ModuleWorks News and Press Releases

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, has announced the latest release of its CAM components, version 2009.12. The new release will debut at Euromold in Frankfurt from 2nd-5th December and offers a range of new features across the product range, further expanding capability for 3-5 Axis toolpath creation and simulation.

ModuleWorks 2009.12 is available in both 32 and 64 bit versions as partners are seeing increasing demand for native 64 bit technology to take advantage of the increased memory availability and latest processor technology; this is expected to increase as customers evaluate upgrade options for the new Windows® 7 OS.

New smoothing strategies for 5-Axis machining continue to be refined, extending them across the full range of toolpaths and also giving the option for smooth link moves. 3-Axis machining has a new roughing option to automatically detect and machine flats areas while Constant Cusp finishing has a new high to low ordering option to complement the inside-out and outside-in strategies. Performance and toolpath quality continue to be a focus; Rest Roughing has significant performance improvements while fragmentation removal and small segment removal improve all toolpaths

Simulation of Stock removal now offers improved zoom options allowing detailed definition of small areas to be shown with full definition of sharp edges where present. The stock model can be progressively zoomed as shown in the sequence of images below. Simulator also now has an easy toggle to fully show, show as transparent or hide each graphical element.

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for 3-5-Axis toolpath generation and simulation, have been showing how their latest techniques for automated 3-5 axis (tilt) toolpath conversion with new smoothing methods to improve surface finish

3-5 Axis toolpath conversion is a well established machining method and good when machining deep cores and cavities. By tilting the tool over during cutting, collisions can be avoided and shorter series cutters can be employed which leads to improved surface finish

ModuleWorks continue to innovate in this area with recent releases offering a host of new features to increase automation and increase performance and toolpath quality. The latest versions can also be used with STL (mesh) as well as traditional surface geometry

The recent 2009.9 release has introduced new smoothing methods that can be applied to both the tilt and rotary elements of the toolpath. Originally a requirement for STL data where triangulation can give inconsistencies in the toolpath, the new smoothing delivers dramatic improvements to the toolpath on all geometry

The effects of smoothing can be seen in the before and after images shown above and below. The images above show the benefits of smoothing tilt axis movement while rotary axis smoothing is shown left. In both cases a smoother transition with fewer tilt and rotational changes can be seen giving a much better toolpath and surface finish

David Plater, Technical Director for ModuleWorks comments “We’re constantly looking for innovations to improve toolpath quality and these latest smoothing methods have done just that. We’re seeing more demand for 5-Axis machining on STL geometry and the triangulation presents some additional challenges to our developers – advanced smoothing methods are some of the solution to these challenges”

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation will be showing the latest release of its CAM components, version 2009.9, at the EMO exhibition to take place in Milan from 5 - 10th October 2009.

Continuing the theme of recent releases, ModuleWorks 2009.9 provides new features across the breadth of the product range, each designed to improve customer productivity

The industry leading 4- and 5-Axis machining components benefit from new smoothing strategies which may be applied to both the rotary and tilt axis to provide smoother toolpaths and improved surface finish. They are particularly useful when machining STL models as they smooth out the adverse effects caused by triangulation in the target model

The popular auto-tilt strategy includes the new smoothing techniques and a range of other detail enhancements which further improve performance and surface finish. Other areas of development include undercut projection and increased support for non-orthogonal machine configurations

3-Axis machining has a range of new features in roughing and finishing. Roughing now supports intermediate slices, where the steps between cuts are reduced using a series of slices between the main slices to reduce the need for multiple roughing operations. 3-Axis finishing now has support for silhouette boundaries to contain toolpath and new methods to control start point to help minimise link move length and allow smooth transitions between passes.

Simulation completes the product suite and improvements here are largely focussed on 5-Axis simulation with better support for non-orthogonal machines and increased performance. For quick simulation of finishing toolpaths, a simple automatic offset stock may now be used as shown in the illustration

David Plater, Technical Director comments “This releases offers a balanced set of new features spread across the product range, many of which are based on direct feedback from our partners who are now incorporating these features in their own products”.

