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Fusion 360: Cloud Design & Engineering One Year On

Categories: Sustainability in PD&M

Anniversaries are always a good time to look back and take stock of where you’ve been and where you’re going… In the case of Autodesk Fusion 360, it’s been an exciting first year, packed with product developments, milestones and partnerships.

When Fusion 360 was first unveiled in November 2013, the maker movement was in full swing, with more and more people adopting an “I can make it” attitude. The time was ripe for an easy-to-use, cloud-based design tool that provides design enthusiasts and professionals any-time access to designs and easy sharing.

Fusion 360 allows for fast, iterative product design – and Autodesk took the same approach with the development of the product itself, relying on constant feedback from the 30,000 strong Fusion 360 user community to swiftly evolve the product over the course of its first year.

 “We wanted to create the best integrated industrial and mechanical design solution for our users, so our philosophy was: ‘Listen. Learn. Implement’,” said Brenda Discher, Vice President, Manufacturing 360 at Autodesk. “Today Fusion 360 delivers a modern and truly unique product design experience that’s literally been co-created by our users.”

The Fusion 360 user community has taken full advantage of the tool to fulfill their creative vision. A rendering of the robotic helmets worn by the band members in Daft Punk? Done. A concept braille phone? Also done. No project is too big, too small, too serious, or too whimsical.

 

Exciting changes are in store for Fusion 360 in its second year. The tool will gain additional functionality, including a new and innovative iterative design feature – the ability to capture the history of a model throughout the design process for easy editing, and a new, streamlined dashboard.

Fusion 360’s pricing will also evolve: it will be available to businesses as a $40 monthly subscription, $115 quarterly subscription, or $300 annual subscription. Students, Educators, Mentors and enthusiasts, however, can still access Fusion 360 for free – pricing and eligibility information is available here.

To see some of the amazing things that Fusion 360 users have been able to create, visit the gallery – you might just find yourself inspired to make something and turn it into a business.