CADCAST artwork

CADCAST

75 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 year ago -

CADCAST is your all-CAD podcast. On this show, Nick Sweeney takes you around the world of CAD to talk about SOLIDWORKS, PDM, 3DEXPERIENCE, 3D Printing, Simulation, and everything in between. Guests will be a fixture on the podcast as well. We'll be bringing in professionals from GoEngineer and all around the Dassault channel community.

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Episodes

What CAN'T You Automate?

March 09, 2023 22:00 - 40 minutes - 27.6 MB

I finally got Paul Gimbel on the podcast! This week, Paul joins the show to talk about his adventures as a DriveWorks implementer, and some of the coolest things he's done with the tool. Stay tuned for some great reasons why you should attend DriveWorks World 2023 and what sessions you can look forward to. The projectile project Paul and I mention was done by Wade Anderson. Sorry, Wade, we couldn't remember it was you when we recorded it! Follow me on LinkedIn: Nick Sweeney

3DEXPERIENCE World 2023 Recap with Darin Grosser

March 01, 2023 16:00 - 36 minutes - 25.4 MB

Back for 2023 with a new episode recapping 3DEXPERIENCE World 2023 in Nashville! We had a ton of fun in Nashville with everyone and learned a lot about the future of the Platform and the strength of the community. Tune in to find out what Darin and I took away from the conference and what's coming in 2023 to get excited about! We're excited for Dallas in 2024! Follow GoEngineer on LinkedIn

How Many Unicorns Actually Exist? - SOLIDWORKS PDM 2023

December 21, 2022 16:00 - 31 minutes - 22 MB

It's a valid question and one that Nick posed when talking about SOLIDWORKS PDM 2023. But Jeff's back for another episode because who else would be the guest for a SOLIDWORKS PDM 2023 discussion? Find out which enhancement neither of us originally included in our top 5 enhancements but is probably the best one of the entire bunch! Be sure to check out Nick's What's New in SOLIDWORKS 2023 blog that he referenced throughout the show. Happy Holidays!

Simplifying "Swoopy Curvy Parts" with SOLIDWORKS 2023

November 30, 2022 20:00 - 37 minutes - 25.8 MB

We're back with a new episode! This week, Brian Reel, our director of design engineering solutions, joins the show to talk about his 5 favorite enhancements in SOLIDWORKS 2023. The best part? These are 5 examples that almost everybody is going to love and they will make your models way easier to work with.

Imagining a World Without Printers - 30 Years of Data Management

September 14, 2022 16:00 - 37 minutes - 25.8 MB

Can you imagine never needing to get ink cartridges for that annoying printer ever again? That would be amazing! Well, 30 years ago, nobody was thinking that way. In fact, we've gone from needing paper copies of every drawing to using things like Google Photos to store our family photo albums! This week, Joe Frank and Jeff Sweeney return to the podcast to talk about the past, present, and future of data management. Tune in for a fun conversation about how much life has changed and to find o...

From Bag Phones to Electrical Schematics

August 31, 2022 16:00 - 31 minutes - 21.6 MB

I'll admit it, I honestly wasn't aware that bag phones were a thing in the 1990s... But what I am aware of is SOLIDWORKS Electrical and how it makes schematic designs in 2D and 3D much easier than it was 30 years ago when we had to draw everything on paper! This week, Corey Kubichka joins the show to talk all about SOLIDWORKS Electrical, where it's been, and where we're excited to see it over the next 30 years!

Got a Headache Yet?

August 03, 2022 20:00 - 37 minutes - 25.5 MB

Making the decision to move to a new CAD tool can be difficult. What are you going to do with all that legacy data? What about the new system, will it handle your files cleanly? Luckily, if you're looking at transitioning to a Dassault tool, we've got you covered. This week, Brandon Nelms and Keith Schaefer join the show to talk about how you can prepare to transition to a DS tool and what kinds of things you should be doing as you prepare for any kind of system change!

