Society recognizes a lifetime and legacy of excellence in building business and technology for 3D CAD and engineering

April 12, 2010, Denver, CO - The CAD Society today announced that Michael Payne is the winner of this year's CAD Society's Lifetime Achievement Award.

The CAD Society Awards acknowledge the contributions made by individuals that have affected and developed the CAD, engineering, manufacturing and architecture software industries. The Lifetime Achievement award recognizes a lifetime of outstanding technical and business contributions to the CAD industry.

Mike is well-known for his vision and business acumen across the decades - and its effect on the industry. First rising to notice as Director of Development for Prime Computer, Mike then co-founded Parametric Technology Corp. (PTC) in 1985 where he was VP of Development. He then moved on to be a co-founder of SolidWorks in 1994 as Executive Vice President of R&D, and in 1999, as Chief Technology Officer for Dassault Systemes, he moved into the CEO spot at the company's recently acquired Spatial Corp. Mike moved to SpaceClaim in 2005 as CEO and a co-founder and is currently Chairman of the Company's Board.

Companies that Mike helped found each delivered paradigm shifts in the industry, contributing to fundamentally redefine the industry and delivering greater power and more affordable technologies to engineers.

Jon Hirshtick, co-founder, SolidWorks Corp. said, ""Mike was a great partner in creating SolidWorks and growing it into an industry leader. SolidWorks would not be the commercial success it is today without his hard work. Mike's drive, talent and personality have left a profound impression on not only SolidWorks but the whole CAD industry."

Mike holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southampton, a master's in physics from London University, and a master's in business administration from Pace University. He is a chartered engineer (C Eng.), a lifetime member of IEEE, and a member of The Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET).

"It is evident from Mike's resume alone that his influence in bringing both disruptive technologies and the companies that deliver them is considerable," said Rachael Taggart, president, The CAD Society. "The ability to innovate, develop and deliver technology is a huge challenge but he also had the insight to build wildly successful and sustaining companies that have transformed the industry. Mike deserves this award in recognition of everything that he has done and continues to do."

Mike joins an illustrious list of recipients of this award including Dick Sowar, Mike Riddle, Dean Kamen, Russell F. Henke, Ken Versprille, L. Stephen Wolfe, Carl Machover, Dr. Joel Orr, and Patrick Hanratty.

The awards will be presented at COFES (Congress On the Future of Engineering Software), this year scheduled for April 15-18 2010 in Scottsdale, AZ.

About The CAD Society
The CAD Society ( www.cadsociety.org) is a not-for-profit industry association with the goal of fostering community and encouraging open communication among those who make their living within the CAD industry including AEC, mechanical, manufacturing, and GIS. The CAD Society is dedicated to creating an informative community and improving the tools its members employ in order to get their jobs done. This is achieved by providing an open forum of communication, which helps to illuminate the practices of industry vendors. It has been a leader in creating interoperability guidelines that encourage software vendors to develop applications that can openly share data.

CAD Society Contacts:
Rachael Taggart
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Ken Feitz
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