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for Simulation and 5-Axis machining have confirmed their partnership with Jabez Technologies Inc., developer of Robotmaster, the market leading robot programming solution. The partnership sees ModuleWorks provide their state of the art simulation technology for Robotmaster

Robotmaster was first released in 2002 and offers easy to use robot programming tools to generate CAD/CAM style robot 'toolpaths' which help maximize robot productivity and is widely used in the Aerospace, Transport, High Technology, Military, Medical and Industrial Manufacturing markets

Early in the product's development, it became apparent that a simulation was an important requirement and different potential solutions were evaluated. ModuleWorks was the standout solution because of its industry proven multi-axis simulation capability and strong manufacturing background

ModuleWorks technology allows Robotmaster to simulate virtually any robot set up and currently provides simulation on robots with up to 11 axes. Simulation is used in conjunction with ModuleWorks' sophisticated collision checking to optimize each robot task

According to Chahe Bakmazjian, President of Robotmaster, "ModuleWorks has been a true partner providing us with a powerful simulation and verification component and the support necessary to quickly implement it. Using ModuleWorks has allowed us to shrink our time to market and has added great value to our Robot Programming Software."

ModuleWorks Managing Director, Yavuz Murtezaoglu comments "We are very pleased to have Robotmaster as a partner. Robotmaster is recognised as a leading solution for robotic programming and is widely used in the manufacturing industry and illustrates one of the many applications for simulation in manufacturing"

For more information, please visit www.robotmaster.com

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, has announced the latest release of its CAM components, version 2009.6. The release offers a wide range of new features across the product range, further expanding capability for the different areas of 3-5 Axis toolpath creation and machine simulation.

The market leading 4 and 5-Axis machining components have been further refined with new STL machining capability and improvements to the automatic (tilt) 3-5 Axis conversion strategy which benefits from further automation and faster performance

5-Axis STL machining is a relatively new development. Traditionally 5-Axis machining has required the full parametric surface definition; however this is not always readily available and surface geometry can be difficult to manipulate. New 5-Axis line projection methods in 2009.6 allow an undercut toolpath to be generated on an STL mode without using surface geometry.

New features appear across the product range. The 3-Axis machining now has Constant Cusp finishing where a single cusp-height value is maintained across the entire model giving excellent surface finish from a single strategy. Roughing strategies also see improvements with optimum methods of entry now applied automatically when approach the stock from outside

ModuleWorks Simulation now features new techniques to emphasise sharp edges on the finish component; this is particularly useful with prismatic components where the individual features can be clearly shown

David Plater, Technical Director comments “We’re showing some real innovation with our latest 5-Axis machining. The ability to work with STL is generating a lot if interest with our partners and we’re already seeing the technology integrated in a number of CAM solutions. Future releases will see other applications of the technology with SWARF machining from STL close to its beta phase.”

For more information, please visit www.ModuleWorks.com or www.HeilTech.com .

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for 3-5-Axis toolpath generation and simulation have begun a major new research project aiming to create new automated methods for 5-Axis Machining in Mold and Die manufacture

The research project is supported by the BMBF (Federal Ministry of Education and Research) under grant 01IS07016 and led by ModuleWorks in collaboration with the Institute for Production Technologies (IPT) at the Fraunhofer Research Centre in Aachen. The goal is to develop new techniques to simplify the programming of 5-Axis toolpaths on complex mold and die components. A team of researchers are working with ModuleWorks software and expertise to extend automation techniques used for 3-Axis machining into the realm of 5-Axis machining

About SolidCAM

Founded in 1984 by its Managing Director Dr. Emil Somekh, SolidCAM provides manufacturing customers with a full suite of CAM software modules for 2.5D and 3D Milling, High-Speed Machining, Multi-sided Indexial 4/5 axes Milling, Simultaneous 5 axes Milling, Turning, Turn-Mill up to 5-axes and WireEDM. SolidCAM has the Certified Gold-product status from SolidWorks and provides seamless, single-window integration and full associativity to the SolidWorks design model including parts, assemblies and configurations. SolidCAM has today more than 13,500 seats installed. The company has been on a very rapid growth path since it implemented the SolidWorks integration strategy with annual growth rates over 30%. SolidCAM is sold by a worldwide reseller network in 46 countries

For additional information, visit www.solidcam.com

SolidCAM®, the leading and fastest-growing CAM system running in SolidWorks® 3D CAD software and ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for 5-Axis machining are celebrating 5 years of successful partnership. 5-axis Machining is widely used in the metalworking industry for applications like Turbine Blade Milling, Impeller Milling, Port Machining and complex Moldmaking.

