STEP Tools, Inc. Partners with SoftInWay, Inc. as Subcontractor
for FEA/STEP Data Exchange Project Supported by NIST SBIR Phase One Grant
New Version of STEP AP209 Now Supports FEA Models and Analysis
Troy, New York - July 15, 2003 - STEP Tools, Inc. Troy, New York - July 15, 2003 - STEP Tools, Inc. announced today it will work in cooperation with SoftInWay, Inc. (Burlington, MA) on a Phase One Research Program focused on the development of standards-based test cases and tools facilitating STEP data interoperability between CAE systems. SoftInWay recently received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grant from NIST (National Institute for Standards and Technology) to fund the effort. STEP Tools will serve as a subcontractor to SoftInWay, Inc. on this project, and has participated as the lead contractor for recent major contracts including a DoD (Department of Defense) SBIR Grant from the U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command, the Harvest project from the National Shipbuilding Research Program, and the Super Model Project supported by an Advanced Technology Program Award issued by NIST, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department's Technology Administration.
STEP Application Protocol AP209 supports the exchange of finite element analysis (FEA) models and analysis results. SoftInWay will develop the algorithms to calculate model quality metrics that are tied to the analysis model such as FEM model volume and free surface, total load, and total reaction force. STEP Tools will develop the algorithms and tools needed to validate the AP209 data for conformance to the STEP (STandard for Exchange of Product model data) standard. STEP Tools is a highly visible participant in the global STEP community of over 200 independent product data specialists, and has spearheaded the STEP-NC research and development effort in North America in the past three years.
About STEP and STEP-NC Standards
STEP 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 2004.
About SoftInWay, Inc.
SoftInWay, Inc. is an engineering company headquartered in Burlington,
MA. The company has a sales office in Scottsdale, Arizona. The
company's mission is to serve the international high technology
community by providing high quality digital prototyping engineering
services and software products in the area of thermal-, structural-,
and fluidic analyses. The company uses its proprietary and industry
standard software tools to address turbine design issues at the
earliest possible stage, maximize engineering productivity, and
increase efficiency of new and retrofitted turbine units. The
company's collaboration with academia, industry and customers around
the world has lead to a reputation for constant innovation in the
complete design-to-manufacture process. For more information, visit
http://www.softinway.com or call 781-685-4942.
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 15% reduction
in machining time. For late-breaking information, contact
STEP Tools, Inc. by calling (518) 687-2848, email: info@steptools.com or visit www.steptools.com.