We Aren't Gonna Rage Quit Our CAD

July 06, 2022 20:00 - 41 minutes - 28.3 MB

I promised this a while back and we're finally getting around to putting this episode out there. This week, James Reeher joins CADCAST to talk with me about large assembly performance, video games, and why you shouldn't rage quit your CAD software. Sometimes, having the right tool for the job is all you need. Linus Tech Tips SOLIDWORKS hardware video

Pink Purple Elephant on Sunday - A DELMIA Introduction

June 16, 2022 14:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MB

Can you imagine what it would be like to know the status of anything about your company without having to be physically at work? That's the power of DELMIA, being able to understand your manufacturing process without that whole pesky "you gotta be here" restriction. This week, Mike Buchli from Dassault Systemes joined the show to help introduce both me and you to DELMIA, DELMIAWorks, and why this is something for anybody, not just the biggest companies in the world.

Does 3DEXPERIENCE Change Your CAD?

April 27, 2022 19:00 - 26 minutes - 18 MB

A few months ago, I talked about 3DEXPERIENCE and how it's going to affect people going forward. From a PDM perspective, they're certainly different tools, but how is SOLIDWORKS CAD affected by the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform? The short answer is... not much! Sure, the data management changes and how you find files, but working in CAD isn't going to change much at all. What's the long answer? That's what we'll talk about this week - how do you "CAD" with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform?

You made a Pokemon in SOLIDWORKS??

April 06, 2022 20:00 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MB

Have you ever seen something in gone, "how did they make that?" Well, that's exactly what I thought when I saw Kit MacDonald's LinkedIn post about making a Koffing. I thought it was so cool that I had to bring him on the podcast. This week, Kit joins me and we talk about the best Pokemon, how to approach complex modeling problems, and how you can make learning fun. Also, stay tuned for a bonus tip from Kit that EVERY SOLIDWORKS user can use.

Ay Ay Mate-y - Behind The Scenes

March 30, 2022 18:00 - 21 minutes - 15 MB

Ever wonder what goes into making a Top 5 3DEXPERIENCE World Presentation? Well, wonder no more! This week, Ryan Field joins the podcast to talk about what his inspiration was behind a presentation all about mates. Stick around for some talk about mates in SOLIDWORKS and how you can make the most out of them in your assemblies.

Sorry, my dog is going nuts...

March 17, 2022 19:00 - 27 minutes - 19 MB

We've all heard it over the last 2 years. With constant Zoom calls, Team's meetings, and Skype discussions, we've had to adjust and adapt to working from home. This week, Chris Snider joins the show to talk about some of the challenges we've had to overcome and how we can make this hybrid work environment better for everyone going forward.

It's All Relative

March 09, 2022 13:00 - 36 minutes - 24.8 MB

Have you ever opened a large assembly and thought, "man, this is slow!"? Well I promise you, you aren't alone. That's one of the most common questions I used to get on support. "My SOLIDWORKS is slow, how do I make it faster?" Brandon Nelms joins the show to talk about large assemblies and how we can improve our performance when we're working with them. Spoiler alert - "slow" isn't necessarily always SOLIDWORKS's fault!

What's a Floppy Disk?

February 23, 2022 21:00 - 40 minutes - 27.6 MB

Any time we can get a computer to do our job for us, it's a good day. This week, Joe Blubaugh and Don Glaske join the podcast to talk a little about SOLIDWORKS CAM and CAMWORKS and demystify this really cool product. Learn along with me as we talk about what the tool does, how it works, and how you can get started with a tool that you already own (yeah, like right now!).

I think Einstein said it?

February 16, 2022 20:00 - 40 minutes - 27.9 MB

"Never remember something you can easily look up." If there's one thing to take away from this episode of CADCAST, it's keep a backlog of your work so that you can plan for what's next. That's what Derek Lawson and I talk about on this episode. We talk about planning out any project and what we've found helps make them successful. We also talk about how our process has evolved and how we specifically plan for some DriveWorks projects.

3DEXPERIENCE World 2022 - Key Takeaways

February 10, 2022 18:00 - 20 minutes - 13.9 MB

3DEXPERIENCE World 2022 has come and gone and there's a lot they covered this week! Throughout the conference, I was taking note of some key points that I think will be important going forward and that's what I want to talk through today. This week, we recap 3DEXPERIENCE World and talk about what this all means for the future of SOLIDWORKS.