Way back in 2003, SolidCAM realised the growing demand for 5-axis Machining. Given the technical challenges involved and SolidCAM policy of aiming to provide best-in-class solutions wherever possible, it was decided to partner with ModuleWorks. Initial integration and training built up to the official launch of the simultaneous 5-axis module in SolidCAM2004 R9. The initial reaction from resellers, customers and prospects was very positive and things have never looked back. Over the last 5 years SolidCAM has become established as a major player in the 5-axis machining market. Meanwhile SolidCAM expanded its 5-axis technology and added support for applications like 5-axis Wood manufacturing, 5-axis trimming and 5-axis laser cutting

Back in 2003, ModuleWorks was a young company with some highly advanced technology, but only a handful of partners to make this technology available to users. Over the last 5 years, ModuleWorks has grown steadily to a position where it is used by 50% of the leading CAM vendors and has a team of over 30 developers. ModuleWorks Managing Director, Yavuz Murtezaoglu says, “As one of our earliest partners, we have always worked very closely with SolidCAM. Their input and support has helped ModuleWorks 5-axis develop into the powerful software that many people benefit from today”

Dr. Emil Somekh, Managing Director of SolidCAM, states, "In a field as technically challenging as CAM, it is impossible to be the masters of everything. Therefore, at SolidCAM we try to select and integrate the best technology available from specialist development companies. 5-axis machining is one of those areas where a specialist supplier is able to provide a much more powerful and complete solution than could possibly be developed in house. I believe our results over the last 5 years show the success of this policy.

Image courtesy of SolidCAM

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, is pleased to announce the latest release of its CAM components, version 2009.3. The release offers a wide range of new features across the product range, further expanding capability for the different areas of 3-5 Axis toolpath creation and machine simulation.

The 3-Axis machining component adds new options for toolpath control in roughing as shown in the illustrations below. Aimed at maintaining a smooth motion and constant feedrate, roughing allows corner motion to be smoothed and new ‘S’ shape link moves to be generated between passes. Smoothing is also an option for the final pass but separate control is provided for maximum flexibility. Finally, a ‘remove corner peg’ control is used to ensure complete material removal, especially useful when higher stopovers are employed

The market leading 4 and 5-Axis machining components have been further refined with improvements are focussed on toolpath control, particular during linking and collision avoidance motion. Link control now has the ability to follow stock when connecting larger gaps; this has the benefit of being safe while minimising the motion during the link move

ModuleWorks Simulation includes new backplot control to help visualise and optimise toolpath motion. Leads and link moves may be switched off and control is now provided to allow a limited number of toolpath segments to be displayed at any one time. These features improve visualisation of the toolpath and allow users to better understand tool motion in the virtual world.

David Plater, Technical Director comments “We’ve followed the strategy from the previous releases by providing a range of productivity improvements across the product range, much of it based on feedback from our partners. The beta releases have been well received and many partners have already begun incorporating the new features in their own products”

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for 5-Axis machining have confirmed their partnership with Surfware Inc., developer of the award winning CAD/CAM system, SURFCAM®. The partnership agreement sees ModuleWorks provide their state of the art 5-Axis machining technology to be used in the SURFCAM Velocity® 4 Multi-Axis product

Through the partnership, SURFCAM Velocity® 4 Multi-Axis has taken manufacturing capability to a new level with sophisticated multi-surface 4 and 5-Axis simultaneous machining, including complete tool and shank gouge protection to ensure safe toolpaths for the most complex of applications, such as the impellor shown

According to Greg Schils, Surfware Product Manager, "The ModuleWorks tools allow us to take our system to the next level of functionality and user control. The addition of ModuleWorks to our multi-axis package gives users many additional, advanced functions and controls that allow them to machine parts that require an advanced programming system. Our customers now have the ability to perform work they not may have previously attempted to do."

ModuleWorks Managing Director, Yavuz Murtezaoglu comments, “We are very pleased to have Surfware as a partner. SURFCAM Velocity is renowned for high quality toolpaths and surface finishes and now includes 4- and 5-Axis simultaneous machining through the addition of ModuleWorks technology”

About Surfware, Inc

Surfware, Inc., the developer of SURFCAM Velocity CAD/CAM systems and the award-winning, patented TrueMill technology, provides optimal solutions for today’s manufacturing challenges. Surfware, Inc. traces its roots back to three generations of Diehl family members involved in machining. Surfware’s co-founder Alan Diehl and mathematician Pat Patterson are the principal co-inventors of TrueMill. For additional information, visit www.surfware.com

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, achieved revenue growth in excess of 20% for the year 2008.

