Adobe digs deeper into engineering with CAD visualisation acquisition

Adobe Systems has extended its capabilities even further beyond ubiquitous PDFs and deeper into 3D CAD visualisation and engineering collaboration, with the acquisition CAD data interoperability software firm Trade and Technologies France (TTF). Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed, but it’s another decisive indicator of Adobe’s determination to extend its footprint in manufacturing across the broadest swathe of industries – following fairly hot on the heels of its launch of Adobe Acrobat 3D. With that development, the company – which early last year introduced Acrobat 7 able to embed and work with multiple file types, and allowing comment and mark-up – further extended its software for engineering companies and their supply chains to make PDFs the mechanism of choice for interaction everywhere. That meant starting with a 3D CAD model or finite element analysis – from any of the vendors – and hugely widening what could be done with it without paying for a single extra seat of CAD, or worrying about the complexity and specialisation of that environment. Lyon, France-based TTF will now add technology including CAD software interoperability translators and software libraries for higher-end 3D visualisation. “We’re focused on delivering the benefits of Adobe software and PDF to customers in technical markets, including manufacturing industry,” says Tom Hale, senior vice president, Knowledge Worker Solutions, Adobe. “We anticipate the acquisition of TTF will help us significantly accelerate and expand that effort,” he adds. “The key technology and expertise we gain from TTF will help enable Adobe to provide manufacturing organisations even more comprehensive solutions for 3D visualisation and collaboration that extend across and beyond the enterprise.”