Do We Still Need Drawings?

February 02, 2022 22:00 - 29 minutes - 20.6 MB

Do we really need drawings anymore? Why can't we just interrogate our 3D models and use something like eDrawings to review our dimensions? Well that's what I want to talk about today. Jay Pinheiro and Bryan Pawlak join the podcast and we dig into if we really still need drawings and what it could look like going into a world without drawings.

My Blog is Wrong??

January 26, 2022 19:00 - 25 minutes - 17.6 MB

Does CADCAST have a 5-Timer club like SNL? If it does, we've got our first member of the club! Jeff Sweeney joins the podcast once again to go through his top enhancements for the latest release of SOLIDWORKS PDM. He starts off by telling me about my biggest omission for my what's new list and then we talk about some other enhancements that we think will have a huge benefit to PDM users.

Welcome to CADCAST

January 19, 2022 21:00 - 23 minutes - 16.2 MB

We're back! Under a new name and a whole new (well kinda new) set of topics, the CATI podcast has returned. To kick off the CADCAST era, Nick Sweeney breaks down what you should expect from our new podcast. Then, he gets into an interview with the President and CEO of CATI, Rich Werneth. They discuss CATI as a brand, why InFlow was ultimately absorbed into CATI, and what they're excited about for 2022.

What to Expect When You're Expecting!..... PDM

June 11, 2021 20:00 - 23 minutes - 16.2 MB

No, I don't have any news to share with all of you, but I do have some information! People always want to talk about how they can prepare for a SOLIDWORKS PDM implementation. When should they have their servers ready? What should they be doing with their data? All good questions, so I dove into those topics and more last week on my Innovation3D presentation about preparing for your SOLIDWORKS PDM Implementation. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and follow me on Twitter: @NSweeney_In...

Innovation3D Preview

May 28, 2021 21:00 - 17 minutes - 11.8 MB

Get ready for Innovation3D! CATI's event all about innovation is already underway with exciting presentations happening each day. Next week, I'm doing 2 presentations and wanted to give you a sneak preview. First, we'll talk about getting ready for your PDM implementation. Then, we'll dive into preparing for your migration into SOLIDWORKS PDM. Don't forget to sign up for Innovation3D, hope to see you there! Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and follow me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

It's All About Sharing Knowledge

May 14, 2021 19:00 - 37 minutes - 25.5 MB

"Let me Google that for you." That's one phrase that works for almost any question. So it's no wonder people are hesitant about calling support sometimes. What if they could have found the answer themselves? That's what we're talking about this week, how you can find answers yourself. Justin Maxwell and John VanEngen join InPod to talk about tools you can use yourself, great resources for finding information, and what keeps them coming back each day to help more users. Don't forget to subsc...

Engineers Like to Break Things

April 30, 2021 21:00 - 22 minutes - 15.4 MB

Let's be honest, it can be fun to break stuff! Sometimes it's a great way to blow off steam, sometimes it's just interesting to see how it breaks. I love simulation tools because it makes it so we can break things virtually, without worrying that maybe it's a little excessive. This week, Joe Formicola, founder of CAELYNX and the VP of CAE solutions at CATI joins the podcast to talk CAELYNX. We talk about the origins of the company, how Joe got where he is, one of his favorite studies, and wh...

How To Deploy (and Get Users to Fall in Love With) PDM

April 23, 2021 20:00 - 17 minutes - 12.3 MB

There are 2 main steps for getting started with SOLIDWORKS PDM. The first is installing and configuring the tool, server side. The second is getting users set up and to buy into the new solution. We're going to talk through that second point. Let's talk through setting up your users, what the installation process is like, and what you can do to get them onboarded faster. Get in touch with the show and follow me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

Answering some "Why does PDM do....?" Questions

April 09, 2021 20:00 - 13 minutes - 9.11 MB

Why? It's a question even a little kid can ask. Well with PDM, every engineer is like a little kid again. "Why do I need a license?" "Why are we using these big workflows?" You get the idea. This week, I tackle 3 common questions I've been getting a lot lately. Today, let's talk about templates, updating assemblies, and workflows.