The increased revenues will support ongoing expansion of the R&D teams at the European centres of excellence in Germany, Romania and Ukraine. The company remains almost entirely R&D focussed with a team of 30+ engineers and re-invests more than 70% of revenue into software development

During the year, ModuleWorks was pleased to sign agreements with 10 new partners who will contribute to ongoing growth in 2009 as they begin to ship ModuleWorks machining and simulation components to the manufacturing industry. As of December 2008, ModuleWorks supply component technology to more than 50% of the major vendors (as recognised by CIMData)

Managing Director, Yavuz Murtezaoglu comments “Despite tough economic conditions, ModuleWorks managed to grow revenues, enabling us to further increase our investment in R&D”. He also states ”Everyone is facing 2009 with concern for the global economy, however we believe productivity will be a critical issue for manufacturers around the world and that there will be good opportunities for our partners as companies look to benefit from investment in the newer advanced technologies such as 5-Axis and Simulation”

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, today announced the launch of www.ModuleWorks.jp, a Japanese language version of its recently launched website to showcase its range of components for 3-5 axis toolpath generation, verification and machine simulation.

The new content has been launched to coincide with the JIMTOF 2008 trade show which takes place in Tokyo, Japan from October 30th to November 4th where ModuleWorks and far-east agent, Tecnolinc, will be attending to meet customers and prospects

Yavuz Murtezaoglu, Managing Director for ModuleWorks comments “Our new website has been well received since the summer launch and we have now extended it to provide Japanese content in line with our visit to Japan for the JIMTOF show. “ He also commented on the high levels of interest from companies in the region for ModuleWorks’ products “Japan is home to many of the world’s largest Machine Tool and CAD/CAM vendors and there is strong interest in our multi-axis and simulation components from our current customers and a number of potential new partners.”

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, is pleased to announce the latest release of its CAM components, version 2008.9. The new release debuted at the recent IMTS machine tool show in Chicago, USA and offers a wide range of new features across the product range, further expanding capability for 3-5 Axis toolpath creation and simulation.

The market leading 5-Axis component has been further refined with new options for tool control and collision avoidance, both critical factors with complex multi-axis machining. Improvements to the popular 3–5 Axis conversion strategies offer more flexibility and automated tilt calculation for efficient collision avoidance. This is especially useful for Mold and Die applications where this technique allows short series cutters to be employed, giving improved surface finish

The recently released 3-Axis machining component offers a new strategy for Flatland machining, an efficient production machining technique for prismatic solids. This strategy automatically detects all flat regions on the model and applies a finish toolpath to these areas. Other improvements include faster performance and new smoothing options for roughing to improve cutting conditions and allow higher feedrates to be employed

ModuleWorks Simulation includes powerful analysis tools and further productivity tools have been introduced with options to highlight height and/or rotary changes in the simulated toolpath. As with the machining components there are also significant performance improvements with the 2008.9 release

David Plater, Technical Director comments “We are very pleased with the reception the new software received from our partners and prospects at IMTS and believe we have produced a release with a balanced set of productivity and performance improvements to benefit all of our partners and customers around the world”.

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, announced the availability of a downloadable full chapter from the new book, ‘Secrets of 5-Axis machining’ on its recently re-launched website, www.moduleworks.com

The new book has been authored by 5-Axis machining specialist Karlo Apro, who has 30+ years experience in the CAD/CAM and manufacturing industries and is currently a senior application engineer at CNC Software, the developers of Mastercam

‘Secrets of 5-Axis machining’ is written from an unbiased viewpoint and with engineers in mind. It unveils the different techniques and challenges of 5-Axis machining with explanations of the different machine tools, machining strategies and CAD/CAM systems. The book contains many full colour examples and comes with a fully-featured multi-media CD with AVIs and fully interactive ModuleWorks Simulation examples

Karlo Apro, the author comments “5-Axis machining is a real growth area in manufacturing and many companies are now utilising the technology to remain competitive. My book is based on my own experiences of supporting 5-Axis machining and is designed to minimise the learning curve for new users and provide advanced tips and tricks for more experienced engineers”. He also talks about early response to the book “We had the first run of copies at the IMTS trade show and sold out well before the end of the show and we’ve had many more enquires since, so I’m delighted with the positive response.”

Read more about this on-site or buy the book online at Industrial Press, Amazon; or from the European publisher Transatlantic Publishers.

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, today announced it would showcase latest versions of its 3-5 Axis machining and simulation technology on booth D-3305 at the IMTS exhibition to be held in Chicago from 8th to 13th September

In addition to the latest release of its flagship product for 5-Axis simultaneous machining, ModuleWorks will also be showing new component technology for both 3-Axis machining and machining simulation

The new simulation component offers fast simulation of the machining process and includes full material removal and machine simulation options. ModuleWorks simulation has been designed with speed and ease of implementation in mind - David Plater, Technical Director comments “Simulation is an important aspect of the CAM programming and manufacturing process with customers expecting more and more of the prove out process to be carried out in a virtual environment within the CAM system and increasingly on the CNC control itself. Our simulation component offers a full range of visualisation and analytical tools to ensure maximum reliability, performance and productivity.”

