Onshape

Onshape

The Onshape CAD system allows multiple users to access and work on a single design concurrently over the cloud, using any computer, tablet or phone.
Operating system iOS, Android OS, Microsoft Windows, Linux, OSX
Available in English, German, Korean, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simplified
Type CAD
Website www.onshape.com

Onshape is a full-featured, cloud-based 3D computer-aided design (CAD) software system. It is believed to be the first CAD system developed from the ground up for cloud computing, where most of the compute-intensive processing and rendering of the design is performed on Internet-based servers, and users interact with the system via a web browser. Users can access the system via mobile devices, which can include iOS and Android OS smart phones and tablets, as well as Microsoft Windows, Apple Macintosh and Linux computer workstations traditionally required for CAD work.[1]

Some technology journalists have called Onshape the “Google Docs of CAD” [2][3] because it enables teams to collaborate on a single shared design, the same way multiple writers can work together editing a shared document via Google Docs.

The primary values Onshape delivers to users by virtue of its being a cloud-based system include:

  1. The ability for multiple people to work on the same design concurrently without overwriting each other’s work;[4]
  2. The ability to manage a master design without the need to save copies or keep track of numerous different file versions;[5][6]
  3. The ability for users to work anytime, anywhere using any mobile, portable or desktop device;[5][6]
  4. The ability to do powerful 3D design using low-cost devices;[5]
  5. And the benefits of software-as-a-service (SAAS) computing, which relieves companies from performing software maintenance and upgrades, provides high performance, scalability and security, and often lets companies pay a lower cost, based on actual usage.[5]

Onshape is primarily focused on mechanical CAD (MCAD) and is used for product and machinery design across many industries, including consumer electronics, mechanical machinery, medical devices, 3D printing, machine parts, and industrial equipment.[7]

Founded in 2012, Onshape is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts (USA), with offices in Singapore and Pune, India.[8] Its leadership team includes several engineers and executives who originated SolidWorks, a popular 3D CAD program that runs on Windows computers.[1] Onshape’s co-founders include two former SolidWorks CEOs, Jon Hirschtick and John McEleney.[9]

Onshape versus competitive systems

The global CAD business is an $8-$9 billion industry annually.[9] Onshape’s primary competitors in the professional 3D CAD market include SolidWorks, PTC and Autodesk.

Onshape calls its CAD system “full cloud”[10] to distinguish itself from companies that make desktop-installed CAD with partial cloud storage. In April 2016, Onshape founder Jon Hirschtick explained the difference to Design World magazine:

“The other cloud CAD services are copy-based, meaning that the software and files are on the cloud and the engineer copies them from the cloud to the desktop… With most CAD-in-the-cloud systems, multiple people can take a copy out of the cloud vault and move it to their local computer and work on it. But if I work on a copy of the same model at the same time as you, and I make a change and put it back, my changes can overwrite your changes, and your changes are gone. I can lock it in, but then I need to indicate to you to stop working on it while I work on it.”[5]

Onshape differs from desktop-installed CAD systems in that it is not file-based.[6] Instead of being replicated to individual engineers' hard drives, the CAD design is stored in one database in the cloud which is accessed centrally online. Onshape allows multiple users to simultaneously edit the same model.[11] Because Onshape provides simultaneous collaboration and a complete editing history that can be later restored to any stage of the design, it eliminates the need to purchase a separate product data management (PDM) system to track multiple users.

Onshape adds new features and enhancements every few weeks;[12] since all users access the same version of Onshape via the cloud, there is never an issue with software incompatibility between user versions.

Onshape provides a free version for hobbyists, open source designers, students and educators and offers a professional version for companies. Instead of charging an annual fee for a seat of CAD, it offers a Software as a Service (SaaS) pricing model. Users can subscribe monthly or annually.[13] Ora Research, a technology analyst firm, called this pricing approach “disruptive” in the industry, predicting it will “make professional-grade CAD radically more accessible than ever before.”[4]

Onshape can also be used side-by-side with other CAD systems, importing most major CAD file formats.[14]

The evolution of CAD technology

CAD was invented in 1962 by computer scientist Ivan Sutherland, who created the Sketchpad program as part of his doctoral thesis at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).[15] Before the widespread adoption of commercial CAD, engineering drawing or drafting was done by hand.

In the early 1980s, CAD companies made both the hardware and the software – and one seat of CAD could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. In the 1990s, the industry moved from 2D drafting to 3D solid modeling. In addition, the CAD computing platform migrated from proprietary terminals to desktop personal computers, making the software available and more affordable to millions more engineers and designers.[16]

Today, moving from desktop computers to cloud-based systems represents another new technology platform shift for the CAD industry.[17]

Company history

Funding

Onshape is a venture-backed company with $169 million in investments from firms including Andreessen Horowitz, Commonwealth Capital Ventures, New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and North Bridge Venture Partners.[25]

References

  1. 1 2 Danny Crichton (March 9, 2015). "After 3 Years And $64M In Seed Funding, Onshape Launches The Mother Of All Products". TechCrunch.
  2. ↑ Scott Kirsner (March 6, 2015). "Can 50-somethings rekindle that old startup magic?". The Boston Globe.
  3. ↑ Dale Dougherty (May 6, 2015). "MakerCon Speaker: Jon Hirschtick on Web-Based CAD Tool, Onshape". MAKE Magazine.
  4. 1 2 Bruce Jenkins (March 9, 2015). "Research brief: Onshape technology and pricing demolish CAD accessibility barriers". Ora Research.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Jean Tilmany (April 2016). "CAD-in-the-Cloud moves closer to real-time sharing.". Design World.
  6. 1 2 3 Matthew Loew (March 17, 2015). "What No Files? How Will That Work?". Engineering.com.
  7. ↑ "Onshape CAD Features". Onshape.com. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Contact Page". Onshape.com. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  9. 1 2 Erin Griffith (March 6, 2015). "Exclusive: SolidWorks vets raise $64 million for Onshape". Fortune.
  10. ↑ "Why is Full-cloud Such a Big Deal? (Infographic)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Sharing and Collaboration". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  12. ↑ Anthony J. Lockwood (September 23, 2015). "Onshape is Editor's Pick-of-the-Week". Desktop Engineering.
  13. ↑ "Onshape plans and pricing". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  14. ↑ Roopinder Tara (March 9, 2015). "Jon Hirschtick Opens Up About Onshape, Why It Was Created, What It Does, What It Won't". The CAD Insider.
  15. ↑ David Cohn (December 1, 2010). "Evolution of Computer-Aided Design". Digital Engineering.
  16. ↑ "Executive Perspectives: Software". NASA Techbriefs. March 1, 2016.
  17. ↑ Al Dean (April 7, 2015). "The Cloud – A Bright Future Ahead". Develop 3D.
  18. ↑ Scott Kirsner (December 6, 2012). "Ex-SolidWorks execs reunite to take another swing at product design software, with $9 million in funding". The Boston Globe.
  19. ↑ "Introducing Onshape Beta (March 9, 2015)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Introducing Onshape for Android (August 11, 2015)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Onshape Launches Commercial Release (December 14, 2015)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Onshape Announces App Store Offering Simulation, CAM, Rendering & More (December 14, 2015)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Onshape Introduces Education Plan (April 7, 2016)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  24. ↑ "Onshape's FeatureScript Lets 3D CAD Users Design Faster With Custom Parametric Features (May 31, 2016)". Onshape.com. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  25. ↑ "Onshape's Cloud-Based CAD Tool Gets $80 Million in Funding". Wired. September 24, 2015.>
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