Geomagic Joins with Creaform to Offer Educational Discounts to Universities, Design and Trade Schools Worldwide

September 5, 2006

Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA, September 6, 2006 - Geomagic®, a worldwide software and services firm headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, and Creaform, a 3D digital technologies company based in Quebec, Canada, today announced an aggressive educational discount program. The new program will allow design and engineering students to access the leading-edge technology currently used by engineering professionals in the aerospace, automotive, manufacturing, medical and consumer products industries at a discounted educational institution pricing structure.

"Enabling students to use the latest technology is of great benefit to all," says Andrew Stein, vice president of product management and marketing of Geomagic, Inc. "We see this as an investment in the future, one that will fuel product and engineering innovation for years to come and prepare students for a digital world of non-contact measurement for design, inspection, and a variety of other applications."

"We are proud to be part of this important program and support these institutions," adds Charles Mony, president of Creaform. "The ability for instructors to provide easy to use and accurate hands-on tools to students is invaluable. Geomagic and Creaform believe that the future of design engineering and 3D inspection technology resides with students in universities and trade institutions."

One institution, the University of Michigan, is already putting Creaform Handyscan 3D hardware to good use.

"At the University of Michigan 3D Lab we provide research assistance to all departments on campus, so we look for the most flexible technology available," says Brett Lyons, senior research technician, University of Michigan 3D Lab. "Forty minutes after unpacking the Creaform Handyscan 3D scanner, we were scanning dinosaur bones and brake calipers, one right after the other."

"In the time since we received the kit we've been able to scan a wide range of parts, each attempt ending in success," adds Lyons. "The technology is easy and fast to use, robust and consistent. We are very happy with the performance, service, integration and good value offered by Creaform."

Students at Pasadena, California's Art Center College of Design have also recently begun to benefit from this initiative.

"Our students and faculty have wanted to have access to 3D scanning capability for years, but until the Creaform Handyscan 3D became available it just wasn’t practical," explains Michael Berman, senior vice president/chief technology officer, Art Center College of Design. "Older solutions are expensive, slow, cumbersome and difficult to learn and use."

"Now with the Handyscan 3D and Geomagic software, we can scan a student’s 3D work in the morning, and by the afternoon they’re producing high-res renderings or printing new versions with a rapid-prototyping machine," says Berman. "The Creaform Handyscan 3D closes the loop between the physical and virtual worlds, bringing new ways of to create and to design, and allowing our students to express their creativity rather than wrestling with technology."

In France, students at Ecole Centrale Nantes have also begun to benefit from the "out of the box" utility of the Handyscan/Geomagic combo.

"For 20 years, laser scanning has been the base for new developments related to digital modeling. But, many problems occurred, mainly due to the use of sensors and data exploitation. With the Handyscan 3D, this is completely different. The use of the sensor is very easy in a way of autonomy, self-positioning and also a full-compatibility with the well-known software, like Geomagic," says Alain Bernard, professor/head of department, Engineering of Industrial Products and Systems Department, Ecole Centrale Nantes.

"Now, we have a solution that is easy to use for students, for industrial companies and also for designers," adds Bernard. "Many application fields have not yet been analyzed but this technology is really a breakthrough in the field of 3D digitizing systems."

The educational discount program, available worldwide, will make available a minimum of 150 hardware and software kits at up to 80 percent discount for classroom training and not for profit research at qualified education institutions.

Educational institutions can order the kits directly from Creaform by contacting their offices at 53 Bel-Air Street, Levis, Quebec, Canada G6V 6K9, phone: (418) 833-4446, e-mail: education@handyscan3d.com, Phillippe Germain, Educational Program Manager.


About Creaform

Creaform, Inc. (www.creaform3D.com) is a technological company in the 3D scanner market dedicated to the development, integration and services in 3D digital technologies associated with laser scan. Creaform is active in different markets from manufacturing to medical industry, through automotive, aerospace, multimedia, culture and transportation. Creaform has developed the Handyscan 3d technology. Handyscan 3d is a complete hand-held 3d laser scanner. Handyscan 3d allows engineers and designers to scan any physical object with unlimited flexibility, ease of use and high accuracy, without any tracking device.


About Geomagic

Geomagic® (www.geomagic.com) software enables engineers and designers to transform scan data from physical objects into highly accurate digital models for applications ranging from ensuring the NASA space shuttle Discovery’s safe return, to reconstruction of legacy parts and molds for Harley-Davidson motorcycles, to new processes that speed quality inspection for companies such as Schneider Electric and Howmet/Alcoa. More than 5,000 professionals in industries such as automotive, aerospace, medical devices and consumer products use Geomagic software and services. Geomagic has headquarters in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, subsidiaries in Europe and Asia, and distributors worldwide.