IBM and Dassault Systèmes recently announced the availability of Version 5 Release 8 (V5R8) of CATIA, a 3D product lifecycle management (PLM) solution for product design, creation, simulation and optimisation. CATIA V5 is the product authoring solution within the IBM PLM portfolio. 3d PLM enables customers to optimise their business processes within engineering, manufacturing, maintenance and support, in collaborative workspaces and sharing a common product, process and resource model (PPR). PPR allows companies to capture, share and reuse knowledge throughout the product lifecycle. The CAA V5 open architecture allows extension and integration of this solution across the extended enterprise.

"CATIA V5 R8's further integration with ENOVIAVPM and its continuing implementation of the PPR model further facilitates the transition of legacy users from CATIA V4 to V5. Furthermore, users of CATIA V5 will find that its pervasive support for knowledge-based engineering and for collaboration throughout the product lifecycle can help them realise the broader impacts of product lifecycle management," said John MacKrell of CIMdata.

Stated Stephane Declee, vice president of strategy for Dassault Systèmes, "CATIA V5R8 illustrates the value we can deliver by collaborating closely with industry-leading and innovative customers. We are enabling industry specific best practices through our knowledge-based product offering. We are making 3d PLM available to a much larger population across both industry and market segments. CATIA V5R8 delivers the most comprehensive end-to-end process coverage in a natively integrated solution available today. Far beyond traditional MCAD systems, it is the product engineering desktop and a watershed release for 3d PLM."

CNC Design Consultants

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