Borduin reinforced that the company has a mission of making technology available (this is where Autodesk’s innovation is focused). “Democratizing technology” and facilitating a rapid ROI, these are the foundations of success according to Borduin. He reminded us that you can copy technology but you can’t copy or replicate a community – referring of course to the countless users of AutoCAD solutions, many dating back to r 2 and 3… long before the thematic products and annual releases of AutoCAD products came into play.

As we are under non-disclosure, I can’t delve into the specifics of what lies ahead, however, I can tell you that Borduin and crew envision customer focused development and more thematic product releases. Expect much more focus on 3D as well – this will be reflected in the product names as well (i.e. Civil 3D, Map 3D etc…).

Buzzsaw – with more than 100,000 users this online collaboration and project management solution is rapidly becoming a standard in managing digital design data and facilitating efficient sharing and collaboration.

DWF – 5 million+ DWF Viewer downloads to date and 500,000 per month and growing. DWF Composer is one of Autodesk’s hottest sellers and particularly attractive at a price of $99. As the use of DWF proliferates and additional capabilities are rolled into DWF Composer expect the number or users and uses of DWF to grow exponentially.

Down the road users can expect a new release sometime next year (this will be AutoCAD’s 20th major release). All products will be built on the AutoCAD foundation and expect more customer focus via enhancements to the communication center, error reporting, and customer surveys. Much simpler and streamlined migration tools will enable users to more easily upgrade and adopt new 3D product releases – Note, this is significant as the company plans to continue with the annual release which will now be accompanied by a yearly release retirement. Users will be pleased to see a number of cool enhancements to the core technology particularly addressing annotation, hatching, blocks, fields, tables, symbols, and heads-up design… stay tuned!

Autodesk’s Infrastructure Design Division (ISD)

Within Autodesk Corp. the GIS, Mapping, and related solutions fall under the umbrella of the Infrastructure Solutions Division (ISD) led by Chris Bradshaw, VP Autodesk ISD. Customers that fall under ISD are typically from the following disciplines:

• Engineering
• Construction
• Government
• Utilities

Solutions supported by ISD include:
Civil 3D
Map 3D
Raster Design
Mapguide
Buzzsaw
DWF Composer

The ISD product portfolio

These solutions enable Autodesk’s customers to draft, construct, operate, plan, analyze, survey, map, and design. The underlying strength of all these solutions is the focus on keeping design data [and workflows] digital and for the provision of CAD/GIS integration. Bradshaw shared with us some encouraging stats about his division:
- Q3 performance is up 15%  over the same period last year
- ISD growth stems from strong sales in civil and government spending
- ISD was recognized as the Oracle 10g adopter of the year

Bradshaw reiterated that managing change in digital design data is still a concern and problem for users. Given the success enjoyed by Buzzsaw and DWF Composer customers have been swift to embrace the solutions that Autodesk is putting forward to address this area… my guess is that this trend will continue.

From the Top DAUG

Hearing from the “Top dog” [or top daug if you’re an AUGI member] is always a treat and Autodesk CEO Carol Bartz delivered an encouraging and motivating address to her customers and the record crowd at AU.

Bartz reiterated Autodesk’s commitment to ensuring design information is digital and remains digital. Her promise and commitment is to continue delivering solutions that enable users to create rich 3D design information and manage successful project teams. The successful uptake of the core AutoCAD technology has resulted in the company’s ability to deliver the World’s number one selling 3D manufacturing software, a HOT 3D architectural software (Revit), and the first true 3D civil design product – AutoCAD Civil 3D.

"If God didn't make it then it's likely that an AutoCAD customer did!" (Carol Bartz, Autodesk CEO)

So, in short, Borduin, Bradshaw, Bartz - they all convey a similar message and share the same vision... let's keep design data digital. Their solutions are put forward in the AutoCAD 2005 product lineup and streamline CAD/GIS integration and enable users to create, manage, and share more efficiently.

For those of you looking ahead, you'll be able to hear all about the AutoCAD 2006 lineup at Autodesk University 2005, slated to take place in Orlando, Florida Nov 29 - Dec 2, 2005... see you there!  

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