Over 6,000 attendees, 240+ Breakout Sessions, 100+ Sponsors and Partners, and One Community of Technologists
NEEDHAM, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — June 28, 2018 — PTC (NASDAQ: PTC), as presenting sponsor, held the annual LiveWorx® digital transformation conference on June 17-20 in Boston’s Seaport, the city’s innovation district. More than 6,000 technologists, developers, and industry evangelists from over 40 countries gathered to discuss, debate, exchange, and explore the opportunities being created by the convergence of the physical and digital worlds. Content spanned disruptive technologies and topics, including augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR), IoT, Industrie 4.0, product design, robotics, AI, data security, and blockchain.
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LiveWorx 18 held on June 17-20 is the global technology conference and marketplace for solutions engineered for a smart, connected world. This year's event featured over 6,000 attendees, 240+ breakout sessions, 100+ sponsors and partners, and one community of technologists. LiveWorx 19 will be held June 10-13, 2019 - register today. (Photo: Business Wire).
From a Place to a Pace: Change is the Only Constant
"We need
a mindset where clock speeds are short, innovation is continuous, and
where a willingness to react quickly and change frequently is viewed as
a core competency," said PTC President and CEO Jim Heppelmann during his
opening remarks. His message not only kicked off LiveWorx, but also was
a key theme represented across the event: To compete and succeed today,
companies and their employees need to embrace a ‘constant state of
change.’
The Industrial IoT is moving from a ‘place to a pace,’ Heppelmann said, as embedded sensors, PTC’s software suite, and augmented reality interfaces, such as the HoloLens from PTC partner Microsoft, accelerate the convergence of the physical and digital worlds.
Heppelmann described PTC’s own transformation, from its change to a subscription business model to moving its global headquarters to the Seaport. The industry has taken notice. “LiveWorx 18 featured a light show with trapeze artists, but the real high-wire act has been the blistering pace at which PTC continues to reinvent itself,” said John Spooner, senior analyst, IoT, 451 Research.
The Value of Partnering Shows Up in Force
Just as embracing
fast-paced change was touted as essential to success, partnering with
other industry leaders was also a major source of buzz at LiveWorx 18.
The conference spurred several major partner announcements and
discussions, including several key announcements from PTC highlighted
during the opening keynote.
PTC announced its collaboration with ANSYS, the global leader in engineering simulation. The two organizations will work together to integrate ANSYS’ Discovery Live real-time simulation capabilities into PTC’s Creo® design software, enabling engineers to immediately see implications of every design change they make. On the LiveWorx stage, ANSYS President and CEO Ajei Gopal described what he calls pervasive simulation, saying “we believe frankly, it’s the only way to develop the products of the future.”
This followed the major strategic agreement between PTC and Rockwell Automation announced on June 11. Rockwell Automation will make a $1 billion equity investment in PTC, and the companies will align their respective smart factory technologies. Rockwell Automation Chairman and CEO Blake Moret told the crowd, “Customers were asking us to do this. They know that when they combine IT and OT data they can use analytics to both optimize processes and to prevent unexpected downtime.”
The event was also the perfect venue for PTC and Microsoft to discuss the expansion of their strategic relationship, first announced in January.
More than 100 partners and sponsors took part in LiveWorx this year, including pinnacle sponsors Accenture, Capgemini, Deloitte Digital, and Infosys and premier sponsors Cognizant, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), Larsen & Toubro Infotech (LTI), Microsoft, and Tech Mahindra.
Industrial IoT Comes to Life on Show Floor
The
Xtropolis™
exhibit hall, the show’s 150,000 square foot experiential center,
displayed the latest in industrial technology, manufacturing, and IoT.
Eye-opening displays and tactical sessions from over 100 exhibitors
offered insight into the future of digital transformation, augmented
reality, Industrie 4.0, and more.
The centerpiece of Xtropolis was the X-Factory, a complete, immersive
experience highlighting the manufacturing lifecycle, from front office
to shop floor. Attendees were able to experience first-hand the
technology behind a smart factory with digital engineering,
manufacturing, and service. The comprehensive demo showcased how the
entire PTC product portfolio, together with partner technologies, can be
used to design, manufacture, and service smart connected products,
including popular tech like additive manufacturing and augmented reality.