ModuleWorks’ toolpath generation strategies have been extended to support a wide range of 3-Axis strategies to compliment their state-of-the-art 4- and 5-Axis multi-axis machining component. The new strategies include roughing and finishing with rest material detection and support for the latest high speed machining technology.

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, today announced the launch of www.ModuleWorks.com, a new website to showcase its products for 3-5 axis toolpath generation, simulation and verification.

The new site has been designed from the ground up and includes a broad range of information on ModuleWorks products and industry applications supported with video and downloadable worked examples and presentations

In addition to showcasing its marketing leading 5-Axis simultaneous machining and simulation technology used by many of the leading CAM products, the new site also has information on its new plug-in components for toolpath verification and 3-Axis machining

Yavuz Murtezeoglu, Managing Director for ModuleWorks comments “Our new website shows our component technology for the CAD/CAM industry and is designed to provide in as much, or indeed as little, detail as required. The use of fully featured downloads are an innovative way to show the technology to a range of audiences and we see this being further developed and expanded as we move forward.”

ModuleWorks, the leading supplier of CAD/CAM components for toolpath generation and simulation, achieved a record year for sales growth and revenue in 2007.

Overall revenue increased over 60% on the previous year with more than 1000 seats of the flagship 5-Axis Simultaneous machining component shipped by ModuleWorks’ range of leading CAD/CAM industry partners. Sales of 5-Axis simultaneous component are now exceeding 200 units per month and are continuing to grow.

During the year, ModuleWorks was pleased to sign agreements with five new partners who will contribute to ongoing growth in 2008 as they begin to ship ModuleWorks machining and simulation components to the manufacturing industry

ModuleWorks continues to invest in machining and simulation technology and has grown it’s development team to more than 30 engineers at three European development centres. A new Technical Director, David Plater, was appointed to help lead the expanded development team

Managing Director, Yavuz Murtezaoglu comments “It has been an excellent year for ModuleWorks in terms of growth and revenue but also for product development. We reinvest more than 60% of revenue in product development and this has paid dividends with new components now coming online”. He also believes the growth curve will continue in 2008 despite harder economic conditions “Companies are still investing in manufacturing, especially in areas such as 5-Axis and Simulation where the productivity benefits can provide rapid return on investment. Our partners see continued demand in these areas and we will continue to invest in product development to support this”.

ModuleWorks, the leading provider of component software for 5-axis toolpath creation and Simulation, will be celebrating a record 1st half year at EMO 2007. During the year to June 2007, revenues have increased by 60% on the same period in 2006. Sales of end-user software are running at around 200 seats per month and are continuing to rise.

"EMO gives us a chance to celebrate the success of the early adopters of the ModuleWorks 5-axis component. Many booths we be showing our software and many of the machine tools will be driven by our software", said Yavuz Murtezaoglu, Managing Director at ModuleWorks.

In additions, we are happy to see the launch of two new 5-axis products based on the ModuleWorks toolpath generation component.

This is a very exciting time for ModuleWorks and we are very proud to be at the forefront of the adoption of 5-axis machines by mainstream manufacturing companies across a wide range of industries.

With the continued growth in sales of 5-axis machine tools, and with some new contracts already in place, rapid growth is already assured for the second half of this year and well into 2008.

Image courtesy of EMO

ModuleWorks, the leading provider of component software for 5-axis toolpath creation and Simulation, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr David Plater as Technical Director. The appointment is a result of rapid expansion due to the success of the ModuleWorks 5-axis component software.

David was previously Development Director for EdgeCAM (Pathtrace/Planit) and over a 15-year career in the CAM software industry has also worked on market-leading software from MachineWorks (Lightworks) and PowerMill (Delcam).

Commenting on the appointment, Yavuz Murtezaoglu, Managing Director at ModuleWorks commented, "We are delighted to welcome David to the ModuleWorks team. His knowledge and experience will be very important as ModuleWorks continues to expand. In particular, having worked for a number of companies in the CAM industry, he is well placed to understand what a customer needs from a software component provider

Dr David Plater said, "I'm delighted to be joining ModuleWorks. Since establishing themselves as a major supplier of 5-axis machining software, they have set up a large, international, highly talented development team and the potential within the company is immense. I look forward to making a valuable contribution to the future success of the company."