A new digital reality platform from Hexagon enables real-time collaboration across product lifecycle from design to production.
The new platform, Nexus, from Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division applies the latest cloud technologies to unblock innovation bottlenecks, enabling global teams to collaborate in real-time across the product lifecycle from design and engineering to production and quality to solve design and manufacturing problems together and accelerate time to market.
Nexus connects equipment, data and processes to create a digital reality where insights are available to people in real time, in context and in one place so they can make better informed decisions. Customers will be able to connect what they need from its portfolio of hundreds of design and engineering, production, and metrology software applications and devices, as well as third-party technologies.
Metrology Reporting, a Nexus App: The app connects Hexagon and third-party metrology data sources in Nexus’ secure cloud environment so that companies of all sizes can immediately report on previously untapped quality control data from their equipment to spot trends and identify tolerance issues. Any user can generate interactive three-dimensional CAD-based reports and insightful trend plots, KPIs and compliance documentation and up-to-the-minute data with colleagues, customers or suppliers.
Materials Connect, a Nexus App: An all-new, cloud-based library for material data, that empowers manufacturers or material suppliers to manage material data, physical test data and behaviour models for use in product Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) workflows.
Materials Enrich, a Nexus App: A first-of-its-kind Enrich app, it uses the Nexus platform’s machine learning capabilities and cloud-accelerated material behaviour simulations to help users find and simulate optimal materials that may have never been made or measured, improving the performance and sustainability of their products.
Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM), a Nexus Solution: A pre-configured solution that makes it easier and more efficient for teams to jointly develop an optimal metal 3D-printed part and prepare it for a successful print using the laser powder bed fusion (PBF) process. Customers can use the Nexus web interface to connect Hexagon’s MSC Apex Generative Design and Simufact Additive process simulation software with AM Studio from CADS Additive and Materials Connect via the cloud, and easily manage user access to projects.
Processes such as DfAM have traditionally been siloed – with at least three different engineers and separate software applications solving problems in isolation. This lack of connectivity can lead to costly and time-consuming manual processes and loss of valuable data. With Nexus, these silos are dismantled so that every engineer involved in the process is able to access the desktop software they need and connect their tools to work through problems together, in real-time.
“Industry 4.0 is bringing ever more tools, technologies and data sources into view but industry has a problem – processes and data sources are often siloed and team members struggle to collaborate across disciplines and this is severely hampering progress,” said Parth Joshi, chief product and technology officer for Hexagon’s Manufacturing Intelligence division.
“If companies are to reap the benefit of smart manufacturing, we need to change the way we work. By leveraging Hexagon’s expertise in innovation, and by connecting people, technologies and data we can help businesses bring ideas to life faster than ever before. We’re excited to see what customers will do with the technology from today.”