How DriveWorks Solo Saves You Time

April 02, 2021 21:00 - 55 minutes - 38.3 MB

I did a presentation earlier this week that was diving into how DriveWorks Solo saves you time and money. I thought the content was worth sharing with all of the InPOD listeners as well, so let's talk about what makes Solo such an appealing tool. I start off talking about how you should think about DriveWorks, how to get started, and finally, I take a dive into an example. If you want to play with the example from the webinar, check it out here: https://driveworkslive.com?project=Demo-Cupboa...

An Ounce of Prevention...

March 24, 2021 19:00 - 24 minutes - 16.7 MB

Is worth a pound of cure. Whether we like to acknowledge it or not, disaster can strike any company at any time. When that happens, it's incredibly important that we have a disaster recovery plan in place. The biggest key to that? Backups! This week, Joe Frank joined the podcast once again to talk about what we should be doing to ensure we have solid backups and why it's so important. If you want to read up on backups, check out this blog post on the InFlow blog: https://www.inflow-tech.co...

Be Open to Change with Lynn Allen

March 12, 2021 22:00 - 39 minutes - 26.9 MB

Nobody likes change. So it's no wonder that whenever I talk with engineers about new tools, they're a little hesitant. This week, Lynn Allen was kind enough to join the podcast to talk about her latest substitute to AutoCAD - DraftSight! If you've never heard about DraftSight, this is the perfect episode for you. Lynn and I talk about what makes DraftSight such a great tool to look into, some of her favorite features in DraftSight, as well as address one of my biggest questions for the engin...

Work From Anywhere

March 03, 2021 22:00 - 18 minutes - 12.4 MB

We've all had to make adjustments this last year to how we work. One of the biggest ones is learning how to work from anywhere. That's what I want to talk about today, working from anywhere with your data management tool. This week, I talk about cloud hosted vs on-premise. Additionally, I talk about what you can do with tools like SOLIDWORKS PDM to access the vault from anywhere and how the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform gives you a fully portable solution. Make sure you check out Kyle's Blog about ...

Training The Next Wave of Automation Junkies

February 24, 2021 23:00 - 22 minutes - 15.2 MB

Last week, we had part 1 of my conversation with Heather Hasz and Bridie Mills. This week, we continue the conversation and talk a lot about growth and development with careers.  One of the big topics we discuss is getting people into a "design automation headspace". Once people learn what automation can do, they become and automation junky. Make sure you tune in to hear a little bit about my experience with a DriveWorks internship, as well as a little bit from the team about how we view int...

Wait, the community changed?

February 17, 2021 22:00 - 30 minutes - 20.7 MB

A few weeks back, I logged into the DriveWorks Community and I realized the page had changed! Come to realize, there were a whole host of updates to the DriveWorks Community and they're pretty sweet. This week, I wanted to talk with DriveWorks about the actual community of DriveWorks users, the EDU program and much more. Heather Hasz and Bridie Mills join InPOD to talk about some exciting stuff happening in DriveWorks. Tune in next week for part 2! Make sure you register to attend DriveWork...

The Professor on Rocket Surgery

February 03, 2021 16:00 - 48 minutes - 33 MB

New servers and getting everything ready for an upgrade is a big deal. Some people get so nervous about it that it almost seems like rocket surgery! This week, I brought Ryan Dally (The Professor) back into the podcast to talk about PDM servers. We talk about Archive servers, Database servers, and go into every detail you could ask for. Let's dig into server recommendations, moving servers, and even what to do if you want to get better connections for remote locations! Check out the Server ...

3DEXPERIENCE World Is Almost Here!

January 27, 2021 22:00 - 17 minutes - 11.7 MB

That's right, the biggest event of the SOLIDWORKS and Dassault year is coming up in just about 2 weeks! I love 3DEXPERIENCE World. It's a great place to learn about Dassault products, network with other users, and get an idea for what to expect coming up in the next year. This week on InPOD, I talk about what 3DEXPERIENCE World has been in the past, as well as what you can expect for this year with virtual 3DEXPERIENCE World. Make sure you register for the event! - Register for 3DEXPERIENCE...

