Followers of Formula 1 will be delighted by Jenson Button’s victory at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. Sebastian Vettel is human after all, overshooting a bend and letting Jenson pass on the last lap – thrilling stuff. It had me on the edge of my seat anyway!
What has this got to do with a CAM software blog you might ask? Quite a lot as it happens, as the leading teams are making changes to their cars right up to the last-minute, testing new wings, engine parts, diffusers etc. to gain valuable 1/10ths of seconds. To achieve these changes relies on a fast-moving supply chain that can respond in the space of a few hours, taking new design data and turning it into a high technology finished product without a hitch. In this industry, they don’t take no as an answer. I went to a presentation at Williams F1 a little while ago, and the speaker there pointed out that F1 was primarily an entertainment industry, which had not occurred to me before, so the staggering amounts of money involved and the pressure for success become clear when you think about it in that light.
Back to CAM software – for those supplying this industry speed, reliability, trouble-free operation and technical competence are essential elements. Suppliers can’t have a software package which is difficult to program or which won’t machine a new and complex shape or which produces unreliable CNC code. Choosing the best CAM software takes on a whole new significance in this industry as if it causes an avoidable delay it can result in lost business and the customer going elsewhere. Software that has been designed with reliability, ease of use and technical competence in mind will make programming the machines, quick, simple and trouble-free, enabling companies to spend time optimizing other parts of their production cycle.
