Dassault Systèmes’ 3DVIA and Sculpteo Take the “3D Print” Button to New Frontiers

CONCORD, Mass. & VÉLIZY-VILLACOUBLAY, France, June 27, 2011 — Dassault Systèmes (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, announced today that the over 260,000 users on 3DVIA.com can now order online 3D-printed versions of their 3DVIA-hosted models through the 3D printing Web service, Sculpteo. This is a new step in the easy physical production of 3D designs for all, at an affordable price.

Previously used for rapid prototyping, 3D printing is now considered a manufacturing solution. Recently promoted on cover of The Economist, 3D printing is available to all, thanks to an easy-to-use online service created by Sculpteo for 3DVIA. Users simply click the ―Send to Sculpteo 3D Print‖ button on their own 3DVIA model’s view page, specify the size they wish to print and choose a white, black or full-color print option. Final printed models are shipped directly to users’ mailboxes. During the online printing process, 3D models are automatically analyzed to ensure the best results. Digital repair and optimization are just one of the many features provided through Dassault Systèmes and Sculpteo’s partnership.

"We are very excited to serve the 3DVIA community with Sculpteo's technology by offering a new and seamless service to transform files into real objects,‖ said Clément Moreau, CEO and co-founder of Sculpteo.com. ―This new alliance contributes to the ineluctable democratization of 3D."

3DVIA.com, one of the top 3D communities on the Web, is an open platform accepting most 3D files, including CAD and other standard formats (OBJ, DAE, 3DXML, STEP and IGES), enabling community members to print almost any creation with the simple click of a button.

Through a crowd-sourced approach, 3DVIA.com community members, including designers, 3D enthusiasts and companies, have long been producing 3D content with Dassault Systèmes’ free or professional solutions. Users host their 3D models, incorporate them in virtual showrooms with 3DVIA Scenes and give them life with the 3DVIA Studio development environment.

The 3DVIA platform is connected with Dassault Systèmes’ professional solutions CATIA and SolidWorks which already include a Publish to 3DVIA function (starting with CATIA V6 and SolidWorks 2009), consequently making the 3D printing process even easier.
"We are providing a valuable service to our creative community,‖ said Lynne Wilson, CEO, 3DVIA, Dassault Systèmes. ―We are connecting the virtual to the real, allowing 3DVIA users to literally bring their ideas to life by ordering a printed 3D version."


In the first phase of the new offering, users will be forwarded to Sculpteo.com for 3D print orders.In future releases, all ordering will be completed on 3DVIA.com

To learn more about how to use Sculpteo’s printing service from 3DVIA.com, visit www.3dvia.com

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About Sculpteo and 3D Printing
Founded in 2009, Sculpteo offers a fully online 3D printing service – from the upload of your 3D model to the final object - designed to make this new technology easy and accessible to all.

3D printing is a method of producing a real object from a 3D file, by building and solidifying a material layer by layer until the finished item is obtained. This technology is geared at anyone who wants to turn concept into concrete, imagination into reality. The virtual object becomes a tangible item, which can be handled and placed in real-life situations. 3D printing is an element in the custom-made trend – claiming the right to individuality and personal expression. Technology puts us back in control of the selection, modification or creation of the objects around us, be they utilitarian or strictly aesthetic. 3D files – or digital models – are geometric representations of a product. As with any other software, there are many different 3D-design applications available, free or not, all over the web. Similarly, there are multiple 3D file formats. The most common are obj, 3ds, stl, skp… Sculpteo.com handles them all.