- How many of you have trouble modifying some else's CAD files?
- How many of you have trouble modifying your own CAD files?
- How many of you would be interested in learning a technique, independent of CAD platform, that makes CAD models resilient to change?
Resilient Modeling Strategy (RMS)
Developed by Richard Gebhard (of Assembly Technology, Inc with association to Saratech), RMS is a cad-neutral technique that organizes the feature tree in such a way to limit the number of parent-child relationships. This grouping, and feature ordering, makes it easy for users to modify a design without it "blowing up" during an edit.
I would like to say that RMS is a revolutionary modeling method. But, in reality, its just common sense modeling techniques. What is unique about it, though, is that Dick was able to capture and document what many others before him tried and failed to do. And although Dick does currently have an association with Solid Edge, RMS is not limited to Solid Edge users.
Another benefit that this clever method employs is the fact that it does not have to be implemented as a company design standard nor is it a best practices manual (although it clearly is a best practice). That means that you, John Q User, does not require permission to make better models. Granted, there are a few companies out there who enforce layer naming and other standards on solid models, but not many do. Most companies do not enforce a specific method of model creation as long as the end result generates the correct geometry.
Regardless of the CAD software you use, take a look at the Resilient Modeling Strategy (www.learnrms.com) if you require more resilient models. If you are a Solid Edge user, take a look at how the Resilient Modeling Strategy works with Synchronous Technology. I can say that it helped with my transition from Ordered to Synchronous modeling and is still used in my hybrid modeling technique.
Disclaimers:
First of all, RMS is free. Click on the links, watch the videos, and decide for yourself if RMS is worth implementing at your company. You can implement as little or as much of it as you like, and customize it to your company's needs. That being said, the history of the people involved requires some disclaimer. First, Dick is currently a Solid Edge VAR, but he's diminished his sales role and has heavily focused on developing RMS for quite some time. Dick is my Solid Edge VAR, and I've known him for a long time. I've had the distinct pleasure of reviewing quite of bit of Dick's preliminary work on RMS, including some really bad versions of his website. It is only now that I'm comfortable with his development of RMS and the usability of his website (which still needs more work, Dick) that I'm willing to associate my name to it with this article. Neither Dick nor I receive any compensation for promoting RMS. He and I, as well as several other industry experts, believe that this strategy is worth spreading to all CAD users.