A CAD Theory of Everything: By 2057, Controlling the Entire World!

We’ve been focused these past few posts on what CAD will be like in 50 years: How it will evolve, for example, into a full-blown 3D virtual experience that lets designers move walls with their hands. But there also are a couple of more expansive theories to consider: One is that CAD goes away. The other is that (ya-ha-ha-haa!) -- CAD controls the world!

The case for CAD going away presumes that it’s absorbed into more powerful, broad-based applications. (Certain implications would be dire indeed – for example, what about today’s CAD jobs?) But in response to my appeal for visions of CAD in 2057, AfterCAD Software CEO Chris Boothroyd posited a far more optimistic future for CAD – one in which CAD literally takes over other, less worthy applications, ultimately becoming a sort of grand uber solution:

“CAD as an industry will continue to expand and occupy more and more ‘data niches’ in society that traditionally have been isolated in professional knowledge silos,” Boothroyd contends.

“The same way Google liberated and popularized GIS with Maps and Earth, the same revolution is happening right now in CAD and will continue at an accelerated pace. Other technologies currently running in parallel with CAD, namely: BIM, Edge Sensors (zigbee.org), WiMax, smart homes/offices/factories, the Federal embracing of open standards and the commoditization of real estate will offer significant market incentive for CAD as an industry to grow into an all-encompassing scaffold for ‘The Whole Shebang’ -- where at a point, everything on the surface of the earth, including above and below, will be managed as CAD. Everything.”

Though such a future could come to pass, I wonder what participants in those other sectors are thinking? Specifically, do they see themselves, rather than CAD, gobbling up everything else? (I think I know how Oracle’s Larry Ellison would view it, for example.)

In Chris’s vision, of course, the CAD industry and its jobs are secure. More than secure actually, since as “Masters of the Whole Shebang,” CAD experts will be pulling the levers formerly operated by pretty much everyone else. It’ll be an awesome kick! (Though with it will come a certain measure of responsibility – no wine with lunch, for example, when so much will depend on the actions of this elite group).

Chris also offers some further drill-downs on what CAD folks will be up to in 2057:

“CAD Managers will morph into ‘Publishing and Standards’ as BIM and Smart Supply Chains (RFID) take hold. More people are going to need access to real-time AEC/FM and MCAD data for monitoring, maintenance and financial planning.”
“CAD Workers will morph into ‘CAD object interoperability engineers’ in that they will be oriented around the monitoring of how different real-time CAD objects are interacting with each other. FEA guys, you're gonna do just fine.”
“The line will continue to blur and eventually become indistinguishable between CAD Engineers and Game Developers.”

I couldn’t agree more on this last point. But given all the explosions and hurtling body parts associated with video games, we may want to be extra careful about ensuring that tomorrow’s CAD/game developers don’t confuse their virtual worlds!