Abstract: With the deepening of manufacturing informatization, the application of CAD software is more and more extensive, but the application proportion of domestic CAD software is declining. This paper attempts to review the development of domestic CAD software in recent ten years, analyze the problems existing in domestic CAD software manufacturers at present, and explore the breakthrough road of domestic CAD software from the perspectives of industry standards, enterprise system and internationalization.

Keywords: difficulties of domestic CAD software

With the deepening of manufacturing informatization, the application of CAD software is more and more extensive, but the application proportion of domestic CAD software is declining. This paper attempts to review the development of domestic CAD software in recent ten years, analyze the problems existing in domestic CAD software manufacturers at present, and explore the breakthrough road of domestic CAD software from the perspectives of industry standards, enterprise system and internationalization.

Market: from letting a hundred flowers blossom to outshine others

In 2000, the total output value of China's manufacturing industry reached 3.5 trillion yuan, and the added value of manufacturing industry accounted for about 40% of GDP for many years. From 1980 to 1998, China's GDP grew at an average annual rate of 9.94%, while the manufacturing industry grew at an average annual rate of 12.65% during the same period, and the manufacturing industry became the "engine" of China's economic growth. Design is an important part of manufacturing industry. According to statistics, 80% of enterprises in manufacturing industry are using CAD software. In recent years, with the industrial upgrading of China's manufacturing industry, the position of design in the manufacturing industry has become more and more prominent. This is a huge cake for design software manufacturers. China CAD software market will be huge and will continue to grow. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand that Autodesk, a leading international digital design software company, adjusted its sales forecast in China in 2006 from the current 200 million yuan/year to 800 million yuan/year. Another giant Microstation also announced its massive entry into the China market. However, in such a big market, there are few domestic software.

In fact, in the early 1990s, domestic CAD software blossomed, and many domestic CAD products were active in the market, such as Gaohua CAD, Huazheng Electronic Board, Daheng CAD, Desai CAD, Honeysuckle CAD and so on. However, ten years later, we found that most of the "letting a hundred flowers blossom" in those years have vanished, and only AutoCAD "outshines others". From R 14 and R2000 to AutoCAD 2002 and 2004, it has made great strides and monopolized 90% of the two-dimensional CAD market in China. The original domestic CAD software manufacturers have either become agents of AutoCAD, or made wedding dresses for others with the secondary development of AutoCAD, and some have transformed into PDM and ERP fields. There are not many people who insist on doing CAD now.

Dilemma: Standards decide everything.

Just as Windows established the standard of desktop operating system, the reason for this dilemma of domestic CAD software is that AutoCAD established the standard of CAD software. AutoCAD DWG file has become the default format, whether it is processing with supplied materials, drawing acceptance or design scheme evaluation. But due to the independent development of domestic software, compatibility has always been the biggest problem. Because it can't be saved as DWG drawings, the data of reading AutoCAD files is lost, and the communication with foreign AutoCAD user drawings is blocked, which makes domestic CAD software lose one customer after another. A user drew the picture with a domestic software. Because the format is incompatible, the planning bureau can't open it and lose the chance of winning the bid. Although many customers bought genuine domestic CAD software, they had to use AutoCAD.

Usage habit is another factor that puzzles domestic software. Students study AutoCAD at school, but they still use AutoCAD at work. So many people think that CAD is AutoCAD. For a designer who has used AutoCAD for many years, it is a very painful thing to learn another brand-new domestic CAD without using it. The resistance to the popularization of domestic CAD software lies not in the superior leaders, but in the users of the software.

Choice: Independent platform or secondary development?

However, the information-rich manufacturing market really makes domestic software manufacturers eager to move. China CAD software manufacturers have been looking for a breakthrough opportunity, hoping to take a slice of this fast-growing CAD software market. The national policy of strengthening intellectual property protection has also given hope to domestic software manufacturers. But opportunity is not equal to market. Today's competitive environment is not the same as that of ten years ago. Domestic CAD software manufacturers are faced with the difficult choice of independent platform or secondary development.

As mentioned above, if you choose to be the CAD software of your own platform, you will directly face the competition with AutoCAD. Although domestic software has certain advantages in price, price is not the only factor. The problem of software compatibility and the change of user's operating habits have become serious problems faced by domestic CAD. Domestic CAD also needs to reverse people's inherent views on domestic software.

