What exactly do you get out of ‘Labs’ technology?

Activity on Autodesk’s Labs site had a big increase last year

Autodesk’s recent news that its Labs Website has experienced more activity than ever before will come as little surprise to most. Last year there was a real flood of exciting new technologies, both in manufacturing and AEC (Architecture, Engineering, Construction).

But what do you think about was Labs sites in general? Autodesk is not exclusive in its ‘Labs’ approach to letting its users test out and influence the development of new technology. SolidWorks and Geomagic also have active sites and I’m sure there are many others, but how exactly are these embryonic technologies being used and who is using them?

• What do you get out of test driving Labs technology?
• With ever increasing work pressures how do you find time to test them out?
• Do you have a technologist that specifically looks into these things?
• How much time do you need to invest in these tools?
• Do you ever use these tools on live projects?
• Or maybe you really couldn’t care less about Labs technology.

We’d love to hear your thoughts.