ACE felt so strongly about introducing this medium into the world of manufacturing they created a social network called
www.CreativeManufacturing.net to further the discussion.
Our goal is to dispel the notion that animation is used only for entertainment and cartoons. At ACE we are using anima- tion software, such as Autodesk Maya and Pixologic Zbrush, to create virtual factories, immersive learning tools, and digital recreations of complex manufacturing processes. On the home page of
CreativeManufacturing.net is a short film called “The Digitization of American Manufacturing” describing our process. By promoting animation as a viable training solution for manufacturing, we are enabling new job opportunities for animators while ensuring vital manufacturing knowledge is made accessible to future generations.
Www.Creativemanufacturing.net is just one of
ACE’s pro-active measures to ensure success for American Manufacturing. At ACE we’ve created a production studio called DASH 9 (www.dash9pro-
ductions.com) to create high-end media pieces for marketing, education, and advocacy. “A Celebra- tion of American Manufacturing” (http://youtu. be/L-fj_1vD1IE ) is one of the first media pieces we created to launch these efforts and was used to inaugurate Kellie Johnson as chair for the small and medium-sized manufacturers at the NAM. The other focus of DASH9 is to utilize the growing talent pool of animators and visual effects artists in Southern California to create virtual simulations of real-world manufacturing scenarios.
Through open source initiatives, part of our approach is to enable manufacturers to create their own content. Open source solutions such as Blender (
http://www.blender.org/) can
allow manufacturers to explore animation software for free. Conversely, we can use Blender in the classroom to empower a generation of students to become manufacturers. This is the first step in capitalizing on the multi-billion dollar box office fascination with CG animation. By using Blender as a teaching tool we can have students create virtual supply chains and provide them a better understand- ing of the manufacturing process. A Blender model can be exported as a .stl file and printed from an ad- ditive printer, allowing students to create real products from conception to completion. This immediate feed- back can give great satisfaction to a developing mind. At the root the tools used by manufacturing, Hollywood and video games are the same. NURBS modeling, laser scanning, point clouds, computer generated simulations, supply chain pipelines, proto- type fabrication, and additive printing are techniques shared by both industries. Why not take advantage of these common- alities and use the fascination/fanaticism focused on Holly- wood and the video game industries to empower manufactur- ing education? With animation (and art) we can turn STEM into STEAM—and having STEAM at our disposal can be an exciting way to bring manufacturing to the next generation. At ACE our story began with a creative mind and a 13¢ igniter, and this has led us to where we are today. But of course our story is still unwritten.
By taking advantage of the powerful visualization capabili- ties and the creative potential enabled through animation we can preserve knowledge of the past while manufacturing an exciting future for generations to come. ME
April 2013 |
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