Badge Inspires Creativity, Mentoring, and Development of Aspiring Designers
CONCORD, Mass. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — August 2, 2010 — DS SolidWorks Corp. (DS SolidWorks) is providing a special version of its CAD software to support Boy Scouts working toward a new merit badge that rewards innovation. The company has also helped the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) develop the official instructional pamphlet and will promote mentoring of young inventors through its 1.3 million-strong user community.
The BSA, in partnership with the Lemelson-MIT Program, recently introduced the Inventing merit badge, which is designed to encourage Scouts in applying creative thinking toward solving real-world problems. DS SolidWorks is providing 150-day (five-month) licenses for its student design kit to help Scouts design their projects in 3D. The kit includes SolidWorks® 3D CAD functionality and SolidWorks SustainabilityXpress software. An accompanying tutorial explains how to use the software with a practice exercise on designing a part. Scouts can learn drawing, assembly, and animation, and then calculate the product’s environmental footprint with SolidWorks SustainabilityXpress. The temporary license is available as a free download at www.solidworks.com/scouts to any Scout working toward the badge.
“We hope this initiative will lead to mentoring relationships between design community professionals and Scouts who are interested in design and engineering,” said Marie Planchard, director of worldwide education markets at DS SolidWorks. “You never know when the next Thomas Edison or Jerome Lemelson is out there waiting for encouragement.”
The Inventing merit badge was awarded for the first time on June 17 at EurekaFest, the Lemelson-MIT Program’s annual event at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), which celebrates the inventive spirit. To earn the badge, Scouts created a wide range of new products, such as a warning flag for wheelchair ramps, boot-mounted lights for nighttime hiking, and a guard to keep rocks and sticks out of lawn mower blades.
“Throughout the Boy Scouts of America’s rich, 100-year history, merit badges have given Scouts an opportunity to experience and learn about a variety of hobbies and professions. We are very excited about the Inventing merit badge and what the future holds for the Scouts who earn it,” said Robert J. Mazzuca, chief scout executive of the Boy Scouts of America.
About the Lemelson-MIT Program
The Lemelson-MIT Program recognizes the outstanding inventors and innovators transforming our world, and inspires young people to pursue creative lives and careers through innovation. Jerome H. Lemelson, one of U.S. history’s most prolific inventors, and his wife, Dorothy, founded the Lemelson-MIT Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. It is funded by The Lemelson Foundation and administered by the School of Engineering. The foundation sparks, sustains, and celebrates innovation and the inventive spirit. It supports projects in the United States and developing countries that nurture innovators and unleash invention to advance economic, social, and environmentally-sustainable development. To date, The Lemelson Foundation has donated or committed more than $150 million in support of its mission. For more information about the Lemelson-MIT Program, visit http://www.lemelson.org.
About the Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training. The Scouting organization is composed of 2.7 million youth members between the ages of 7 and 20, 1.1 million volunteers, and nearly 300 local councils throughout the United States and its territories. For more information on the Boy Scouts of America, please visit www.scouting.org. More information about 100 Years of Scouting can be found at www.scouting.org/100years.
About Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp.
Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp., a Dassault Systèmes S.A. subsidiary, is a world leader in 3D solutions that help millions of engineers and designers succeed through innovation. Our products deliver an intuitive experience in product design, simulation, publishing, data management, and environmental impact assessment. For the latest news, information, or an online demonstration, visit our Web site ( www.solidworks.com) or call 800-693-9000 (outside of North America, call +1-978-371-5000).
SolidWorks is a registered trademark of Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. © 2010 Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp.
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