Dassault Systemes is hosting its 3DEXPERIENCE FORUM on September 9th in Mexico City – one of the key stops for this global event series. The 3DEXPERIENCE FORUM is a one-day event featuring industry thought leaders and customers sharing key trends and strategies around topics such as Additive Manufacturing, the Internet of Things, the Connected Digital Journey and Business in the Age of Experience.
We caught up with Gunther Barajas, Vice President, Dassault Systemes Mexico to get a sneak peek at the event, a snapshot of the business in Mexico, and future directions.
Q. Tell us about the Dassault Systemes business in Mexico, what is the opportunity?
Gunther Barajas: Mexico presents a growth opportunity for Dassault Systemes. We’ve already been leading the market with our SOLIDWORKS brand and are well known in the area of product design and PLM (product lifecycle management). We are working hard with our partners to build awareness of Dassault Systemes 3DEXPERIENCE platform, and ensure that our customers understand the full range of value we can offer to their businesses. We are also building our reseller partner community in order to have a broader reach.
Our key advantage is that we can offer our customers more than just solutions for design or PLM. We offer a business experience platform that they cannot find anywhere else. In 2013, Dassault Systèmes’ announced the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, and a vision of how businesses would operate differently in 2021. We call this ‘the experience economy,’ and it describes what most businesses have begun to realize – selling products is no longer enough to be successful. Businesses must provide experiences to their customers that extend beyond the simple use of their products. The 3DEXPERIENCE platform enables businesses to collaborate and design their offerings with this new reality in mind, and puts all of Dassault Systèmes capabilities in the hand of everyone involved in the business, integrated in a way that no other company can provide. Available on premises and in a public or private cloud, 3DEXPERIENCE is a new generation of platform that enables all disciplines in a business – from marketing, to sales, and engineers – to deliver experiences to their customers. There are many companies across Mexico that can benefit from our platform.
Q: What are some key industries you focus on?
Gunther Barajas: With regards to specific industries, our deep legacy in the Aerospace & Defense, Transportation & Mobility, and Industrial Equipment sector puts us in a good position to continue leading innovation in these sectors for decades to come, and each sector is poised for growth. We’re helping businesses create a new era of manufacturing, developing new composite materials and additive manufacturing (3D printing) processes that will lead to ultra-light and efficient aircraft and vehicles. As the Internet of Things becomes ubiquitous, Dassault Systèmes is enabling businesses to rethink how their products are designed with connectivity in mind.
Again, focusing on the aerospace sector, in 2015 we announced a strategic partnership with Safran for producing aircraft engine parts using additive manufacturing (3D printing). That includes the material design process, the manufacturing processes, testing, and all digital continuity. This blend of materials science, functional specifications, optimization, robotic production, and certification demonstrates capabilities in a single platform that you will only find at Dassault Systèmes.
We also have a long-standing relationship with Boeing that began in the mid-1980s, and we continue to develop new innovations with Airbus as well. Joby Aviation is designing small aircraft that could completely change the personal aviation industry. Thanks to the robustness 3DEXPERIENCE cloud solutions, customers like Elixir Aircraft are designing its small aircraft on the cloud, something that would have been unattainable just a few years ago. And in terms of licensing, we continue to offer significant choice, with clients able to purchase or rent their on premise licenses, as we have done for more than two decades.
Q. Can you share some future plans?
Gunther Barajas: Strategically, Dassault Systèmes is focused on harmonizing products, nature and life, and that remains a core value. “Sustainability” used to be understood as it relates to the environment, but more people understand that sustainable innovation encompasses economic and social perspectives, and showing businesses that the road to growth means accounting for all these stakeholders.
Fundamentally, we’re helping businesses innovate in ways that were unthinkable 10 years ago. For example, connected appliances are providing experiences that customers are beginning to expect. So for a company that produces washing machines to succeed, they need to start producing washing machines that are IoT (Internet of Things) ready, with WiFi and server connectivity, and with integrated services that automatically order more soap from Amazon when they are running low, etc. For a company that has never produced anything but washing machines before, this may seem like a daunting task. But by bringing professional teams together in a collaborative digital environment like the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, this sort of transformation is possible.
Q. What can attendees expect to see at the 3DEXPERIENCE FORUM in Mexico City?
Gunther Barajas: We have a terrific line-up of speakers including customers from Ford Motor Company and GE Gas Power Systems, officials from economic development, energy and academia sectors, breakout sessions, networking opportunities and the chance to “experience 3D” in our playground. The day will be packed full of new innovations, thought leadership, and sharing business challenges and solutions for the digital age.
