I thought you might be interested in an email I received from
Mike Goode from University of Central England.
hello again Rolf, Well I’ve had a very interesting week with
Dmitry, and I am delighted with the modelling capabilities of
Jewelcad. I think we shall certainly be using it for training at
the Innovation Centre. (Dmitry has probably arrived home now.
and he said he was going to ring you). With regard to becoming a
Sanders reseller, this has been in my mind since LIP gave up,
especially since we are gaining some confidence in the MM2 now.
The MM2 at school has been reliable since being overhauled last
August, and some local manufacturers are now taking it more
seriously and using us to design and build models. We are only
just about to begin our CAD training, which is free to our local
jewellery trade, and obviously this will increase demand for
model making services. Regards, Mike
Greetings! I agree with Christian here on several points, but want to
stress there are many ways to peel an apple. There are alot of
complexities to the methods and many packages available for Computer
Aided Design or Computer Aided Manufacturing. Rhino is one that I use
and my company sells as well for the same reasons Christian describes.
It has many benefits. Each package has benefits that are uniquely its
own. Some jewelers tell me JewelCAD is a great jumping off point, but
has its limitations. Any tool does. I haven’t used JewelCAD so I
can’t speak to its pros and cons. I can say that all this technology
is very exciting stuff worth checking out. Many jewelers are
intimidated and are scared away, or intimidated but realize the
potential that this all presents. You can give it a free try at www.rhino3d.com See for yourself if it is for you. There are many
discussion groups including a great one offered by the Rhino staff to
address problems specifically of cad object creation. Cheers to all of
you giving it a go! Pam
I have to second Kim’s remarks and say there are many applications
available, all are valid, all have their pros and cons. Everyone is
rushing to establish themselves as the premier something or another in
this budding technology’s use in the jewelry industry. Don’t be easily
romanced. Research for yourselves. Download the free trial of Rhino at www.rhino3d.com Find out if other software makers do the same. First
and foremost, don’t forget this is a tool like any other that has a
valuable place at the bench, but may or may not be right for you. Pam
M2 Systems
14 Finance Dr. Danbury Ct. 06810
p.203-791-9968 f.203-778-1006
Although I have no interest in any software for designing - I was
pleased to see your reply and you are right on target. Thanks for
reminding everyone who participates in this forum how important it is
to provide accurate You have rendered an important
service today. I don’t think anyone out there intends to provide
incomplete it’s just that too often we forget that not
everybody has the same background we have. So thanks for the
reminder.
All, Any time you are on the forefront of technology the potential for
great rewards and crashing defeats are equal. Myself and one friend
are on the cutting edge of stone cutting with concave faceting. We
are developing the tools and applications to make this form of gem
cutting useable. Machines available on the market now are still
first generation. These machines do the job, but they are very
cumbersome to work and limited in their application. Developing
machines and ideas for concave facetting, like CAD/CAM development is
very expensive and time consuming. Many of our ideas were not
nearly as effective as we designed them to be, but we learned from
every step. New ideas are constantly being generated. Our stones
show it. Visit my website: www.galarneausgems.com. Stones shown are
only a few of the many 100s we have completed. We have successfully
concaved sapphires, diopside, opal, quartz, feldspar, tourmaline,
zircon, beryl, tanzanite, and a few more I cannot think of. Being on
the forefront is risky. You do not see the mistakes, time, and
thought expended. I applaud personnel developing the CAD/CAM and do
not see it at all as a detractor from the Jewelry trade. If any
thing it will enhance the jeweler and expand the predictability of
the shop. You may have to learn more skills or be left behind, but
that is the way our businesses should grow. Not just looking for
niches, but leading the way.