The same three-dimensional technology that will eventually enable surgeons to rehearse open-heart surgery on a particular patient before opening up the chest cavity is being applied to aerospace and automotive design as well as to architecture, life sciences, construction, consumer packaged goods and even to the fashion design industry. The software simulation of the French company, Dassault Systemes, which has created a 3-D view of the electrical impulses and contractions of the heart muscle, is being used by ShoP Architects to streamline the production of the modules for Forest Ratner’s Barclay Center and modular housing complex in Brooklyn, as MHProNews last reported on Dec. 17, 2013. Changes made to the 3-D model by any of the construction teams—electrical, plumbing, carpentry—are immediately available in real time, reducing material costs by 25 percent. As forbes.com reports, SHoP will use the technology in building modular homes to replace those lost to Hurricane Sandy, requiring just 48 hours to complete each one.
