MACHINE RESEARCH HANDLES ANY STEP FILE ON ANY DEVICE SEAMLESSLY
Open and view STEP files on the fly—even on your mobile device
Start exploring how easy it can be to manage STEP files by signing up for a free STEP file viewer from Machine Research. Instantly leverage our STEP file viewer and suite of powerful, highly secure, cloud-based products that help with secure file management, as well as quoting and re-using knowledge to speed workflows for manufacturers. We also plan to offer ITAR-compliant services for customers that are required to adhere to ITAR regulations. Pay for the functionality you need as a manufacturer, not for expensive tools you don’t.
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Machine Research & STEP​
STEP is one of the most comprehensive data exchange standards available, and CAD/CAM suppliers and companies of all sizes have gotten behind STEP to exchange pass data from one system to another. Machine Research recognizes that our customers need to view and manage STEP files without having to license expensive CAD systems and struggle with translators. In order to alleviate the pain associated with managing STEP files, we have developed a set of tools that let our customers read view, edit, translate and write STEP files without needing to own a CAD system. Customers can also translate and write STEP files file to several other common manufacturing industry file formats: STL, X_T, IGES, DXF, ACIS, DWG, SAT and more. Machine Research supports STEP AP203, AP214 and AP 242.
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STEP - Some Background
ISO 13030, more commonly known as STEP [STandard for the Exchange of Product data], is the most comprehensive and largest collection of standard documents governed by ISO to date (file extensions are .stp or .step). A major need behind the to development of STEP was to expand a product data exchange standard beyond IGES.
The work that resulted in STEP was initiated in 1984 and the first release was published by ISO in 1994. Today, STEP is made up of several hundred ‘Parts’ and more are added annually. The ‘Parts’ or application protocols [APs] most applicable to Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing and Product Lifecycle Management are: AP203 ‘Configuration controlled 3D designs of mechanical parts and assemblies’, AP214 ‘Core data for automotive mechanical design processes’, AP242 (a merge of AP203 & AP214) ‘Managed model based 3D engineering’ and ISO 10303 AP238 ‘Application interpreted model for computerized numerical controllers’ or “STEP NC” (a standard striving to replace the G-Code format that’s been around since the dawn of NC machining).
