SAE Announces the Industry's First Automotive CAD Certification, Names Cadpo as Exclusive Training Partner

TROY, Mich., March 8 -- The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) announced today the industry's first Automotive CAD Certification. Aimed specifically at engineers and designers in the automotive industry, this certification provides a way to ensure quality in design resources around the globe.

As the premier society dedicated to advancing mobility engineering worldwide, SAE has taken the lead by offering this certification program. Certification will be the result of collaboration with the major automotive companies and their top suppliers. Representatives from the big 3 OEMs and major suppliers have been invited to serve on an Executive Steering Committee and a Curriculum Oversight Committee. These committees will define the training and final examination.

In addition, SAE has partnered with Cadpo, a PLM training provider with extensive automotive expertise. Cadpo will assist the Curriculum Oversight Committee in the development of training content and final examination. The certification is not just an online exam but a comprehensive online and classroom learning path to ensure students can apply automotive standards. The exam will be administered by an independent industry recognized testing company with 3,500 centers in 145 countries. Certification will also be localized to meet worldwide needs.

"SAE's mission is to improve processes and systems for mobility product life cycles," says Kevin Perry, manager, professional development, SAE. "Front-end design standards are key to improving a product's life cycle and a company's productivity. This certification program addresses two audiences: working professionals who want professional development to advance in their careers and automotive OEMs and suppliers who need experienced employees without high training costs."

"Providing an industry-specific certification is critical to improving automotive product development around the world," says Kevin Noe, president, Cadpo. "With increased outsourcing to geographies where education and skill level vary, Automotive CAD Certification provides proof that an individual can perform to quality automotive design standards. We are excited to partner with SAE in developing and delivering the training to prepare individuals for certification."

Both the Executive Steering and Curriculum Oversight Committees will have their first meeting in the next 30 days. The Certification curriculum and test will be available by September 2004. Certification will be offered in two specific CAD software programs -- Unigraphics and CATIA -- that represent approximately 60 percent of the automotive CAD/PLM industry.

About Cadpo

Cadpo (www.cadpo.com) provides the MCAD/PLM industry standard in software neutral eLearning, training and engineering services. Cadpo is headquartered in the United States, the United Kingdom and Singapore, specifically supporting SolidWorks, CATIA, Unigraphics, Solid Edge and Teamcenter (I-man). Cadpo's customers include General Motors, Boeing, GE Aircraft Engines, United Technologies Corp. and 3M.

About SAE

SAE (www.sae.org) is a non-profit educational and scientific organization dedicated to advancing mobility technology to better serve humanity. Over 83,000 engineers and scientists, who are SAE members, develop technical information on all forms of self-propelled vehicles including automobiles, trucks and buses, off-highway equipment, aircraft, aerospace vehicles, marine, rail, and transit systems. SAE disseminates this information through its meetings, books, technical papers, magazines, standards, reports, professional development programs, and electronic databases.

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