Beyond 5-Axis: Simplifying the Manufacturing Data Flow

MIGUEL JOHANN: Hello, everybody. Thank you for joining this Autodesk University session. My name is Miguel Johann. I'm a product director at ModuleWorks.

And this is "Beyond 5-axis-- simplifying the manufacturing data flow". So just a quick one on myself. I've been working with CAM software for my entire professional career. I've done basically everything, part programming, training, scripting, end-user support, reseller support, post-processor writing, quality assurance, and, finally, product management, trying to help make CAM better.

I've been focused on production machining from 1998 until 2014. And then I had a quick shift towards advanced mode and die. And I'm currently leading the product management division at ModuleWorks. So I hope you enjoyed this session.

Let's quickly visit what is ModuleWorks? So ModuleWorks-- and why it's here, why we are presenting at Autodesk University. Basically, we are a software company based in Germany, in the beautiful city of Aachen.

And we have more than 1,500 person years of software development as of the end of last year. So it's a lot of experience, a lot of code into the universe of software development. We have more than half a million end users.

They are spread across more than 200 software solutions in the span of the manufacturing industry, digital manufacturing specifically. We have had, for the last 20 years on average, 20% or more growth in revenue. So we've been growing quite steadily into this industry.

And we do have a considerable market share inside the CAM market. Basically, three in every four seats of CAM software have ModuleWorks technology on it. We are more than 250 people working at the company. And that's still growing because we want to continue to deliver awesome technology to this industry that is our passion.

Important detail is that 75% of our staff are developers, so people that actually coding and creating fantastic technology to all of you. So we are very proud of our history and to the market that we have reached. If you look at the CAD/CAM industry, CNC controllers, additive manufacturing, digital dentistry robotics, and machine tool builders basically touch 75% of CAD/CAM, three in every four of the largest CNC makers, CNC control makers.

We are present in a very highly important growing market, additive manufacturing with something around 15% CAGR. And we supply 35% of the digital dentistry manufacturing market. On robotics, we have a vast range of very complex toolpath-planning processes.

And, for machine tool builders, we reach about 60% of the market as a supplier and through partnerships. So we've been quite involved into the digital manufacturing industry. And we feel the trends. We are involved in helping automated manufacturing, robotics, additive, and cloud-based solutions.

Of course, we also feel and we see very clearly the demand for shorter product life cycles and more flexible supply chains. So there is a very clear requirement for great solutions that simply work. And everybody wants to be as fast as possible to their markets.

There is a obvious quite growing shortage becoming crisis on the software developers and also application engineers. So if you are a qualified professional in the manufacturing industry, there is a big market for you. There is more market than we actually have people in that market. And, therefore, we need to be focusing into automation. And we need to be focusing into better solutions for our customers.

The challenges are into delivering that transformation, the digital transformation in manufacturing. So we can't deliver fast enough the required automation and the required improvements to the digital manufacturing industry. So our role in this industry is, as we try to enable the shared technology development as much as we can , we supply toolpath technology to CAM solutions across the planet.

And our main impacts as of today are to make the best in class technology to our partners. And we really focus on allowing them to free their resources into delivering value to their customers. And Fusion 360 is one of the most important in that picture is that we allow, by supplying toolpath technology, we allow developers at Fusion 360 to focus on user experience and value creation.

So our digital presence is in trying to reduce the risk for the technological lag, basically allowing our partners to get there faster. We want them to feel enabled and empowered to deliver technology as it is thought, as it is developed, as it is brought to the market. We want to accelerate that. We help our partners get there faster.

That is 100% in line with our vision. We want to develop the best toolpath and simulation technology. We want to make it accessible, affordable, and usable.

So ModuleWorks is celebrating 20 years this very 2023. And we have done more than 5-axis. So, beyond 5-axis, we have developed a myriad of technologies around digital manufacturing, around the digital industry. So we've been through machine simulation, CNC simulation, NC editing, turning, hole-making, on-controller programming, photorealistic simulation through visual twin, and, most recently, the manufacturing Data Exchange Specification, which you're going to be talking about soon.

