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Finite Element Analysis Engineering Software
Introduction - Is
Finite Element Analysis Right for Me? |
If
you are looking at Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for the first
time, this page has been designed to quickly familiarize you with
the basics of the technology and help you assess the type of software
you will need for your product design and development process.
You can go as deeply into each of these topics as you wish by
following the [more] link in each section, or you can get an overview
of all the topics by skimming the information on this page.
Our
objective is to cut through the industry jargon, theoretical complexities,
and equip you with some fundamentals you will need to evaluate
the software choices available in the marketplace and determine
a course of action that is suited to your design needs, technical
level, budget, and business objectives.
If
you are a university or technical school student, we have a special
offer for learning Finite Element Analysis and invite you to visit
Finite Element Analysis for Students. |
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Finite Element Analysis
Role in the Product Design and Development Process |
Product
design is essentially an iterative process. The designer starts
with a concept, analyzes the feasibility, produces a drawing,
makes a prototype, tests it, evaluates the results, and then repeats
this process until finally arriving at deliverable version that
can be manufactured. [more]
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| Historic
and Chronological Perspective of Finite Element Analysis |
FEA
as an engineering analysis tool has undergone development over
the last half century. Nastran was initially developed by NASA
for the space program in the 1960’s and the term NASTRAN
is actually an acronym for NASA Structural Analysis. [more] |
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| Justification
for FEA Software |
A
good place to start in defining your FEA software needs is to
examine your existing design process. You should be able to define
the benefit you are looking to achieve. If a financial justification
is part of that benefit, a Return on Investment (ROI) can be calculated
that will show you how long will it take for your software investment
to pay for itself. You should be asking yourself specific questions
to understand the benefits that fit your circumstances.
[more] |
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| Where
to Start with FEA Software Selection --Compatibility with Your CAD
System |
| The
most common starting point in the practice of FEA today is with
the geometry of the part. For those with 3D CAD capabilities, the
first consideration in the selection of an FEA package is that it
can either directly interface with the CAD part files or import
the CAD geometry from system you are presently using. For those
who do not have 3D CAD, the issue is actually much simpler. The
FEA software needs to have sufficient geometry generating capabilities
for your modeling needs. Second, you should give some thought to
your larger working environment. In today’s business environment,
sharing FEA information with potential customers, design partners
(e.g., consultants, rapid prototyping, stereo lithography equipment,
etc.), and part suppliers may also be an important consideration.
You want to know that your FEA software can import and export FEA
model and results files that can also be accessed by these groups.
For example, in the aerospace and automotive industry Nastran is
very widely used and essentially the defacto standard FEA solver.
So the ability to accept Nastran files is critical in this industry
segment. In the automotive industry, the widely used preprocessors
are FEMAP, Patran, LMS, and Hypermesh. So compatibility here is
also a necessity. The Geometry Import/Export specification for the Femap Modeler
illustrates what wide spread compatibility with the major CAD systems
looks like. For SolidWorks users, NEi Software now provides
Nastran FEA embedded directly inside of SolidWorks. For those with
no 3D CAD, the Femap Modeler provides extensive features for
creating FEA models capable of simulating and analyzing most types
of products. |
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| What
Kind of Analysis Capabilities Do You Need? |
By
far, the most common use of FEA is structural analysis using a
Linear Statics solution sequence. Determining the loads and stresses
that a part is subjected to given certain loads and boundary conditions
is a basic FEA skill and will be your likely starting point for
learning any FEA software. However, once this is established,
there are many other analyses options that may be important in
your product development environment. Some examples include: dynamic
response, normal modes, buckling, prestress, heat transfer, fluid
flow - all with or without nonlinear effects. [more]
NEi Nastran
analysis capabilities
You
can take advantage of NEi Software’s Application Engineering
staff to review your application to help you assess which FEA
software can be used for your analysis or simulation project.
Email info@noraneng.com
or call 1-877-Nastran. |
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| Determining
an FEA Software Vendor and Budget |
| With
your justification for FEA established, your CAD and FEA import/export
needs defined, the types of analyses for your product identified,
and a model you can use for evaluating software, you can begin
to look at various FEA software vendors. [more] |
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| The
Buyer’s Guide |
| It
is easy to be overwhelmed by the volume of FEA product choices,
industry jargon, and apparent complexity of FEA technology and software.
