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January 26 2012
From the desk of Chuck Grindstaff
I hope your new year is off to a good start. Here’s a video update from me on a few things going on at Siemens PLM. First, I talk about the new release of Teamcenter Appshare on the iPad. Then I give an update on Active Workspace, including feedback from beta customers.
Click here to view the embedded video.
If you want to know more about Teamcenter Appshare, check out the video overview and download it for free from the Apple App Store.
Stay tuned for more on our website about Active Workspace. If you have comments or questions, feel free to leave them below or fill out our contact form so we can connect you to someone near you.
Chuck
January 25 2012
The Value of CAE in Motorsports – Part 2
“You win some, lose some, and wreck some.” – Dale Earnhardt, Sr.
In Part #1 of this series, you heard about Hendrick Motorsports and how they are leveraging the analytical capabilities of NX for success on the track. They also rely on the underlying structure and data management agility of the greater Siemens PLM backbone, through Teamcenter. The resulting integration allows for a single thread of information stretching seamlessly from CAD workstations in North Carolina to the hot Daytona asphalt, and the airport lounges in between. This case study gives you the why and how surrounding the implementation of Teamcenter at Hendrick back in 2004. If you like, you can check out the Hendrick Motorsports blog here.
In this installment, I’d like to shed some more light on the real, tangible benefits of simulation and computer-aided numerics for race teams trying to quite literally - put the competition behind them. I view CAE as having two distinct roles – one in the off-season, and one during the actual race season. In the off-season, CAE assumes the role of problem deterrence, allowing teams to put their best foot forward with optimally performing, durable, and dependable designs. It is the proactive pursuit of success characterized by the evaluation of what-if scenarios, the study of performance trade-offs, and the exploitation of component synergies for that competitive advantage.
During the race season, CAE assumes the role of problem mitigation. Failures, complications, and performance shortfalls observed on track are diagnosed and addressed swiftly with CAE analytics. It allows the virtual re-creation of failures, trouble-shooting of issues not fully understood, and the subsequent rapid development of solutions and counter-measures to abate these issues. In order to affect the outcome of the next race, a solution typically needs to be developed and deployed through CNC manufacturing within seven days – a feat simply impossible without the virtual part validation afforded by CAE.
I’d like to share the following interview with you, which I believe echoes many of the sentiments above. Here’s what Mark Bringle of Joe Gibbs Racing had to say about the value of CAE and specifically, the Siemens solution set at the recent 2011 NX CAE Symposium.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Mark Bringle of Joe Gibbs racingCAE is a tool that can be used both proactively, to deliver upfront performance, and reactively, to understand failures, and architect appropriate solutions. Leave a comment with your thoughts or experience on this topic and make the discussion happen.
Stay tuned for the third and final post…
Mark
Solid Edge University 2012
Calling all Edgers! Find your cowboy hat and boots, we’re heading to Nashville, TN for this year’s Solid Edge University 2012.
Here’s a little view into what transpired at last year’s event and reasons why you need to attend Solid Edge University 2012
Click here to view the embedded video.
We have four reasons you attend this jam packed event:
- 1. Get more productive (Hey, there is a reason your company is letting you out of the office right?) Topics will include advanced assembly design, part and sheet metal modeling, the Solid Edge API, customizing the Solid Edge UI, tips & tricks, data management, and many more. Attend hands-on training sessions and try Solid Edge ST5!
- 2. Connect with the Solid Edge team – Meet Karsten Newbury, Bill McClure, Dan Staples, and Jeff Walker; not to mention the Developers and the GTAC team (bring your models like Ventrac did last year and solve problems live with the experts!).
- 3. Network with other Edgers – let’s see…there were Mileti moments with Bob, Hockey talk with Cory Goulden, that killer accent from Rick Mason and enlightening conversation with THE Dave Ault and many many more of the great regulars from the Solid Edge forum. I even made a few new Solid Edge friends via twitter last year – Curt Nisely and Steven Lussier!
- 4. Explore new products, technologies and trends – Yep, you will have play time with Solid Edge ST5! Not to mention my fellow blogger Mark Burhop will be doing his “day job” with a large number of partners on hand to show you the latest and greatest products that will help you get the most out of Solid Edge. I’ve even heard rumors there is a developer day.