But let's just come back a little bit on toolpath and just revisit why Autodesk has chosen ModuleWorks. It was presented last year at Autodesk University as well. But let's just revisit that reason. Why are we here? Why ModuleWorks?

So, basically, when Autodesk made the analysis for Fusion 360, it was very appropriate name for fusing all of the technology around market-leader solutions, such as PowerMill feature, CAM PowerInspect, and Fusion 360. Some gaps [INAUDIBLE] or some zones for improvement were detected. And these exactly on those gaps-- or on those areas for improvement that Autodesk ended up deciding for the faster solution to market, which was to partner up with module works.

So, basically, you can see we migrating from those limitations into an unbeatable solution. We can see that we are top of the market in almost every edge there. And this is made possible with the partnership with ModuleWorks. We add ModuleWorks are extremely proud to be partners with Fusion 360.

The way you see that on your existing solutions today is in technologies or strategies, such as Rotary Pocket, Rotary Contour. And these are "top of the market", cutting-edge technologies that the users of Fusion 360 can already benefit from. So this is on the machining extension already.

And the second one I want to mention is Deburr, which is also a highly automated, super-sophisticated, clever toolpath that brings facility in programming deburring of sharp edges, extremely important for safety reasons. And users tend to love it. Let me know if you have comments about this and improvements to be done. We are quite happy and very, very proud of the results achieved with Deburr.

You probably seen in different presentations here at Autodesk University what is about to come. So it is now in public preview, [? geodesic. ?] Coming on the machining extension release now in October 2023.

So this is a very clever tool [INAUDIBLE] that has-- supports any mesh, supports mesh technology. And, as long as the tool has a spherical tip, you can use any tool shape. And it does offer fantastic blending and flow patterns for unmatched surface finishing.

OK, also in public preview, coming on the machining extension in early 2024 is SWARFing or flank milling, so basically cutting with the side of the tool. Automated guide curves being detected for you. And the tool orientation being found. And you can also, obviously, customize by the tilting lines.

It's also some technology that we are pretty proud of. It makes for very smooth, very intuitive user experience. And we're looking forward to your feedback on this technology coming to you very, very soon.

Also, on the pipeline, Auto 3+2 clearing. And we are looking into more micro-automation, more semiautomatic orientation finding, which are things that help users simplify their lives, orient and guide on best decisions for the process planning of a CAM application. And we hope you're going to be enjoying this.

If you are interested, please stay tuned. Watch this space. And, once again, please do give us your feedback on the technology. We want to see how it fits your everyday life and your everyday applications.

Finally, the one I want to talk about is multi-axis clearing and finishing 5-axis clearing for Pockets, and finishing for walls and floors on the Pocket shape features, which are, again, super intuitive, super easy to set up. And our focus always being on super automated intuitive and the best possible user experience. Good. This is what ModuleWorks has been able to help and participate as a partner on the Fusion 360 story. Very proud, very happy about that.

This is the result. And, basically, we can now celebrate and pat ourselves on the back and say job done. Thank you very much. My question after this is, is it really? Is toolpath everything on your mind?

As a maker, as a user of Fusion 360, does your world goes beyond toolpath? I'm pretty sure it goes. So what really is on your mind beyond toolpath calculation and beyond process planning for metal cutting?

So my question is, on a broader scope of your digital thread, when you are thinking from the concept, from the idea, from the digital CAD file to the actual execution and the final part, finished part in your hands, what sort of challenges do you face? I want you to reflect on your own shop floor. And my question to you, reflexive question to you is, if you do face any data exchange challenge during your manufacturing workflow, Fusion 360 does a fantastic job of being a unified platform.

It offers you engineering, CAD, CAE, and manufacturing solutions all integrated. But is that the end of your cycle? Going from the idea to the reality, what other sort of data do you need?

And, when you are feeding Fusion 360 with data such as fixtures or tools, do you-- what sort of data are you receiving? How does that dialogue happen? Connecting different digital applications, your process-planning journey.

So the reality is that we do face a very polyglot world of manufacturing. Our universe in manufacturing is quite multilingual. When you are going from idea to reality, you have to go through product design, manufacturing engineering, production planning, and production execution, of course.

