Autodesk Forms Partnership With Radan; "Best-of-Class" Sheetmetal Applications to Complement Autodesk's Mechanical Products.

SAN RAFAEL, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 1, 1996--Autodesk today expanded its Mechanical Application Initiative (MAI) program by announcing a partnership with Radan Computational Ltd UK, the world's leading supplier of sheetmetal related software applications.

Radan will work closely with Autodesk's Mechanical CAD Division to develop Auto-SM, an integrated sheetmetal design and unfolding solution for the AutoCAD mechanical marketplace.

"Radan is an important addition to Autodesk's growing team of MAI partners," said Dominic Gallello, vice president of Autodesk's Mechanical Market Group. "Radan's expertise in CADCAM sheetmetal applications will give users of the Autodesk Mechanical Desktop access to a fully integrated sheetmetal design solution."

Radan joins 12 other partner companies committed to providing best-of-class applications as part of Autodesk's MAI program. The partners are delivering fully integrated products under a common Autodesk user interface that will offer users a complete solution from design and analysis through manufacturing.

"There is a significant demand for specialist applications, such as Radan's sheetmetal design and unfolding technology," said Tony Billett, Managing Director of Radan Computational Ltd and President of Radan CIM Inc. "Autodesk's Mechanical Desktop and MAI partner strategy provides an excellent opportunity for us to synergistically address this demand."

The recently released Autodesk Mechanical Desktop is a tightly integrated software application that provides advanced 2D and 3D mechanical CAD functions on desktop systems. The MAI partners provided their input and expertise throughout the development of the Mechanical Desktop and its Application Programming Interface (API) to ensure the product meets the needs of their most exacting customers.

The Auto-SM software module from Radan expands the MAI program by providing sheetmetal design for manufacture tools as an integral part of the Autodesk Mechanical Desktop environment.

Sheetmetal is used in a wide range of products which are produced by many different industrial categories. Advanced machine tools can now produce very complex designs from a single piece of sheetmetal, reducing both manufacturing costs and timescales. Increased use of such technology has created a need to understand the manufacturing process at an early stage of the design. In other words, true "Design for Manufacture."

Leveraging their extensive sheetmetal design to manufacturing experience, Radan's Auto-SM software module will address the overall design for manufacture process from initial concept design through to the generation of manufacturable flat blank geometry.

Key Auto-SM features will include:

-- Designed specifically for the Autodesk Mechanical Desktop

Environment

-- Consistent AMD user interface, with commands accessed via

Auto-SM Toolbar 

-- Sheetmetal specific approach treats the 3D model as an actual

sheetmetal component, assisting design for manufacture in areas

such as specialist sheetmetal construction conditions, material

and tooling preferences, and bend and corner relief.

-- Automatic generation of correct flat blank geometry as standard

AutoCAD 2D data from 3D Mechanical Desktop sheetmetal part.

Radan Computational Ltd, a UK based company, was established in 1976 to provide Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing systems and services. Soon after formation, the company chose to concentrate on specialized applications for sheetmetal design and manufacture. Radan is now the world's leading supplier of sheetmetal related software, with technology in use at more than 800 companies world-wide. Radan is represented in North America by Radan CIM Inc., with offices in Philadelphia, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

For more information on Autodesk, please call 415-507-5000, type GO ADESK on CompuServe, or log-in with a World Wide Web browser at http://www.autodesk.com.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this news release are forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These include the timely development and acceptance of new products, the impact of competitive products and pricing, and the other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports, including the report on Form 10-Q filed in December 1995.

Autodesk is the world's leading supplier of PC and UNIX-based design software and PC multimedia tools. The company's 2D and 3D products and data management tools are used in many industries for architectural design, mechanical design, film-making, videography and geographic information systems. The fourth largest PC software company in the world, Autodesk has 3 million customers in 119 countries. Autodesk products are sold through Autodesk Systems Centers, Dealers and Distributors worldwide. -0-

Note to Editors: Autodesk, the Autodesk logo, AutoCAD, and the Autodesk Mechanical Desktop are registered trademarks of Autodesk Inc. CompuServe is a registered trademark of H & R Block. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. All prices are suggested retail prices.

CONTACT: Autodesk Inc., San Rafael

Garth Bradley, 415/507-6530 or

[e-mail]