Rocket Science
Posted by stephens on Mar 15, 2010 in Engineering Decisions, Tips & Techniques | 2 comments
I was recently approached by an automotive OEM regarding the selection and purchase of formability simulation and analysis software for metal stampings.
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:
- Results: How realistic and reliable are the results?
- Friendly: How user-friendly is the software for the average die guy without a PhD?
- Support: Do you have a die-savvy technical support staff?
- Training: Do you have confidence-based training for new users?
- 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.
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results: realistic and reliable?
Too often FEA analysts get caught up in the Numerical BS, without considering if an undesirable simulation outcome is an artifact of the DIE or problem with set-up. When I see a result do I question the process/product being simulated or my own set-up of the analysis.
how much is that worth?
Good point … there are alot of moving pieces.
What I am referring to here is correlation data between the simulation software and stampings at the press.
A software company should be able to show me their results with an actual stamping to say “see”.
Otherwise, without proof, the software is no better than plaster developments.