And, as you go through systems that are CAD/CAM, production planning, CNC, they have, of course, a bidirectional information flow. And that flow relies on the data backbone. What is the data coming from?

Where are you storing your data? What does your data mean? And is that data readable and usable on the next step of that thread?

So, basically, as you are thinking about stock material and fixtures and tools, these applications might be talking different dialects. They might be talking a different language even. And the pause we make here is, how much does that affect your information flow?

How much that cacophony can strangle your information flow? Yes, and it is in trying to resolve that or trying to address that problematic communication that ModuleWorks is initiating an initiative called MDES, the Machining Data, the Manufacturing Data Exchange Specification. So the Manufacturing Data Exchange Specification is a standard.

It is a language we are trying to create to-- a common one across the thread, across the manufacturing digital universe. And our hope is that, by everybody speaking the same language, we actually release that strangle on the communication flow. Wouldn't it be great if all of us would be speaking the same language?

I am a Brazilian living in France working for a German company. We are all here listening to and speaking in English. So English serves that purpose on the human universe of being the business language. Everybody speaks English.

And I guess most of you on the audience see the benefit of that. The fact that it is your mother tongue makes it easier. But everybody else in Germany and France and Brazil have to learn a different language.

But, by doing so, they learn one language. If I am speaking to a Japanese person professionally, I don't need to learn Japanese. And the person doesn't need to learn Portuguese.

We both speak English. And that, by being the common language, is enough for us to communicate. Yes? So that is the objective with MDES as well.

Wouldn't it be great if the whole planet would be speaking metric instead of imperial? That's just a little provocation there for our friends in America? But it does have a clear benefit, doesn't it?

Speaking the common language is obviously helpful. So MDES, as a common language, facilitates the information flow. It helps by being an open specification. It helps that everybody can engage, that everybody can collaborate.

And, on the scope, of course, we follow existing and market-accepted standards for tools, cutting tools and for tool items. We follow ISO-13399. For fixtures, for devices, and for workpieces, we follow DIN 4000, DIN 4003. For machine mountings, again, the same German norm because they are market standard for the planet. And we are trying to congregate all of that in a single language in a single software component for all of us to be able to communicate on that same language.

Now, back to you, what does that mean for you at My Company, Inc. So My Co, Inc, what do you have to do with this? Today, with closed ecosystems, you have to create bridges, or you have to at least acquire bridges that connect with all digital solutions on your chain, on your thread.

So you have a reader for whatever CAM system you're using. And that is an important way to get files in, get files out. Then you might have a simulation system, a collision-avoidance system on the shop floor.

And, once again, you have to take the data out of CAM and get it in on the simulation application. And if something there needs to change, getting it back out, getting it back into CAD might be tricky, might be complex. Finally, all those applications are receiving tooling data from your supplier, from Coda Guide, from MachiningCloud, from ToolsUnited.

From whoever you are getting your tool information from, you need yet again to have a specific format for those files. And, hopefully, fingers crossed, it actually communicates properly with your existing systems. So breaking those silos is what is really, really important to us because the silos are there in the sense that you only have one-to-one bridges to the applications that matter to you.

Every bridge you build gives you the value of that one bridge to that one application. So everything stays siloed. And the effort invested is the same as the value created.

What we hope to achieve with MDES is that everybody speaking the same language simplifies the communication. Machine-- Manufacturing Data Exchange Specification allows everybody to concentrate into creating one bridge. Basically, everybody will be part of a universal, open ecosystem by creating that one bridge.

And, with the maintenance of that one bridge, you receive value exponentially from every new market player that joins the ecosystem. So this is the beauty of single language? This is the beauty of consolidation. And we are really hopeful that the MDES initiative will be embraced by the manufacturing industry and bring the exponential value that we see on the screen.

In concrete terms, what does it mean? It means no more point-to-point bridges. It means exponential value growth.

It means an open and royalty-free access to anybody that wants to play here. ModuleWorks is playing a role of an orchestrator. We want to drive adoption. We want to lead and moderate the extensions. And we want to foster the community.

