First, let me warn readers that an acquisition of ANSYS by Autodesk is pure speculation.
Picture two neighboring families -- one with all boys and one with all girls. The children grow up together. One thing leads another and, soon enough, one of the boys marries one of the the girls. Over the years, more of the boys and girls get married. Finally, only the older boy and the oldest girl remain single. Though the neighborhood buzzes with anticipation, the oldest boy and the oldest girl remain just friends. So it is with the CAD and FEA families. SDRC (now part of UGS) acquires FEMAP. SolidWorks acquires COSMOS. Dassault acquires ABAQUS. PTC acquires RASNA. Bentley acquires REI. But Autodesk and ANSYS remain friends.
Does it not seem logical that Autodesk should buy ANSYS?
ANSYS can't help but look like an acquisition target. It is a well run and continually profitable company that would add considerably to a company's bottom line. Besides, all the other CAD companies big enough to acquire it are already set with their own FEA products.
Why hasn't Autodesk bought ANSYS? According to the recent financial report, Autodesk is sitting on $257 million in cash. Also, its recent history seem to suggest that its future growth is based on acquisition. Possible reasons could be:
- ANSYS could be too expensive for Autodesk -- and got even more expensive with its acquisition of Fluent.
- Autodesk and ANSYS executives may not see eye-to-eye
- Autodesk may not want to be a player in analysis, wanting to stick to design
Or, would a deal be in the works? CAD Insider asked Buzz Kross, leader of Autodesk's manufacturing division, who only stated his company's policy to not comment on whether an acquisition is underway.