Photo courtesy C.Launay/Alex Thomson Racing/HUGO BOSS
Finite Element Analysis Software
Alex Thomson Racing yacht uses a lightweight composite sliding roof created by Caterham Composites and modeled in Altair Engineering’s OptiStruct FEA software for design and optimization of physical properties.
Finite Element Analysis Sails into the Mainstream
Improvements in latest finite element analysis (FEA) software help speed engineering analysis
Patrick Waurzyniak Senior Editor
L
ong the domain of engineering specialists, finite element analysis software is reaching a wider audience as the tools become easier to use and more accessible to non-expert users. Improve- ments in FEA software, coupled with the faster multicore processors available today, also make it feasible to run these highly complex compute-intensive simulations on an ordinary desktop or laptop computer. With FE modeling and analysis, product development engineers use mathematical-based modeling techniques to accurately describe how an automotive structural compo- nent or an aircraft engine or airframe will perform in the real world. While FEA may never eliminate the need for real-world testing, advances in FEA and other types of simulations