Who is the community? So we want CAM systems, like Autodesk Fusion 360, to be on board, as it already is. We want machine tool builders to be on board so they can receive a digital image of the job setup. And, basically, they can execute on-machine collision avoidance if needed.

And they can confirm, through the operator, that the physical setup matches the digital setup. The operator basically has a 3D view of what was planned and how he should fix the parts and how he should set up the tools. Am I using the right extension? Am I using the right holder? We want machine controllers to be part of this so they can receive, regardless of the offline programming system used, they can receive the information and, once again, confirm the planned setup is the one being executed.

Tooling management systems want to participate in this. So the tool crib or the magazine or the tool kit being brought to the CNC machine is the one that was planned on the offline programming CAM system and is the one that will be used during execution. And that execution is going to be used with the right planning, with the right CNC code that was planned so that it's going to be 100% guaranteed no collisions. And we want integrators and automation professionals, value-added resellers, and anybody working on the digital manufacturing ecosystem to be aware of this and to be using this and to be promoting this as well.

MDES facilitates data exchange. It reduces any adoption barrier for new solutions. As a shop floor manager, if you are a Fusion 360 user, you want to adopt a new tooling management system. Or you want to-- you have just bought a new machine that contains collision avoidance systems that are MDES compatible. You want to make sure anything new, any new solutions are MDES compatible because that allows you to take your digital planning from Fusion 360 directly into that machine.

So this is extremely important. And it saves hours of work every day. And that is going to automatically reduce your data maintenance costs.

You will be less worried with translations. You will be less worried with strangleholds on translating data from one silo application to the next silo application. They're going to dialogue more freely. And that is less cost for you.

And you're going to have, consequently, more flexible upgrading from one software system to another. If you choose for an upgraded system, MDES is going to be the language that takes you from your proprietary process planning know-how to the next one. So this is why MDES is important to you, and this is why we believe that you can and should promote MDES through your supplier chain.

If you are a integrator, if you are part of solution providing in the manufacturing software industry, then we can help you get there faster. It is very, very important for everybody to understand that MDES is an open specification. MDES Is an open system.

But ModuleWorks offers MDESLib equipment. So MDESLib is a library that allows you to immediately and super quickly integrate. We help you again get there a lot faster by simply integrating our library. And then you can read and write MDES files more easily.

If you are a shop floor manager, then I-- and I ask you to simply bear in mind that there are software solutions that simplify everybody's life into that data exchange universe. And MDESLib equipment is one of those libraries. So if you are talking to your supplier from tool management system, for example, and they say they never heard about MDES, please make them aware of it.

And say, I would like you to be supportive of this initiative. I want your tools to come to me with an MDES format. And, by the way, here's the website.

And here is the library that they can provide. So you implement this quite seamlessly. And it's going to be easier.

We should all be promoting the ecosystem. We see here-- and I was super happy to see the blog from Autodesk people. So Autodesk is supporting 100% the MDES initiative.

And Autodesk is one of the first subscribers to the language, to the specification. So Fusion 360 supports MDES exporting. And Fusion 360 is one of the very first and one of the major signatories to MDES. So this is why we are super, super happy to see the promotion and to see Fusion 360 as part of this initiative.

So what we expect from everybody on the audience is that we hope you would visit mdes.info to learn more there is important information there. mdes.info is the open sauce initiative page that we shepherd. We ask of you to communicate to you, your colleagues, and to ask yourself, how can MDES contribute to our data exchange strategy?

How can MDES help in reducing efforts, in reducing hurdles and removing the strangles-- the strangle holds on the data flow? And what do you need from MDES? We're talking about tools. We're talking about fixtures.

We're talking about the stock. We are talking about any other type of information that we might find important. But if you tell us, you give us the feedback of what you think should flow into that language as well, we are all ears, and we are listening to partners. We're listening to the players that we saw in that initiative.

And we strongly encourage you to reach out to us. So, with that, I would like to thank you very much for your attention, to take a note of mdes.info. And see you around.

You have our emails. You have our web page. And we look forward to hearing from you. Thank you very much. Bye-bye.