Besides the fact that you save $100 on registration until February 24, I want to point out two very important areas on the site: Call for presenters and the product showcase.
If you missed last year’s event, I want you to know that the most well attended presentations came from the customer in the likes of Brad Yeager and Ron Mathis from Edison2, Dr. Andrew Thomas of Energist and adjunct professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Utah State University, John Devitry. We highly encourage you to present to your fellow Edgers at this year’s event.
Also consider submitting your product for the product showcase…but don’t leave before the awards ceremony on the last day or someone else might walk away with your iPad 
(ahem, Roscoe!) Having the actual products in attendance that are designed in Solid Edge is truly impressive. From outdoor furniture to a free cup of java last year, we develop Solid Edge so you can design cool products. This year I am hoping to see an actual tractor from my buddy Dan at Ventrac and maybe a hospital bed from Matt (I will even drive it down to Nashville for you my friend 
)….or maybe Jason and Jason from Oklahoma will bring one of those monster machines from DitchWitch?!?! Regardless of the size and complexity, we want to see your work so talk with the powers that be at your company and enter the product showcase.
Here’s more “411” on how to get event info:
Let people know you’re attending (or “following”) via the LinkedIn event
We are using #SEU12 on Twitter for further announcements and for live tweeting at the event.
Like the Solid Edge Facebook Page. Updates on future announcements will be posted here as well.
See you in Nashville!
January 23 2012
Equation Based Loading – Femap Tips & Tricks
See how you can define equation based loads in Femap and apply a hydrostatic loading to a water tank.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Alastair
January 19 2012
Solid Edge Subscriptions – Questions from the Blogosphere
In my last post on the new Solid Edge subscriptions with Local Motors, I linked to a few articles and blog posts discussing what we are doing. Reading though the comments (I think Matt Lombard’s crew had the most), I saw many of you still had questions so I tried to address them below. For you journalists and bloggers, I’d also suggest you contact Jim Phelan as he can go into even more detail.
Is this offering limited to Local Motors community members?
Yes.
Having said that, we are clearly seeing growing interests in both crowdsourcing and co-creation as well as in the use of a subscription model. Also, Local Motors are expanding their scope of work from enthusiast projects to a “maker platform” with their new Local Forge offering. As we learn, we will also continue to discuss these topics with our partners and customers to see how we can apply them to the current market.
Local Motors community members can use Solid Edge for personal use. What does this mean?
The current goal is to enable the Local Forge community to do the designs, builds, and new vehicles they want to do. During the Design1 trial period, we heard from Forge community members about personal projects where they would like to use Solid Edge. We didn’t want to prevent them from doing this and expanded the agreement with Local Motors to include this.
If a person or company would like to use Solid Edge for professional activities outside of Local Motors, they will still need to purchase Solid Edge from an authorized Solid Edge reseller. The Local Motors offering is just for their community, but having said that, any design – including commercial ones – that leverage the Local Motors community are fair game for the subscription versions offered.
Do you really think an enthusiast will pay almost $300 a month for Solid Edge Premium?
We expect most local motors customers will prefer the more affordable Solid Edge Design1 at $19.95, at least for the “enthusiast” work. However, Local Motors is working more and more with small shops and other businesses to develop their automobiles or designs. Companies can now outsource certain design work to the LM community. We expect that more feature rich versions of Solid Edge make sense for them.
Also, since the subscription is monthly, a LM user may find it useful to occasionally upgrade to more advanced versions of Solid Edge, such as for the life of a project or contest. We felt it best to provide this option and not limit the community to any particular version. Again, we are certain we will learn more in the process and look forward to additional feedback on what users want and need.
What about Maintenance Pack (Service Pack) upgrades?
All Local Motors users will have access to maintenance packs for Solid Edge.
Why all the press? Rental and subscription models have been around for years.
I don’t know but we aren’t complaining . The interest is more likely tied to a combination of things:
- A new product (Solid Edge Design1) targeted for enthusiast
- New tools (a 3D JT Viewer) that allows a distributed community of designers to visualize and make measurements right from their web browser. This is really a key prerequisite for better co-creation.