Make Your Job Easier

January 21, 2021 20:00 - 21 minutes - 15 MB

Wait, InPOD on a Thursday? That's right! Yesterday, before starting the recording, I got news that DriveWorks released 18.2. I wanted to take a few minutes to go over what's new, so that's where we start today. However, the main topic is DriveWorksXpress. Today, I dive into how you can get started, why it's a great tool, and what you can do next. If you're interested in learning the tool, check out this free training and certification from DriveWorks: https://driveworksxpresscertification....

Be Flexible with Your Revision Scheme

January 13, 2021 23:00 - 14 minutes - 9.81 MB

Flexibility is key with SOLIDWORKS PDM. We're flexible about how we can access our files, store our data, and so much more. One topic that's come up a lot recently is flexibility with our versions and revisions in PDM. This week, I take a dive into versions and revisions. I start by talking about what a version is, how can we manage the potential high volume of versions, and why they're a great tool. Then, I take a look at revisions. I talk about what creates a revision, having a major-minor...

Which SOLIDWORKS license is for you?

January 06, 2021 23:00 - 46 minutes - 32.2 MB

Can you believe it's 2021? With the start of a new year, I thought it would be a good time to make an episode to talk with all of you about SOLIDWORKS licensing. This week, Will Kefauver joined InPOD once again and we talk about SOLIDWORKS Standard vs Professional vs Premium. Additionally, we talk about network licensing vs standalone, and even spend a few minutes talking about SOLIDWORKS cloud options. Don't forget to subscribe to InPOD and follow me on Twitter - @NSweeney_InFlow

Lock Your Cookie Jar!

December 30, 2020 20:00 - 25 minutes - 17.6 MB

The holiday season is still in full swing, so I've been thinking about fresh baked cookies all week. But have you ever thought about how many cookies everyone that opens the cookie jar is eating? I wondered the same thing and then wondered how many files people are downloading from my PDM Vault and then what they're doing with them (the holidays are lots of fun in my family). Well for the 4th time this year, Jeff Sweeney is joining InPOD to talk with my about file security. We talk about eve...

Do you want a Honda or an Acura?

December 24, 2020 02:00 - 35 minutes - 24.5 MB

Different tools do different jobs. Do you want a Honda or do you want an Acura? Both are cars, but which one does the job you need it to? This week, Tim Ramos joined the podcast to talk with me about a CAD tool not called SOLIDWORKS, but actually CATIA. We talk about practical uses of CATIA, where is shines, and what makes it so powerful. From everyone at InFlow, happy holidays everyone! Follow and get in touch with me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

Which Tools Are Actually Hammers?

December 17, 2020 13:00 - 21 minutes - 14.9 MB

There's a really cool book out there called "Every Tool's a Hammer" by Adam Savage. While the book isn't necessarily about using a screwdriver as a hammer, I think it is an interesting idea. We want to use tools in a way that's effective and can get the job done, even if that means the wrench next to us is a hammer sometimes. Today, let's do an InFlow review of every tool I've talked about so far. We'll do a quick pros and cons list of SOLIDWORKS PDM, Manage, 3DEXPERIENCE, DriveWorks, and CA...

Let's have a (3rd) party!

December 09, 2020 22:00 - 20 minutes - 13.8 MB

No system lives in a silo. I've spent time on previous episodes mentioning different ways we can talk with other systems with SOLIDWORKS PDM. This week, I wanted to take a shallow dive into how we would do this using other tools. I talk about DriveWorks and the different integration and Powerpacks that are available. After that, stick around to hear how the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform uses iPaas to send data to and pull data from the platform. This data can live virtually anywhere, which is part o...

Have You Upgraded?

