Although it is usually run on desktops at many enterprises, the hardware required to run popular CAD/CAM applications is a primary concern since these applications have high resource demands. As Michael Vizard notes, “in addition, the nature of that work when Autodesk is deployed on premise tends to be sequential because desktop systems can only really process one set of tasks at a time” which means that in the case of Autodesk, there is a clear relationship with delivering this software as a service via the cloud.
Autodesk’s Maufacturing Industry Group’s Director of Digital Simulations, Grant Rochelle, told IT Business Edge that there are efforts underway to bring Autodesk to the cloud, including via Project Cumulus, which we reported on earlier this month as being good news for those in the injection-molding plastic parts industry segment. In addition to this offering, the company is also bringing several of its other popular simulation applications online to help reduce the physical hardware drain. Still, despite these cloud products, there are simply some of these applications that are not fit for the cloud due to the need for heavy-duty graphics processors to back them. As cloud computing providers refine their offerings, however, the cloud may soon be fit to help Autodesk deliver their diverse array of software via a web interface after.