- A new way of doing design where the customer has input right from the beginning (aka, co-creation).
- A closer engagement of Siemens PLM with the customer and greater focus on the whole experience and not just the CAD functionality (e.g. just the right functionality, easy 3D viewing outside of CAD, easy purchase, affordable options).
- An environment where “multi-CAD” is the preferred way to work, not something to be eliminated.
- And, of course, a new and easy way to purchase CAD software for the amount of time you want with the functionality you want.
Do you expect people to be able to use Solid Edge Design1 to design a car?
No. Solid Edge Design1 can be used for most of the parts making up an automobile. The UI is also closest to some of the free (but limited) tools making for an easy transition. However, there are specialized parts require surfacing, wire harness design, FEA or other advanced CAD tools that don’t exist in Solid Edge Design1. This is why Local Motors is offering five different levels of Solid Edge.
I hope this helps. If you have other questions or suggestions, leave me a comment. Or visit the Local Motors site and join their community.
January 13 2012
Solid Edge Subscriptions at Local Motors
We just released more news about Solid Edge and Local Motors. Not only do we have a new product called Solid Edge Design1 which we have already talked about, you can now get other levels of Solid Edge via a monthly subscription. Here is the press release if you want to read more:
The whole combination of new products, crowdsourcing, enthusiasts, subscriptions, pricing, and functionality in our latest endeavor has led to a lot of chatter on the web. Do the people in these new environments need different tools than the typical CAD customer? Exactly what is an enthusiast and are there other new personas out there? Is all this just marketing that will die away? Or does it represent some coming shift in the way companies do business? There are 100 more questions too and they make for entertaining reading on the web (I’ll add a few links at the end of this post if you want to read them).
What I can say is this. Having more options is generally good. Prior to Siemens PLM Software and Local Motors getting together, someone working with Local Motors had the option between a limited functionality free tool and a full function CAD tool that was beyond the reach of their budget. Now there is a spectrum of options. Prior to this partnership, getting access to a high end CAD tool for a just a month or so was not possible. Now it is. And, with all respect to the “Cloud”, these are not Cloud tools. You can run them while on an airplane or disconnected from the web just like the existing Solid Edge.
Will the idea of subscriptions expand beyond Local Motors? I can’t say but I do know we are listening closely to our customers and partners. If any bloggers want to write about this, that would be interesting too!
So what is next?
On twitter, I asked about what else I might write about and got a couple requests to know more about the types of people getting started with Solid Edge at Local Motors (if you are one of them call me!). I’ve also seen a few interesting question on blog posts in some of the links below. If some other topic is interesting to you, let me know.
As for what is next with Local Motors and Siemens PLM Software, you will just have to wait and see
The Latest News:
SolidEdge offers Monthly Subscriptions – Matt Lombard
Crowdsourcing Creates CAD Groundswell – DesignNews – Beth Stackpole
2011 News and Opinions
The News on Local Motors is out… or is it? – LM Series Part 3 (obviously, it wasn’t all out yet )
Solid Edge continues to make noise – Matt Lombard
Solid Edge Design1 And Local Motors – Deelip Menezes
Solid Edge Design1, an Exclusive Product for Local Motors Members – Desktop Engineering – Kenneth Wong
Younomy interview with – John Fox, Vice President, Velocity Series, Siemens PLM Software
Introducing Solid Edge Design1; the First Easy-to-Afford
Professional CAD Software for Design and Engineering Enthusiasts
Siemens Introduces Solid Edge Design1 to Local Motors Community… Here’s the Catch. – Josh Mings
Siemens and Local Motors Team Up – Scott Wertel
Siemens PLM vs Local Motors V2: Solid Edge Design1 – Al Dean
Siemens PLM and Local Motors – Evan Yares
Introduction to Local Motors – LM Series Part I
The SEMA Automotive Show – LM Series Part 2
January 12 2012
The Value of CAE in Motorsports – Part 1
From NASCAR to Formula 1, and from Rallying to Stock-car racing, one can argue there are few things in life that inspire as much emotion and excitement as do motorsports. Unified in a perpetual state of wide open throttle, all forms of automobile racing employ some combination of velocity, acceleration and g forces to deliver a potent, high-adrenalin experience unlike any other. Given its numerous manifestations, and vast enthusiast following, automobile racing collectively represents one of the most watched and televised sporting events in the world today.
