SAN RAFAEL, Calif., Mar 28, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) has named Weatherhaven as the Autodesk Inventor of the Month for March 2011. Weatherhaven has been using Autodesk Inventor software to more effectively create portable shelters designed for use in the most rugged and remote locations around the world.

Weatherhaven shelters have supported activities ranging from earthquake relief efforts in Haiti to scientific expeditions in Antarctica and peacekeeping missions in the Sahara Desert. Inventor software helps to reduce the time required to create and deploy the shelters.

Given the urgent nature of its customer needs, Weatherhaven must not only rapidly configure and manufacture systems, but also ensure they are mobile, redeployable and lightweight so the shelters can be quickly and easily broken down, moved and reassembled when an operation shifts locations.

"Inventor software plays a critical role for our company in improving our innovation, competitiveness and response time in serving customers, often enabling us to out-compete companies several times our size," said Ray Castelli, chief executive officer at Weatherhaven. "Weatherhaven is deeply honored to be recognized as Autodesk's latest Inventor of the Month."

Autodesk partner IMAGINiT Technologies provided training and support to enable Weatherhaven to more fully embrace Digital Prototyping and create lighter, more mobile shelters. Creating a 3D digital model in Inventor helps make it easier for engineers to maintain focus on safety requirements, even as they optimize the design and lower the overall weight of the shelter.

Digital Prototyping Streamlines Product Development

Inventor automatically calculates the weight of various parts and assemblies as Weatherhaven engineers create the designs. In addition, by using integrated finite element analysis in Inventor software, engineers can better predict important factors, such as stress, and tweak the design accordingly.

"By using Digital Prototyping in Autodesk Inventor, we have much more confidence that our designs will be manufactured the way we intend," said Ryan Savenkoff, design engineer at Weatherhaven. "We can even drop digital models created by our suppliers into our assemblies to check for possible interferences. Digital Prototyping has significantly reduced the time we need for product development, from concept to manufacturing."

As a result, Weatherhaven now builds fewer physical prototypes, relying more heavily on Digital Prototyping to explore and validate designs. Since physical prototypes of a Weatherhaven shelter can cost up to $100,000 to build, Inventor software has already more than paid for itself.

Weatherhaven also uses Autodesk Vault product data management software to reuse designs and more effectively manage iterations and revisions, significantly reducing the need for rework and enabling the company to better respond to customers.

"By adopting the Autodesk solution for Digital Prototyping, Weatherhaven is gaining speed that is crucial, particularly when it comes to emergency management situations," said Robert "Buzz" Kross, senior vice president, Manufacturing Industry Group at Autodesk. "Faster innovation and reduced costs serve not just Weatherhaven but its sophisticated customer base as well."

About the Autodesk Inventor of the Month Program

Each month, Autodesk selects an Inventor of the Month from the users of Autodesk Inventor software, which takes manufacturers beyond 3D to Digital Prototyping. Winners are chosen for engineering excellence and groundbreaking innovation. For more information about Autodesk Inventor of the Month, contact us at IOM@autodesk.com.

About Weatherhaven

Founded in 1981, Weatherhaven is a leading provider of portable shelters, camps and systems for remote sites around the world. The company engineers, manufactures and installs custom shelter systems for a wide variety of commercial, military and medical applications. For additional information, visit www.weatherhaven.com.

About IMAGINiT Technologies

IMAGINiT Technologies, A Rand Worldwide Company (OTCBB:RWWI), is the world's largest provider of enterprise solutions to the engineering community. IMAGINiT is a leading provider of Autodesk software and the largest North American Autodesk Authorized Training Center (ATC) site. For additional information, visit www.imaginit.com.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc., is a leader in 3D design, engineering and entertainment software. Customers across the manufacturing, architecture, building, construction, and media and entertainment industries -- including the last 16 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects -- use Autodesk software to design, visualize and simulate their ideas. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk continues to develop the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art software for global markets. For additional information about Autodesk, visit www.autodesk.com/pr-autodesk.

An interview with Weatherhaven is available on the Autodesk YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuYsIcl7VSA.

Autodesk, AutoCAD, ATC, Autodesk Inventor and Inventor are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., and/or its subsidiaries and/or affiliates in the USA and/or other countries. Academy Award is a registered trademark of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product and services offerings, and specifications and pricing at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.

© 2011 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

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SOURCE: Autodesk, Inc.

Autodesk, Inc.
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