December 02, 2020 21:00 - 20 minutes - 13.8 MB

It's been a while since I took a deep dive into a SOLIDWORKS PDM topic, so I figured I would jump back in with an upgrade discussion. This is probably the topic I cover the most. This week, I'm going to go through why you might upgrade, what that means for your servers, and some of the key points to consider when looking to upgrade. Follow and get in touch with me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

The Foundational Pieces

November 19, 2020 03:00 - 35 minutes - 24.6 MB

I talked about 3DEXPERIENCE a few months back with Jordan Tadic. It was a great episode, but it left me wondering what was next. Fortunately, I've spent a lot of time over the past few months learning and growing my knowledge of the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform. This week, I brought in Mike Farley to talk with me about getting started with the Platform. We talk about the foundational roles that are your starting blocks and how you can get started with the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform quickly and easily. ...

75 Character Rules → 10 Character Rules with DriveWorks 18.1

November 11, 2020 20:00 - 42 minutes - 29.4 MB

I mentioned that DriveWorks released version 18.1 a couple of weeks ago. I couldn't wait any longer, so this week, Aaron Winthers makes his InPOD debut, along with Derek Lawson, and we talk about our favorite enhancements. This isn't an ordinary service pack release! It's packed with great new features, including new dashboards and templates. Tune in and find out what function enhancement will help take Derek's rules from 75 characters to just 10! Follow and get in touch with me on Twitter:...

The Coolest Plots in SOLIDWORKS 2021

November 04, 2020 23:00 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MB

Wrapping up our series of What's New in SOLIDWORKS 2021, we go through Simulation this week. Bill Reuss and Robert Warren join the podcast to talk SOLIDWORKS on a floppy disk (what?!), the coolest flow update you didn't know about, and SOLIDWORKS matching up with the industry standard terminology. Get in touch with me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NSweeney_Inflow

Are Ovens Meant To Reach 2,500 Degrees (F)?

October 28, 2020 14:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MB

October is winding down, but we've still got some fun What's New coming at you. This week we took a short detour to talk about one of my favorite things we do at CATI/InFlow - Manufacturing Solutions. Everything from 3D printing, to scanning, to making parts for orders, we cover it all. Greg Austermann joins the podcast this week to give us an overview of what all of that means, as well as share the CATI feel-good story of 2020. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review wherever you get y...

Does Jeff have an answering machine?

October 21, 2020 21:00 - 45 minutes - 31.3 MB

Jeff Sweeney, Ryan Dally, and Mike King joined me on InPOD this week to talk about what's new in SOLIDWORKS PDM and Manage. Everything from phone interruptions to what's new, we cover it all. We go through the enhancements we're excited about and why these enhancements are so great. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review! Get in touch with me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

Eliminating Application Parkour with SOLIDWORKS 2021

October 14, 2020 20:00 - 39 minutes - 27.5 MB

Last week was my Top 10 enhancements for SOLIDWORKS 2021. This week, Will Kefauver joined me on InPOD and we talked about what his favorite things are about the latest release. We talk about how SOLIDWORKS has made it so we don't have to jump between so many tools, how it's evolved to be like a mature girlfriend, and so much more. Follow and get in touch with me on Twitter: @NSweeney_InFlow

SOLIDWORKS 2021 Top 10 Enhancements

October 07, 2020 19:00 - 17 minutes - 12.2 MB

Every year at our rollout events, we like to do a "Top 10 Enhancements". This year is no different, as we're doing several top 10 sessions during the virtual events. But I didn't want anyone to feel left out if they can't attend. This week, I take a look at my top 10 enhancements for SOLIDWORKS 2021. All month I'm talking with people around InFlow and CATI about what's new. But I covered everything this week from SOLIDWORKS to Composer, and of course, PDM. Follow and get in touch with me on...

Who's Ready for Rollout Season?!

September 30, 2020 21:00 - 10 minutes - 7.15 MB

Tomorrow starts October which means it's rollout season around the SOLIDWORKS community. And instead of doing in-person events this year, we've gone virtual. At InPOD, I'm going to be talking about What's New in SOLIDWORKS 2021 each week and going over some of the cool enhancements. We'll be going around CATI and InFlow to talk about the different features, as well as bringing in some new guests to the podcast. Check out the CATI and InFlow websites for more information about our rollout eve...

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@nsweeney_inflow 27 Episodes