The only thing better than competing in motorsports – is winning. Race teams today are employing every measure imaginable to lock-in the checkered flag on race day. Due to the highly regulated nature of motorsports intended to foster an even playing field, a winning edge must necessarily derive from incremental improvements. Think ‘evolution’ and not ‘revolution’ here. An amalgamation of minute tweaks, adjustments, and optimizations that culminate in just enough added downforce, reduced weight, or enhanced fuel efficiency could easily mean the difference between victory and defeat.
To go after these small but crucial pockets of opportunity that potentially aggregate into a winning advantage, race teams today are embracing Simulation and CAE technology.
Charles MacDonald relies on Siemens CAE technology for competition race car design at Hendrick Motorsports. Check out the following interview with him at the recent 2011 NX CAE Symposium
Click here to view the embedded video.
.CAE empowers engineers to understand the consequences of performance-enhancing measures such as component lightweighting. This gives teams the confidence to really push the envelope, knowing that they are not compromising safety or dependability in their quest to bring home the trophy.
Stay tuned for Part 2.
Mark
January 06 2012
Welcoming Mark Subramaniam to our Blogsquad
Up until now, our esteemed bloggers Mark Burhop and Al Robertson were the lone CAE voices on this blog. They’ve blogged about the finer side of finite element analysis and impressed us with terms like aeroelasticity.
Now there’s a new blogger in the simulation squad. His name is Mark Subramaniam.
You saw Mark guest blogging here last year with reports from the NX CAE Symposium.
Mark recently came to Siemens PLM from a European engineering services supplier that provides automotive powertrain and vehicle consulting solutions. There he managed a team of analysts doing combustion and flow simulation. Mark has a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He conducted graduate research at the Wisconsin Engine Research Center (ERC). His expertise is in applied thermal and fluid sciences, thermodynamics, internal combustion, powertrain and vehicle performance, and analytical methods.
He has a number of interesting blog posts planned in the area of CAD-CAE integration, parallel computing along with tech tips for NX CAE users.
Welcome Mark to the blog!
- Dora
December 21 2011
Seasons Greetings and a Chat With Chuck Podcast
It’s a busy time of year but I wanted to take a few minutes to talk about some recent news and events. Here is a podcast Dora and I just recorded. In it, I discuss some recent news, customer insights, academic engagement and the outlook for 2012.
Some highlights:
One of the things I emphasize in the podcast about the Vistagy acquisition is their domain expertise in carbon fiber. They have really set a standard for composite design. I am particularly intrigued at how the software takes very complex engineering processes and embeds the rules and techniques so engineers can stay focused on topics at hand – not the details behind the scenes in the technology.
Hopefully you’ve heard about our partnership with Local Motors and the subscription approach with Solid Edge Design1 for their community. Local Motors’ approach to crowd source engineering designs is very innovative. We’re excited to see the response to cloud-based technology.
As I note in the podcast, we’ve made some recent investments in our academic program. We recently had an event in Russia with 150 professors from more than 80 universities. All around the world, our customers need more engineers and need them to come out of academia with practical software skills. We’ve put a priority on engaging with universities to help graduate more engineers with the best practical skill set for our customers. Stay tuned for more on this in 2012.
As we head into a new year, I’m pleased to see the value of PLM is still a high priority with our customers even in the current economy. I look forward to the year ahead and wish all of you a very Happy New Year.
Chuck
December 20 2011
Model Clipping Plane – Femap Tips and Tricks
See how you can use the model clipping plane in Femap to aid model visualization and comprehension.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Alastair
December 14 2011
Tecnomatix Update – Jack 7.1
Even with the advancement of automation technology, manual operations will always play a significant role in bringing product to market. In fact, ergonomics will likely play an even greater role as the level of human to machine interaction becomes more pervasive in the manufacturing environment. 
