Part II: Bricsys Builds on Its Foundation
Industry Analysis by Ralph Grabowski |
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In part I last week, I introduced the foundation upon which Bricsys plans to build an all-emcompassing 3D modeler based on the universal DWG format.
Embracing With APIs
A way to measure the strength of a CAD program is the size of its third-party ecosystem. The size is based partly on the quality of the APIs [application programming interface] offered by the CAD vendor. Autodesk pioneered open APIs in the 1980s during an era when established companies like Computervision andIntergraph customized CAD software on behalf of customers -- an expensive extra. AutoCAD's quick dominance of the market was due to its (then) low price, but also due to architects and engineers buying AutoCAD so that they could customize it themselves, and in some cases even sell the customizations as a new business category.
To tap into the huge number of AutoCAD users and third-party developers, smaller CAD vendors like Bricsys, Graebert, and IntelliCAD replicate many of AutoCAD's APIs. These include AutoLISP (LISP), ARx (Tx), DCL, and Diesel. The firms also replicate most of the support files needed by drawings, such as hatch patterns and line types.
In the case of Bricsys, the company has stated they have 1,200 third-party developers, with 400 applications listed at the Bricsys Web site, plus a few hundred more developed privately by firms for internal use. Bricsys attained these big numbers easily in part because joining their developer program is free. (The Autodesk fee is $1,400 a year and up.)
Large numbers of third-party developers and add-ons attract more customers, who look for add-ons that solve their specific design problems.
Market Domination through Direct Modeling
With the three-legged foundation in place -- DWG, translation, and APIs -- Bricsys added one more necessary ingredient: direct modeling and editing with 3D parametrics and design history. To help it out, the company even bought a Russian development firm that had written a constraint system. (Benefit: no royalties to pay toD-Cubed!) With the basic functions in place, company ceo Eric de Keyser sees BricsCAD becoming the center of a multi-CAD development system, a kind of universal 3D modeler.
To prove that BricsCAD is capable, de Keyser had his staff develop two verticals that take advantage its APIs and direct modeling: BIM (architecture) and sheet metal design. These showcase apps are meant to encourage third-party developers and impress potential customers. Bricsys felt that the sheet metal add-on was so sufficiently developed that they could afford to spin it off as an optional extra-cost add-on for US$300; I expect they will do the same with the BIM add-on after it matures some more.
Whereas most CAD vendors spend between 5 and 25% of revenues on R&D, Bricsys spends just over 40%. The result is a torrid pace of updates that appear every 2-4 weeks.
Bricsys now has a 3D direct modeler to which third-party developers can attach custom info (xdata), use workspaces to customize generic commands, and program with AutoCAD-similar APIs to end up with another vertical for sale or in-house use.
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Sponsor: Siemens PLM Software
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Spreading by OS and Cloud
Another tactic to beat big CAD vendors might be to support operating systems besides Windows. Bricsys offers BricsCAD for Windows, Linux, and Mac. In this area, Graebert of Germany is the clear winner as they ported their ARES AutoCAD-compatible software to six operating systems: Android, iOS, and server-browser (cloud), as well as Windows, Linux, and Mac.
(However, I get the impression that Mac sales are not significant for new entrants like AutoCAD or BricsCAD. What numbers I've seen indicate that when a Linux version exists, it outsells the equivalent Mac version, perhaps because there are few mainstream CAD programs for Linux.)
When it comes to server-based CAD, Autodesk and Dassault Systemes are so far ahead of all competitors to the point that Bricsys isn't even trying. A portable version of BricsCAD hinted at a few years ago does not exist. The company does offerChapoo.com as their cloud-based site for sharing files, communicating, and tracking projects. I wouldn't call it PLM, as it doesn't track the lifecyle of products.
Bricsys might be missing out on a future "all the Web, only the Web" environment for CAD, but as there is no proven, profitable market for CAD on portable devices, Bricsys for now concentrates its resources on the desktop, where users do design work.
Conclusion
Returning to the claim that Bricsys aims to be #1 in 3D by 2020: it's great for motivating employees and enthusing customers, but could the company reach that point? In my opinion, it is building the necessary technology, but lacks the crucial marketing. The company is essentially unknown in the world's largest economy, USA; people don't buy what they don't know about. I get the feeling that Bricsys does not understand that it needs more than technology, no matter how good it may be. It needs to redirect some of its R&D budget to an intensive, long-term marketing campaign.
Meanwhile, de Keyser is building what SpaceClaim already did: a universal 3D CAD editor. The difference is that BricsCAD is based on the "universal" DWG format and that it employs "universal" APIs that are compatible with AutoCAD; in both cases, SpaceClaim doesn't. But SpaceClaim did what Bricsys isn't: employed brilliant marketing. SpaceClaim made itself seem pervasive, and until it was snapped up by ANSYS, we never knew that it had only ever sold 35,000 licenses. For comparison, BricsCAD has 250,000 users, AutoCAD several million (Autodesk no longer provides seat counts), and Dassault Systems says it has an even ten million on-premise customers.
Should you pick BricsCAD over AutoCAD? Not necessarily, but you should try out a demo version to see if it can replace AutoCAD for basic drafting tasks or as a primary direct modeler.
BricsCAD starts at US$550, and then goes up from there. The full package consisting of BricsCAD Platinum, Communicator translation module, and Sheet Metal module is US$1,660. Thirty-day demo versions of all of them are available from http://www.bricsys.com. |
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 It's pretty rare to hear about CAD-related hardware coming out of the Czech Republic, so I was pretty interested to hear about Y Soft and its new 3D printer with the eye-catching name ofbe3D DeeRed. Y Soft is telling me that it has one of the largest printing volumes in its price segment --400 x 600 x 800mm or 15.75 x 23.6 x 31.5".
The be3D DeeRed works with different formulations of polymer using fused filament fabrication, and is meant for corporate environments, such as fast prototyping to goods manufacturing. The price starts at e25,000 (US$28,000). http://www.ysoft.com |
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Thank you for that latest article on Bricsys. Very well done! I really enjoyed reading that.
- David Stein |
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- Chris Williams, The Register
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/03/09/line_break_ep_6/ |
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