Autodesk DWF CAD sharing gathers support

Autodesk’s DWF (Design Web Format for document exchange) is gathering more momentum. So far there have been more that 2 million downloads of the free DWF Viewer, and now Hewlett-Packard has announced formal support. HP and Autodesk say they will work together, harnessing DWF to offer more efficient methods of sharing and printing complex engineering design files and documents throughout project lifecycles. The goal is to improve productivity and simplify the process of printing engineering documents in collaborative development environments, building on the fact that compressed DWF files are pen, secure and maintain full integrity of design data and intent throughout engineering workflows. “DWF offers an ideal method for everyone involved in the workflow to exchange, view and print design documents with the highest fidelity,” says Guayente San Martin, product marketing manager, Inkjet Commercial Division, HP. The announcement is an extension of what has been long-term collaboration between Autodesk and HP aimed at getting Autodesk applications to run with HP’s graphic, workstation, mobile and printing systems. “Through our work with HP, we look forward to expanding the market for DWF by offering a file format that is already specifically created to manage the complexities of design data in drawings, maps and models,” says Tony Peach, director of DWF strategy for Autodesk. DWF files are highly compressed, so they are much smaller and faster to transmit, enabling the communication of rich design data, without the overhead associated with typical heavy CAD drawings. DWF files are not a replacement for native CAD formats such as DWGs and don’t allow editing of the data within the file. The sole purpose of DWF is to allow designers, engineers, developers, and their colleagues, to communicate design information and intent to anyone needing to view, review, or print design information.