Novastar’s booth at the Cobo Center for The Big M Conference 2015. HP representative Niel Riley demonstrates the HP Sprout All-in-one to a group of college students.

Novastar Solutions exhibited at the Society of Manufacturing Engineers’ (SME) Big M Convergence in Detroit’s Cobo Center the first week of June. The conference showcases manufacturing technologies and processes in the Great Lakes region. This geographical area represents the world’s fourth largest economy, with a combined $4.7 trillion GDP. Interesting technologies such as various additive manufacturing processes were demonstrated in various booths.

Showcasing Innovations in Manufacturing Technology

Novastar’s guest, HP Great Lakes Region workstation specialist Neil Riley (pictured above), demonstrated  HP’s Sprout all-in-one dual touchscreen computer/scanner/projector.   The Sprout has a future in 3D product design when integrated with Computer Aided Design and Engineering (CAD/CAE) software.

Also featured was the HP Z34c 34-inch Ultra Wide Curved Display.  Its profile eliminates the need for a multi-monitor array in favor of a streamlined single piece silhouette – coveted by booth visitors. Novastar also displayed the flagship of the HP workstation line, the Z840. Upgradeable to 36 Xeon cores, 2 TB of memory, and 10 internal drive bays, the Z840 can be configured for maximum processing capacity in the CAD/CAE workspace.

Creating a Better Environment for Designers with Tailored Workstation and Software Solutions

Novastar Solutions offers manufacturers engineering design solutions combining HP Z workstations and Dassault Systeme’s  CATIA (CAD) and SIMULIA (CAE) or Siemens PLM NX CAD/CAE. This allows the value added benefit of having necessary design software pre-installed out of the box.

Manufacturers utilizing CAD/CAE ultimately create prototypes of their designed components. Prototypes are then tested in various conditions under a variety of stresses. Novastar Solutions offers manufacturers calibration services to keep the instruments used in prototype testing measuring accurately. Guy Howe, head of calibration at Novastar Solutions, demonstrated the customer portal at the booth. This web-based interface allows users to track and submit requests to calibrate their instruments, streamlining the process involved in calibration.

Several groups of high school and college students, the future of manufacturing employees, roamed the exhibit hall at the Big M conference. Novastar welcomed students into their booth and spent time explaining the IT Solutions and Calibration Services it offers to help manufacturers design and test new products.