STEP Tools, Inc. and NIST Co-host STEP-NC Meeting and Demonstration
to be held on June 4 & 5, 2003, at NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Belinda Jones, 860-767-9506
HiTech Marketing LLC
belinda.jones@hitechmarketing.com
Troy, New York - March 10, 2003 -
STEP Tools, Inc., announced today
it will cohost a STEP-NC technology meeting with NIST (National Institute of
Standards and Technology) at NIST headquarters in Gaithersburg, MD on June 4 & 5, 2003.
A STEP-NC demonstration will be conducted at NIST's Manufacturing Engineering Laboratory (MEL),
where MEL researchers work closely with industry to develop measurement methods, standards
and technologies to improve U.S. manufacturing capabilities. NIST is a member of the STEP-NC
Phase One Implementers program. STEP Tools spearheads the development of STEP-NC effort
in North America, and is a highly visible participant in the global STEP community of over
200 independent product data specialists.Dr. Hardwick is the international team leader of
the STEP Manufacturing group. Members of the press are invited to attend the event and
demonstration, and must register by June 2, 2003. To register or for more information,
contact Belinda Jones at 860-767-9506, or
belinda.jones@hitechmarketing.com.
The central focus of the demonstration is to show industry that the
benefits of STEP-NC based automatic machining, smart computing, and
simulation are unfolding in a progressive manner. Increased development
efforts by STEP tools will introduce new tactical manufacturing features.
For the first time, the STEP-NC demonstration will focus on a complex
surface model provided by Boeing that will be milled on a 5-axis CNC
machine tool. During the demonstration, STEP Tools will spotlight how
ST-Plan and ST-Machine can enable the manufacturing process by managing
and automating machining and planning operations.
STEP Tools and NIST will show the rapid conversion of AP-203 (STEP)
models into AP-238 (STEP-NC) CNC-independent control data containing
tolerances using ST-Plan. Also, for the first time, the ST-Machine plug-in
for MasterCam software (CNC Software, Tolland, CT) will be featured to
generate toolpaths and output CNC code. STEP Tools also has implemented
an ST-Machine plug-in for GibbsCAM software (Gibbs and Associates,
Moorpark, CA). Virtual Tours of both versions of ST-Machine can be
found at STEP Tools website.
The overall theme for the STEP-NC initiative is integration…from design to manufacturing.
With the use of full fidelity STEP-NC data as direct input to a CNC machine tool,
many bottlenecks to manufacturing productivity will be eliminated such as cumbersome
post processors, antiquated G & M codes, data redundancies, multiple CAD files, and
more. The international standard will usher in a new era of manufacturing automation
in terms of productivity, safety, reliability, and CNC machine tool usability and
interoperability.
About STEP and STEP-NC Standards
STEP (STandard for Exchange of Product model data) is a comprehensive ISO standard
for CAD design data. STEP-NC, the manufacturing extension of this standard, annotates
the design information with manufacturing data. STEP became a full ISO standard in 1994,
and since then, all of the leading CAD software vendors have implemented STEP data
translation. It is estimated that more than one and a half million CAD stations now
contain STEP data translators. STEP-NC is on its way to becoming a Draft International
Standard in 2003.
About NIST
As a non-regulatory agency of the US Department of Commerce's Technology
Administration, NIST develops and promotes measurement, standards and
technology to enhance productivity, facilitate trade, and improve the
quality of life. For more information, visit the web site
www.nist.gov.
About STEP Tools, Inc.
STEP Tools, Inc. is a leading international supplier of professional
STEP software toolsets (based on ISO standards) for application
software developers, design firms and manufacturing companies in
diverse industries. The STEP Tools product line is used by the world's
foremost firms to leverage STEP and STEP-NC technology to facilitate
the sharing of engineering product information. Over one million end
users utilize product data applications built with ST-Developer, the
company's flagship product. The company offers a suite of software
solutions in several languages that integrate with existing tools and
database systems, and also provide cross-platform compatibility and
ease-of-use for streamlined development. The emerging STEP-NC
technology is yielding process improvements including a 35% reduction
in path planning time, a 75% reduction in paper drawings generated for
the shop-floor, and a 50% improvement in machining time for small to
mid-sized job lots. For late-breaking information, contact STEP
Tools, Inc. by calling (518) 687-2848, email: info@steptools.com or visit www.steptools.com.
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