As a business owner I am always looking at wider market trends for any potential opportunities or challenges on the horizon. One key trend I have noticed of late is the considerable increase of new triallists for our Alibre 3D CAD software we have seen in recent months. Obviously I myself am a huge fan of Alibre and take every chance I can to promote its merits when compared to other (more expensive) options on the market. Their ongoing commitment to product development has seen Alibre go from strength to strength, and we’re thrilled to see this recent upturn in popularity. But that got us thi ..read more

It was great to visit one of our customers last week and explore how #3Dscanning technology can be used to support their design process. They are converting their 1997 Honda Civic from a front wheel drive to an all wheel drive and therefore needed to design their own propshaft mount and rear brace. Using the #EinScanHX #3Dscanner we were able to provide an accurate scan of the exhaust tunnel, providing data to be used as a reference in the design phase. If you would like to see how #3Dscanning can help in your business, just get in touch at business@mintronics.co.uk ..read more

I recently attended the Alibre annual reseller meeting, the first one for a while due to covid, so it was great to see many familiar faces and get an insight into the next round of developments. A high level of enthusiasm was noticeable from Alibre colleagues and from us resellers. One of the great things with Alibre is their proactive approach to customers’ feedback. We the resellers are talking directly to the end users and feeding back directly to the Alibre people responsible for product development, so its true to say that it is our customers who drive the product development Early 2024 a ..read more

We had a great day last week at the Tees Valley business summit. This was a great opportunity for us to showcase our range of exciting 3D technologies. We brought along our EinScan HX and EinScan H scanners to let attendees have a go with the equipment and get a good insight into how the scan data can be used in a wide range of applications including for reverse engineering and inspection. We also took the opportunity to highlight our digital twin and virtual tour technology with the Matterport Pro 3 and Pro 2. We got a lot of great ideas from attendees about the potential applications of dig ..read more

Our capture specialists have been out capturing a local Darlington landmark using the Matterport Pro 3 3D camera. The 'brick train' as its fondly known as in Darlington was built in 1997 and celebrates Darlington's railway heritage. Scanning in direct sunlight can be tricky, but with the Matterport Pro 3 you can capture both indoor and outdoor spaces with ease. Matterport is the standard for 3D space capture and allows you to transform real life spaces into immersive Digital Twins. If you would like more information on Matterport and how it can be used to help your business, we would love to h ..read more

Part/components without CAD data? This a common problem we come across regularly. Reverse engineering using traditional methods (ruler and calipers) can be time consuming and sometimes impossible to do accurately depending on the geometry of the shape. More and more businesses are now using 3D scanning and reverse engineering software to speed up this process - ‘A new set of tools for an old task’. Below we have put together a quick demonstration video of the full process from the initial capture of the 3D scan using the EinScan HX from @shining to the #reverse engineering process using @quick ..read more

We recently held another fantastic 3D Scanning and Reverse Engineering workshop in partnership with the IDTC (Industrial Digitalisation Technology Centre) at Teesside University. Our workshops give us at Mintronics a chance to explore some of the innovative ways in which 3D Scanning technology can be deployed in real world settings. As always, the workshop was very well attended and received, with many attendees taking the opportunity to scan their own objects from their specific contexts. Here's just a few of the varied applications on show during the workshop: Dental equipment manufacture ..read more

This is a 2 day course which we tailor to the experience levels and requirements of the attendees. Training course information Course Fee: £750 + VAT per attendee (two day course) – Invoice to be paid prior to course start date. Location: Mintronics office, 43 Duke Street, Darlington DL3 7RX – This is central to Darlington, so there is plenty of hotels close by. Dates: 25th and 26th April 2023 Lunch: Will be provided by Mintronics – Please let us know of any dietary requirements. Equipment: Trainees to bring own laptop -Software can be provided for anyone that does not have a licence of Alibre ..read more

The concept of reverse engineering for many years, however with advancements in technology, as well as increased affordability, 3D scanning and reverse engineering is more accessible than ever. As the technology has developed over the years, the headaches associated with "traditional" reverse engineering methods have been eased. Gone are the times of painstakingly taking measurements using a pair of calipers - using 3D Scanners the process is a lot more refined and accurate these days. A recent article by Shining3D discusses reverse engineering, the processes involved, the main applications o ..read more

As featured in AECmag.com, 4M's FineHVAC software had been recently used to great affect to serve the free space under the stands of the Qatar Foundation Stadium FineHVAC software from 4M was used in the design the HVAC system for the Qatar Foundation Stadium, one of the host venues for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The piping and air-duct installations serve the free space under the stands of the “Diamond in the Desert” sports complex, comprising an air-conditioned area of 55,000m2 structured in four levels. One of the considerations for the design was that many of the existing spaces are to be r ..read more