Alibre Design 5.0 Gives Users the Highest Value in Professional 3D CAD at One-Tenth the Cost Of Mid-Range Solid Modelers.

Business Editors

RICHARDSON, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 16, 2002

Alibre Inc. launched Alibre Design 5.0 today, adding customer-driven features and enhancements, while maintaining its price of $495.

Alibre Design 5.0 offers professional 3D solid modeling, 2D associative drawing and product data management at one-tenth the cost of other mid-range solid modeling products. The comprehensive application is the only solid modeling application built on a modern Internet architecture, enabling Alibre Design to deliver secure, CAD-neutral data sharing and real-time Team Design as well.

Alibre focused on keeping the application easy to learn and use as features were added in this version. Alibre continues to provide free support, live Internet-based training and upgrades for the first year. Customers may renew the maintenance contract for $495 annually, but if they choose not to renew maintenance, the application continues to run as a standalone CAD system. All customers receive a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Alibre Design 5.0 includes the following enhancements:

    --  2D drafting and detailing usability and performance have
        improved extensively. Among numerous enhancements, layers are
        now supported in drawing workspaces, and additional support
        for printers is provided.

    --  Associative 2D drawings now support stepped section views,
        broken views and enhanced detail views. Views also now can be
        moved among drawing sheets. Centerlines have been improved to
        support industry conventions and standards, plus the ability
        to easily clean up views with enhanced visibility control on
        edges, dimensions and annotations.

    --  A new bill of materials (BOM) feature allows users to create,
        edit, save, print and export associative BOMs generated from
        Alibre Design assemblies. Users may also create their own BOM
        templates, customizing the content and layout to correspond
        with company practices or individual preferences. BOMs are
        stored in the Repository, presented in drawings and can be
        edited with the application's integrated BOM editor.
        Additionally, BOMs may be exported in .csv format to Excel.

    --  In part modeling, automatic dimensioning of sketches is now
        performed, along with improved constraint capture and
        management. Other enhancements include additional creation
        methods for arcs and rectangles, the ability to propagate
        fillets and chamfers along multiple edges or chains, and more
        control of end conditions for sweep and loft features.

    --  In assembly modeling, users have much greater control of
        exploded views, along with the ability to insert multiple
        components in one operation.

    --  In the Repository, users can now move their product data,
        related files and associated folders within and across
        repositories by drag-and-drop or through a dialog window.

    --  Numerous improvements to annotations and dimensions include:

        --  Expanded support for center and tangent dimension types.

        --  Multiple fonts and styles for annotations.

        --  More control when positioning leader lines and associated
            text.

        --  Item callout balloons in assembly views are linked with
            components in the associated bill of materials, updating
            automatically as the BOM is affected.

    --  Smoother handling of the live Alibre Assistant support
        feature, to efficiently queue and route users to Alibre
        experts for real-time training and guidance.

"With each new release of Alibre Design, the value equation for professional 3D CAD changes radically. We want designers and engineers to check us out before they spend thousands of dollars on another modeling application," said J. Paul Grayson, Alibre president and CEO. "It's very likely for many users that Alibre Design has everything they seek, and will barely dent their budget -- and we know they'll be impressed with our live support and training. Plus, we've made it easy for users to share their designs and data with colleagues who use other CAD applications."

Joe Greco reviewed Alibre Design in the September issue of Desktop Engineering magazine. His cover story, "Low-Cost MCAD," included these comments: "Overall, Alibre Design offers a strong collection of simple-to-use tools, a variety of help options, and good interoperability via STEP, IGES, and DWG. Throw in the collaboration and PDM tools and you have one of the best values in MCAD."

Alibre saw great response to the release of Alibre Design 4.0 in April 2002. Marc Meadows, owner of Meadows Analysis & Design, said, "I have clients using different tools, so adopting Alibre Design helps me to easily work with all of them, at little cost to me and none to them. I switched from Mechanical Desktop to Alibre Design -- it meets my solid modeling needs and the price is unbeatable. Alibre Design is the no-brainer choice."

"Alibre Design is easy to learn. You have a comprehensive array of features. Keep up the good work. I'm quite happy with what I see so far," said Collin Dinsmoor, design engineer.

"Alibre Design is the best value in solid modeling available today," said Gary Hannah, senior design engineer with B/E Aerospace.

Alibre has redefined the market for professional 3D MCAD. Its Alibre Design application offers unprecedented ease-of-use, affordability, accessibility and rich functionality including professional 3D solid modeling, real-time team design and data sharing and management. In addition, Alibre provides first-class support and training through direct online access to the Alibre Assistant. Built to leverage the Internet, Alibre Design lets designers, engineers and their associates create 3D models and 2D associative drawings, share and edit product designs from different CAD applications, and spontaneously work together online in real time using precise design data. The application's support for open data standards such as STEP provides a CAD-neutral environment. Using Alibre Design, companies can slash costs, boost productivity, improve quality and shorten manufacturing cycles. Customers include Marchon Eyewear, B/E Aerospace and Dresser Rand. Founded in 1997, Alibre Inc. is privately funded and based in Richardson, Texas. For more information, visit www.alibre.com or call 972/671-8492.

Note to media: Alibre and Alibre Design are trademarks of Alibre Inc. High-res screenshots of Alibre Design are available.