Even if you choose to do the secondary development of AutoCAD, it is not easy. Secondary development software vendors must keep up with AutoCAD. If he upgrades, you have to upgrade, otherwise the customer will not be able to use it. Secondary development is equivalent to a collaborative tool, which accounts for a relatively small market share of CAD software. The price of AutoCAD is already very high, so it is obviously unacceptable for customers to set a high price for secondary development software. Therefore, the price of secondary development software is generally not high. The meat was eaten by foreign software companies, leaving some soup for domestic software manufacturers. But even this soup tastes bad. The function of AutoCAD is becoming more and more powerful, the user's level of use is also improving, and the user's dependence on secondary development tools is decreasing. Moreover, AutoDesk has also improved its product line around AutoCAD, and with its strong R&D strength, it has continuously introduced professional applications such as architecture, planning, machinery and GIS. Domestic software vendors who specialize in secondary development are forced to a small corner. Take the machinery industry as an example. There were more than 50 software vendors who did secondary development on AutoCAD five years ago. Now only seven or eight software vendors are still doing secondary development with AutoCAD, and most of them are actively seeking transformation.

Breakthrough: the hope of domestic CAD software lies in its application

When domestic software manufacturers finally realize their inherent shortcomings, it is no longer the way to win by fighting for price and technology with foreign software. Domestic CAD software focuses on application. Only by cultivating a group of loyal users can we tear a gap in the iron bucket array of foreign CAD software and let domestic manufacturers occupy a place in the CAD software market. The advantages of domestic software are cost performance, the ability to accurately grasp the needs of industry customers, and the value relative to foreign software. In the domestic CAD software camp, CAXA Electronic Chart, Tsinghua Tianhe, Mu Kai Software, Zhongwang CAD, etc. seized the opportunity, really grasped the actual demand of domestic industries, and took the lead. Among them, CAXA electronic chart and Zhongwang CAD are the most active and typical.

CAXA electronic drawing board is located in a rapidly rising manufacturing enterprise in China. In addition to the basic auxiliary drawing function, the software also provides a rich library of standard parts according to the characteristics of China machinery industry. Although CAXA is not directly compatible with AutoCAD at first, CAXA electronic drawing board also provides a compatible interface with AutoCAD in view of its wide application. In order to let users accept domestic software, CAXA began to popularize domestic CAD software, and cooperated with China Engineering Drawing Society and other institutions to provide it to schools and students at a very low price in the education industry. CAXA actually allows designers to accept domestic software from their student days. Therefore, CAXA electronic chart has been successful in the CAD software market, with a cumulative sales of 65,438+10,000 sets, making it the CAD software with the highest market share in China.

Zhongwang CAD is different from CAXA electronic drawing board. Although Zhongwang has a history of ten years in CAD industry, it is a new army in the field of CAD platform. Therefore, Zhongwang CAD has chosen a completely compatible way with AutoCAD to seize the market. Not only is the interface, command mode and operation habit very similar to AutoCAD, but the internal file format also adopts DWG file consistent with AutoCAD. Users who are used to AutoCAD or have a large number of AutoCAD drawings can easily switch to Zhongwang CAD. In just two or three years, the installed capacity of Zhongwang CAD has exceeded 10,000 units, becoming a dark horse in domestic CAD software.

After China's entry into WTO, China's market is internationalized and the international market is China-oriented. Domestic CAD software should not only break through in the domestic market, but also look for opportunities in the international market. This is also the knowledge of domestic CAD software. In recent years, both CAXA electronic chart, Zhongwang CAD and OpenCAD of Qingruan Yingtai are actively exploring overseas markets.

Of course, both CAXA and Zhongwang CAD are very weak in front of Autodesk, the fourth largest PC software giant in the world. However, if the domestic software can really grasp the needs of industry users, seize the opportunity of the rapid development of China's manufacturing industry, and provide users with cost-effective products, the domestic CAD software may also be on an equal footing with foreign manufacturers like China's home appliance industry today. We sincerely hope that one day, domestic CAD software can also gallop in the international market like AutoCAD and Microstation.

References:

1 China CAD software industry urgently needs to study the present situation and take countermeasures-Tang Rongxi

2CAD/CAM technology status and products-computer aided design and manufacturing

3 see CAD software and its use tutorial-gold edition electronic publishing company [