A common concern in this type of environment is that you will end
up with costly software that is difficult to use and doesn’t
deliver the expected benefits. One basic piece of advice to avoid
these costly pitfalls -- use the software, on one of your models,
before you buy it.
We
encourage you to review our Buyers’
Guide for a synopsis of the points on this New to FEA webpage.
Then take advantage of the expertise of our application engineers
and technical staff. Let us assess your design process and recommend
the right solution so we can help improve your design analysis
process. For a demonstration visit Product
Demonstration Options or send an email to info@noraneng.com
or call 1-877-Nastran to get started today.
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Customer
Feedback
"When
we started looking for an FEM package, we considered over 17
programs and selected NEi Nastran. I cannot emphasize enough
how important the support of the people at NEi Software
was in our decision. Sales people can offer anything, but the
proof is after you purchase, how is the support. The people
at NEi Software lived up to all their promises. I was a
neophyte FEM analyst and during my first few projects I had
many questions. NEi Software handled them all. This has allowed me
to complete my projects on time. I never expected to get the
type of support we have because of the affordability of the
NEi Nastran solution."
Joel
Simansky
Senior Engineer
Georgian Aerospace Group
"I've
been one of the lead structural analysts/designers at Scaled
Composites for the last 15+ years which included most of the
analysis for the recent SpaceShipOne. Yesterday was the last
day of a 3 day course given onsite here by Tony Abbey. I just
wanted to compliment Tony on his class. We really appreciated
his array of knowledge and ability to field every complex question
we could throw at him. His demeanor allowed us to constantly
interrupt him with questions. Though I understand another leading
FEA product well, we walked through many problems where I was
constantly reminded of not only how powerful NEi Nastran is but
how really basic and crude many of the other FEA product features
are.
Anyway,
my compliments to Tony, and I am impressed at your company's
willingness to quickly react to and address our issues. Your
good work in your product is already being used to help us design
the first commercial man carrying spaceship. In other words,
expect us to be bugging you a lot!"
Dan
Kreigh
Lead Structural Analysts
Scaled Composites
"With
the inclusion of our finite display capabilities in a recent
presentation to NASA administration our team won first place
in a national NASA competition for Continual Improvement &
Reinvention; we are hopeful that others within NASA will begin
to make use of the NEi Nastran Version 8 features."
Bob
Peele
CSC Team Lead for SLTMAS
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
"Nei Software is committed to customer satisfaction. As for FEA,
what defines a solid investment is the quality of the product
and the technical support. NEi Software ranks high in both.
I’ve worked with NEi Nastran for 5 years. The advice given
by NEi Software’s experienced technical support staff
has always been excellent and the turn around is superior. NEi Nastran
is a user-friendly yet powerful software solution supporting
all our analysis needs in the aerospace industry with efficiency
and very competitive price. I value NEi Software's commitment
to excellence and the people they have chosen to support their
product. Our investment is more than software."
Emerson
Hevia
Senior Analyst
Northwest Composites
"Having
been new to NASTRAN, I was concerned that it would be more difficult
to use than some other ‘integrated’ packages that
I had been using. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I
could run basic analyses readily, and I now had the capability
for more advanced analyses. In particular, the surface contact,
auto stepping for nonlinear (thermoplastic) materials, and the
PCGLSS solver for linear analysis are extremely useful for me
in validating my customers’ designs. NEi Nastran is an
outstanding value with advanced features, backed up with excellent
technical support. I would purchase NEi Nastran again, and encourage
others to evaluate NEi Software’s offering."
Carl
Howarth
President
Howarth Development Associates
"We
have chosen NEi Nastran after an extensive and detailed internal
benchmark, comparing the results, the performances and the features
of the solver developed by NEi Software, Inc. with those
of our former FEA platform. Full compatibility, accuracy, along
with the professionalism and quick turnaround of the tech support
from NEi Software and SmartCAE has been the main reasons
why we selected NEi Nastran as our FEA software for the future."
Paolo
Marabini
Structures and Calculation Chief Engineer
Minardi F1 Team
[more]
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