[slideshow_deploy id='2579'][clear][clear-line]As diehard PTC Pro/Engineer advocates for the last 10 years it was a weird feeling heading out to our first SolidWorks World. We are here to promote our new DesignState Connector to Enterprise PDM but it also gives us a great opportunity to compare the two companies and their annual events. We checked out the keynote speech this morning here in Anaheim and I was struck by several things as I observed. First was attendance, Jeff Ray, the SolidWorks CEO announced attendance in excess of 5000. Looking back at PTC User I don't think attendance has ever exceeded 3000. Not that numbers alone are the best way to judge company success but… The other thing that was interesting is the contrast between how the events are conducted. PTC maintains the illusion that PTC User is autonomous and that they are guests at the event whereas SolidWorks runs this show period. In the end I believe both vendors run their respective shows but SolidWorks is just more upfront about it and uses the event to engage openly with customers. PTC tends to hang out in the background more. I think PTC would benefit from a more overt presence emphasizing the opportunity to engage with clients.

On a more ominous note for SolidWorks users Bernard Charles the CEO of Dassault made his first official visit to SolidWorks World and announced that Dassault and SolidWorks would be working more closely together in the future. He mentioned Enovia several times and was touting the success of Dassault as a company and how they are market leaders in five of the six product areas that they participate in. He envisions these divisions working more closely together and wants SolidWorks to upgrade their capabilities to be considered a more robust Engineering tool. This strikes me as a potential sign of more overt direction coming from Dassault which could disrupt the typical grassroots approach that SolidWorks has used so successfully to gain market share over the past few years. Catia is far from user friendly and Dassault's PLM strategy is a mess so I can't see this going well. I have been impressed with how Dassault has pretty much let SolidWorks run as an independent entity till now and I certainly believe synergy could be a good thing if done the right way. I guess we will see where this goes. He also touted a new application that allows 3D viewing on an Iphone. This is certainly a smart way to take advantage of current market trends but it will be interesting to see if this is really a viable application. It might be better on the new IPad.

Jeff Ray took back over and touted several programs that show how connected SolidWorks is to their user community. The first was a program they called "Brainstorm" . This was an online initiative that allowed users to submit suggestions for enhancements and allowed users to vote on them. This is a smart usage of technology and demonstrates SolidWorks commitment to listen to their clients on enhancements. Other vendors certainly take feedback from their users but this seemed like a better approach. The other thing they touted was their Engineering Stimulus program. They funded training last year that resulted in 2000 engineers getting jobs based on the training they provided through their Value Added Resellers. This definitely engenders loyalty. PTC missed a real opportunity to get some positive PR from doing something similar.

Finally, they held what they called sneak peek into the future at SolidWorks. It was all based on cloud computing and allowed users to access SolidWorks from a multitude of devices and use different types of interfaces to interact with the program. The idea being that SolidWorks on a cloud would address user issues concerning installing and maintaining the application, sharing information, reusing data, security, and performance. I really don't consider any of this earth shattering. PTC has had PLM on demand for several years and graphic streaming has been available for some time as well. This part was pretty lackluster and they definitely are playing "catch up" to PTC when it comes to modeling capabilities and eye popping technology.

My overall impressions about the conference after one full day are that there is a lot more enthusiasm and support from the user base at SolidWorks versus PTC. I haven't heard the grumbling I hear when I attend a PTC conference. They seem to be very successful in providing their customers with a strong user interface and products they want as opposed to trying to force feed solutions into their install base. I detect some potential signs that this may change but for now SolidwWorks seems to have a good relationship with their customers and really understand the types of products that are needed. This may be a result of their VAR driven sales organization. VARs tend to be closer to the customers and can provide valuable insite. PTC still uses a direct sales force for the majority of their revenue and view the VARS as a necessary tool to placate Wall Street. Things at PTC have improved dramatically for resellers in some way over the last few years but you still get the feeling that the culture and DNA of PTC is derived from the direct sales organization. Both companies have strong offerings and could learn from each other. PTC definitely has the technology lead as far as capabilities are concerned but SolidWorks seems to have a stronger relationship with their clients.[clear-line]