IoT, Big Data and biological sciences: Q&A with Dassault Systèmes president Bernard Charlès

Dassault Systèmes, a European multinational software company that develops 3D design, 3D engineering, 3D CAD, modeling and simulation as well as product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions, has continued to strengthen its presence in the IoT and Big Data sectors, as well as biological sciences.

Company president Bernard Charlès highlighted Dassault's latest development strategy and deployments in new segments during an exclusive interview with Digitimes.

Q: What are the main reasons for Dassault Systèmes to step into the biological science sector in recent years?

A: I think the rise of IoT (Internet of Things) applications will usher biological sciences into a new era. Additionally, the fast development of Big Data has enabled biological sciences to synergize with traditional technology and has also led a number of breakthroughs in some segments of biological sciences that were hard to understand previously.

Changes of manufacturing technology also are another factor. Previously, the production process was based mainly on subtractive manufacturing, but the emergence of new manufacturing processes such as 3D printing has enabled the shift to additive manufacturing process, which is favorable to the development of biological sciences. An integration of additive manufacturing, innovative materials and biological sciences will have considerable potential and expansibility.

Q: How would you assess the potential of IoT applications and related developments?

A: Our vision of the development of IoT applications is very different from others'. For Dassault, our emphasis is not simply on the development of the Internet of Things, but rather on the concept of "Internet of Experiences" (IoE) focusing on rich Internet user experience and applications.

Our main concern is that the connected world in the future should not simply be a connection of hardware products only, but through which the users could create a lifestyle to enable upmost convenience and enriched experiences.

Based on the concept of IoE, the software products supporting IoT applications can be divided into different levels, with the bottom engineering level responsible for creating models, immersive functions and others. The upper level of software applications and services need to focus on connecting users, creating new platforms and providing users with innovative experiences. And this will continue to serve as our development policy at Dassault Systèmes.

Q: What is the potential of the 3D printing industry?

A: Although the current development of the 3D printing industry does not look as optimistic as the market expected previously, I think the long-term development of the industry is still promising and will regain its growth momentum through continued adjustments within the industry itself and constant innovation in terminal hardware products and materials.

Q: Does Dassault Systèmes have different development strategies for Taiwan and China?

A: We have been deepening our presence not only in Taiwan or China but also around the globe, and therefore we will not adopt different approaches to Taiwan or China. But we have been operating successfully both in Taiwan and China. We have been strengthening our cooperation with large-scale enterprises, including energy and infrastructure companies. And with the support of related government agencies, we have been gaining good results in fighting piracy.

Q: Since the offering of integrated platform and application products is emerging as a new business model, how would you assess software and platform products at present?

A: At present, there are no significant changes with regard to the management of our software and platform products. In addition to offering software products and related services, we also focus on offering business experience platforms such as our 3DEXPERIENCE platform, which provides software solutions for every organization within a company - from marketing to sales to engineering - to help clients to create differentiating consumer experiences. Meanwhile, we are also considering integrating our different software products into a single platform product later.

In addition to deepening the development of our software products, we will continue to better our services through the establishment of business experience platforms with expanded functionality, including online services, selection of different materials and supply partners, online community activities and application market.

(This interview was translated from Chinese.)