Leveraging 3D PDF Technology Improves Visualization of Manufacturing Processes
PASSWORD
Manufacturing Engineering: What does 3D PDF technology offer manufacturers today? Steve Prast: Manufacturers like Boeing, General Dynam- ics, Goodrich Aerospace, who were early-adopters of 3D PDF, immediately saw the value in the technology as a docu- ment management and visualization tool. As the ISO-32000 open standard for document management, the PDF format performs exceptionally well as a secure format for sharing, retrieving and eventually archiving manufacturing data. Now
step-by-step animated 3D work instructions directly from the 3-D CAD model and to enable a better visual manufacturing process. You can even create processes with 3D PDF to auto- matically update 3-D work instructions as changes are made to the product or manufacturing process. It’s really important for manufacturers to understand that aside from the value of that 3-D visualization, a 3-D PDF is accessible through free Adobe Reader, which is installed on 98% of Internet- connected devices worldwide—that ubiquity is incredibly
“With 3D PDF, manufacturers can generate step-by-step animated 3-D work instructions directly from the 3-D CAD model and to enable a better visual manufacturing process.”
combine that with the ability to improve visual manufacturing processes with a 3-D model instead of a conventional 2-D drawing or photograph, and manufacturers have a powerful tool to create more efficient processes at every stage of the manufacturing process.
Just think about how work instructions for the shop floor are conventionally done. You’ve got highly skilled designers or engineers spending time taking multiple screenshots of a 3-D model in their CAD system and then copying that into a PowerPoint to eventually create work instructions. Obviously, there are a lot of resources committed to creating that. At the end of the day, you have a 2-D drawing that can still be diffi- cult to understand. With 3D PDF, manufacturers can generate
valuable. This is just one application of 3D PDF technology in the manufacturing industry, but overall I’d say there are five reasons why it’s important: • Universal access—3D PDF documents can be shared using free Adobe Reader. Even though a 3-D CAD model is embedded in a 3D PDF, it can still be quickly sent downstream because the technology reduces the native CAD file size by 95%.
• Compound document—3D PDF provides a framework for important manufacturing data that would typically come from multiple sources. This technology allows you to create one document with 3-D and 2-D data, text, audio, video, etc.