2007

We’ve all heard accounts about how U.S. students are lagging behind in math and science skills. There’s no doubt a growing number of engineering jobs are being shifted overseas or are filled in the States by foreign nationals who appear better equipped in technology skills compared to the latest crop graduating from our own universities.

SolidWorks Corp., in conjunction with other leading design software providers, are stepping up to try to alter that trend. The 3D CAD provider and its peers are launching The CAD Academy, a secondary and post-secondary pre-engineering and pre-architectural program designed to inspire a new generation of engineers and architects. The program bundles leading design, engineering and architecture software with curriculum, support and multimedia content at a fraction of the cost of other design education packages.

The CAD Academy is just one response to “Rising Above the Gathering Storm,” a seminal National Academies of Science Report that cast light on the United States’s deteriorating standing in math and science skills while outlining ways in which it could reclaim its competitiveness. The report calls for a tripling of the number of students who pass advanced placement or similar math and science exams by 2010.

SolidWorks says The CAD Academy addresses that goal by helping middle and high school students explore technology-oriented careers through real-world projects in the areas of science, engineering, architecture and mathematics.

The CAD Academy software lineup includes:

SolidWorks Education Edition, Graphisoft ArchiCAD, Google SketchUpPro, A+CAD, a proprietary The CAD Academy software and multimedia content from the Discovery Channel, including excerpts from the Extreme Engineering.

Posted by Beth Stackpole on October 18, 2007 | Comments (2)

Industries:

October 31, 2007

In response to: SolidWorks Enters The CAD Academy
Gary Olson commented:

We are currently using The CAD Academy and the curriculum is right on the mark. We are able to utilize existing curriculum to map to state standards.

October 22, 2007

In response to: SolidWorks Enters The CAD Academy
... commented:

"The United States’s deteriorating standing in math and science skills" software technology is very important for educators, but most important are the lessons, principles, and curriculum.

Design News Partner Zones

CAD/CAE Model Clean-Up: Reduce Iterative Cycles
This webinar featured research and survey results related to problems associated with preparing CAD geometry for CAE applications. We discussed how Recipe-Based Automation can help create "just-in-time" CAE-ready geometry each time a cad model is updated. Watch the Presentation

Light Matters: Systems Level Approach to HBLED illumination applications
Its good practice to apply a systems-level approach to high-brightness LED (HBLED) illumination applications. Minimally, the system includes the optical, thermal and electrical characteristics of the of the HBLED, the lens (if any) which is built-in to its package, secondary optics such as external plastic lenses/reflectors to direct the light as your application requires and power driver electronics. Read More

Design Engineers' Portal for Sensing and Machine Safety
Whatever industry you're in, or whatever product you manufacture, the right sensors to automate your plant, and to improve your overall efficiency, quality and safety are a must. You'll find Banner Engineering to be an amazing resource of products, training and people with expertise.