July, 2003
SMUG Meets at Hudsonville's Pinnacle Center
by Jim Hole
July is typically the SMUG’s smallest turnout and that held true again this year. Many people were unable to attend due to vacations, golf outings, and other summertime activities. Those folks may say they had more fun than the rest of us, but they still missed a great SMUG event! This was the first time SMUG has met at the Pinnacle Center, a splendid facility that is often reserved for wedding receptions and other large gatherings.
Mechanisms & BMX
Jim Ridge of the Dana Corporation started things off with a very impressive presentation that he polished at the 2003 PTC/USER World Event before showing to us. His obvious talent with the software and his profession complemented this very detailed study of Mechanisms and Behavioral Modeling. Jim had a fully modeled heavy truck front suspension that he used to demonstrate many of the benefits offered by those areas of the software.
Bottoms Up?
No, top down. Design, that is. Back to continue his multi-part presentation on Top Down Design was Andy Meinert of NASCO Technologies. Andy, with his off the cuff style, always makes for an attention grabbing and informative segment. This series of Top Down Design discussions seems to be creating quite a bit of interest, as it should. I think this presentation, as with most SMUG presentations, is a rare opportunity to receive free training and insight that would normally cost a pretty penny.
Break Time
About half way though Andy’s dog and pony show, technical difficulties made for quick change of plans. We decided to take our break early and locate the onsite A/V tech. During the break we reset the projector software and all was well for Andy to complete his lesson. On a side note: The meeting room that we rented had an adjoining patio. We had planned on opening the doors to it during the break to give our attendees an opportunity for some fresh air and sunshine. But in all the commotion, it completely slipped our minds…maybe next time.
IDe for DCM
Next up was Diane Roslaniec from RAND. Diane explained the need for a product by IDe® that provides a web-powered solution for development chain management (DCM). This solution helps product companies increase productivity, revenues, and profitability. DCM integrates all the disciplines of product development—including portfolio, pipeline, resource, project, process, partner, and financial management—to give you an integrated 360-degree view of product development activities in the context of your overall business.
Simplified Reps…Simplified
Our last presenter was Mark Decraene from PTC. Mark gave a very informative demonstration on using Simplified Reps. He discussed the various types of reps and how to use rules, zones, and envelopes. Mark did a great job of highlighting the benefits of this functionality. Again, more free training!
Door Prizes
The meeting ended with our usual door prize drawings. Here’s a list of the lucky winners and our sponsoring vendors:
Kelli Driesenga won a Sony CLIÉ PDA & $200 credit for services; donated by Eagle Design
Chip Larson won a golf driver; donated by NASCO
Rich Van Andel won a Skil Saw; donated by PDT
Jeff Pikaart won a Cobra Radar Detector; donated by PDT
Steve Pikaart won an HP Digital Camera; donated by RAND
A big thanks to PTC for sponsoring this event!