Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/884568
4 cgw s e p t e m b e r . o c t o b e r 2 0 1 7 S P O T L I G H T CGW NAMES SILVER EDGE WINNERS At SIGGRAPH 2017 in Los Angeles, more than 150 vendors provided show-goers with an in-depth look at their latest products and technologies focused on the computer graphics industry. With so many offerings on display, it was difficult for the staff at CGW to select what it deems the best of the show. After examining many exciting offerings featured at the show, Computer Graphics World has named the recipients of its Silver Edge Awards – SIGGRAPH 2017. Those chosen for this honor grabbed our attention with technology that has significant potential in greatly influencing the work that is done in our industry. The winners and honorable mentions are: WINNERS Epic – Unreal Engine 4. This versatile game engine is changing the game,creating new roads into real-time applications. Nvidia – DGX Station. Unthinkable power for achieving the unimaginable. HP – HP Z VR Backpack wearable VR PC. A novel design for professionals in the VR space. Maxon – Cinema 4D R19. Offering a powerful alternative for all types of digital content creation. Foundry – Elara cloud-based platform. Enabling shops of all sizes to afford using cutting-edge tools. Dell – Canvas workspace. A high-end hardware alternative to the traditional computer with keyboard and mouse. Allegorithmic – Substance texture tools and Automation Toolkit. Rich, organic painted results for a workable workflow. AMD – Radeon Pro SSG GPU. Power akin to a personal supercomputer. Reallusion – iClone 7 virtual production platform. A full content creation tool with robust capabilities. HONORABLE MENTIONS Conductor Technologies – Conductor cloud-rendering platform. Cloud rendering fine-tuned for the VFX film industry. Autodesk – Autodesk Media & Entertainment Collection, Autodesk Maya, Shotgun, Arnold, Autodesk 3ds Max, and Autodesk Flame. Venerable standard tools that continue to improve. Nvidia – VRWorks. Important tools to assist in VR content creation. Epic – Datasmith workflow tool kit. Simplifying the task of moving data into Unreal Engine for architectural and design visualizations. Foundry – Project Bunsen. For building unified and scalable enterprise visualization pipelines. WorldViz – Vizible VR communication tool. A unique, simple-to-use VR application that makes meetings far more engaging and enables participants to see and interact with models like never before. Intel Rolls Out Xeon Scalable Processors The Intel Xeon Scalable processors are now available for next-generation expert workstations, to enable photorealistic design, modeling, AI, analytics, and VR content creation. Unveiled in July 2017, Intel Xeon Scalable processors deliver breakthrough dual-socket performance for the most advanced workstation professionals, offering up to 56 cores, up to 112 threads, and an Intel Turbo Boost Technology frequency up to 4.2 ghz. Expert workstations will experience up to a 2.71x boost in performance com- pared to a four-year-old system and up to 1.65x higher performance compared to the previous generation. Intel has also unveiled the new Intel Xeon W proces- sors, targeting mainstream workstations. The single- socket Intel Xeon W processor delivers mainstream performance optimized for the needs of traditional workstation professionals. The Intel Xeon W processor features up to 18 cores and up to 36 threads, with an Intel Turbo Boost Technology frequency up to 4.5 ghz. Mainstream worksta- tions will experience up to 1.38x higher performance compared to the previous generation. Chaos Acquires Render Legion Chaos Group recent- ly announced the acquisition of Prague- based Render Legion, creator of the Corona Renderer. With this acquisition, combined with its renderer V-Ray, Chaos Group now strengthens its position as a provider of professional rendering soware for the architectural visualization market. Known for its ease of use, the Corona Renderer has become a popular choice for architectural visualiza- tion. The Render Legion team, including its founders and developers, will join Chaos Group as they continue to develop Corona. Chaos Group's V-Ray will continue to be a core component of the company's portfolio. Both V-Ray and Corona will benefit from joint collaborations, bringing complementary features and optimizations to each product. Visit CGW.com for all the new product announcements from SIGGRAPH 2017. At the top of the page, select News and then SIGGRAPH.