Purchasing this type of software is much different than, say, solid modeling software for one simple reason: formability software is like rocket science.

Die shops and stampers gamble hundreds of millions of dollars, and in some cases, billions of dollars annually on the computational results of formability software. This is not true of engineering or office software.

How would I pick “the one”?

My top five questions for the software company are:

1. Results: How realistic and reliable are the results?
2. Friendly: How user-friendly is the software for the average die guy without a PhD?
3. Support: Do you have a die-savvy technical support staff?
4. Training: Do you have confidence-based training for new users?
5. Community: Do you have a user-group community?

If the results are realistic and reliable from a user-friendly package that does not require a PhD in Finite Element Analysis or Rocket Science to use, and excellent technical support, training, and user-groups are all there, then it all boils down to price.

The software could be solid modeling, estimating, formability analysis, or even online ecommerce.

My top five for what matters is:

1. Ease of use.
2. Accurate results.
3. Live and local technical support.
4. Reliable performance.
5. Useful and necessary features.

My top five for what does NOT matter is:

1. Detailed explanations of how the code works that only a PhD would understand.
2. Focus on aspects that are not relevant, like transverse shear stress calculations.
3. Fancy and expensive marketing materials that drive up the cost of software.
4. Industry awards like “business of the month”. Who cares?
5. Pot shots at competitor software products.

Software companies need to make an effort to understand what matters to the die guy. And deliver.