Autodesk Fuels Green Automobile Design

Autodesk fuels Palumbo design Autodesk,announced that Palumbo Motorcar Company of America (Palumbo Motorcar, www.palumbocars.com), a bold new car design and manufacturing company, is using Autodesk Inventor software and Autodesk AliasStudio software to design a high-performance, environmentally friendly concept car called the Palumbo M-80.

Powered by a hybrid gas-electric drive train, the Palumbo M-80 will provide the high-end sports car market with an automobile that delivers not just speed and acceleration, but outstanding fuel economy and minimal environmental impact.

Both Inventor and AliasStudio played a central role in developing the 3D concept designs, drawings and components for the Palumbo M-80. Inventor software is the world’s best-selling 3D mechanical design software and best choice for Palumbo’s 3D design, providing them with a comprehensive and integrated set of design tools for 3D design and documentation, creating routed systems and validating designs. AliasStudio provided Palumbo with a complete set of tools for their conceptual design process, integrating all design disciplines required for shape definition and communication, from sketching and visualization through production modeling, within a single intuitive working environment.

PalumboPalumbo is just one customer benefiting from the full Autodesk Manufacturing solution. The latest Autodesk manufacturing solutions redefine the product design process by supporting and natively connecting the disciplines involved in digital product development, from industrial design to mechanical and electrical engineering and manufacturing.

“Using AliasStudio to conceptualize our designs in 3D and manipulate them has optimized our design workflow,” said Joe Palumbo, co-founder and president of Palumbo Motorcar. “The ease of use and quality of surface modeling makes the design process faster, therefore reducing the risk of altering or losing our initial design ideas.”

Palumbo Motorcar is able to transfer its AliasStudio concept drawings into Inventor to create 3D digital prototypes. More than allowing Palumbo Motorcar to better communicate its design intent, it also allows the design team to make performance-related changes earlier in the process.

“With Inventor, we can review, assess and interact with our designs before they become a reality, checking the validity of our design and engineering decisions as we work,” said Jason Palumbo, co-founder and director of engineering of Palumbo Motorcar. “Small design changes that normally would take days to make can be accomplished in minutes using Inventor software. As a result, the design stage of our prototyping has been reduced by nearly 75%, which means we can go into production sooner.”

“We see an increasing trend of leading companies incorporating green principles into their corporate vision and developing products that promote a cleaner environment,” said Robert “Buzz” Kross, vice president of Autodesk Manufacturing Solutions. “We are thrilled to help Palumbo Motorcar redefine the design of their Palumbo M-80 concept car with our powerful visualization, simulation and analysis technologies.”

Wisconsin-based Autodesk reseller MasterGraphics provided ongoing training to Palumbo Motorcar to ensure that the company was able to derive full benefit from its Autodesk manufacturing solutions.

“Even though we’re a small start-up company, we were able to immediately make the most of the 3D design environment, thanks to the broad range of learning and reference resources that are available for AliasStudio and Inventor,” said Jason Palumbo. “The investment has paid off several times over in terms of productivity gains and has brought us closer to our vision of delivering a high-performance sports car that treads lightly upon the environment.”