The latest release of our human simulation product, Jack 7.1, promotes smarter decisions, faster and for a wider variety of scenarios than ever before.
From new anthropometric databases to enhancements for seated postures and disembodied hands, Jack 7.1 increases the speed and accuracy of your ergonomic analysis.
Take a look at how Jack delivers enhanced posture prediction for seated activities, how disembodied hands increase the speed and accuracy of analyzing reach into tight spaces and how we’ve streamlined measurement and object placement with enhancements to our measurement tool in this short video:
Click here to view the embedded video.
With this release of Jack, we’re bringing some critical enhancements to our user community that increases the speed and accuracy of completing ergonomics studies while supporting a greater number of workplace scenarios.
Learn more by visiting our Jack and Process Simulate Human website.
December 06 2011
Volvo Cars Leverages Tecnomatix for Expansion into China
This is a guest post from my colleague Zvika Weissman, Marketing Manager for Tecnomatix based in Israel.
With the support of the Volvo PLM project team, and the Siemens PLM Sweden team, I have recently written a case study about how Volvo is using our digital manufacturing tools. In order to write this case study, I took the opportunity to visit Volvo in Gothenburg Sweden, and found an impressive digital manufacturing deployment, and a company seeking to maximize their investment in digital manufacturing.
It is a cold city Gothenburg, with a main street that leads to a famous Poseidon statue. Cold as it is, it seems that the people live in this country, have a very high drive of innovation, which brought to the world brands like Volvo, Saab, IKEA, SKF, H&M and other brands.
Volvo is currently busy with establishing a new production operation in China, and is going to launch its first car to be manufactured in China by 2013. So, Volvo engineers from Sweden are investing a lot of effort in transferring manufacturing engineering knowledge and best practices manufacturing and process planning methodologies to their colleagues in China. Indeed, when I was onsite, some of the engineers were visiting China. An interesting aspect of this effort is the big focus that Volvo puts on establishing the environment of our digital manufacturing tools in China, so that the manufacturing engineers in China will work in similar methodologies to their colleagues in Europe.
Volvo has a clear vision of removing the typical barriers between its product design & manufacturing engineering groups, by using Teamcenter. The deployment level of Teamcenter in the manufacturing planning area evolves across time. It is currently deployed in the Final Assembly area, such that the production lines are planned with Teamcenter Manufacturing Process Planner, where in each assembly station, the assembly operations are defined in detail, sequenced, and linked to the specific parts that are assembled in this station, and to the required tools. The Volvo Process Simulate users state that due to the strength and user friendliness of the Tecnomatix tools, the company’s BiW & FA Robotics Simulation department currently delivers more output, and simulates more production concepts, yet compared to its prior method, requires fewer people to do so.
Walking on the shop floor, I closed a personal loop. A few years ago, working in a business development function and providing back-office support to our local Swedish consulting team, I developed a small customized solution for Volvo, which extracts the data out of our manufacturing database, into a pre-defined PowerPoint format. Now, while visiting Volvo, during my shop floor tour, I found many self-explanatory and visualized hardcopy work instructions, which were hung on many production station facilities. I noted to myself that Volvo has reached a very advanced level of work instructions for the shop floor employees. It was only when I got back home that I realized that I actually provided to Volvo this small customization…
… And yes, I wish I could own a Volvo car one day … really GREAT products they manufacture in the cold city of Gothenburg.
View the Volvo Cars case study here.
November 28 2011
Creating High Resolution Screen Shots – Femap Tips and Tricks
See how you can create high resolution screen shot images for reports in Femap using the Preferences Views dialog.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Alastair
November 18 2011
Microsoft Kinect with Jack
This is a guest post from my colleague Abhijit Dastidar, Marketing Manager for Tecnomatix.
I know you all are familiar with Microsoft Kinect and how its full body tracking system allows you to use your gestures and voice commands to play video games. Kinect gives you freedom from clumsy controllers and remotes.
But did you know that in June of this year Microsoft released Kinect for Windows SDK so that developers can build natural user interfaces (NUI) for their Windows applications? This allowed developers, researchers and enthusiasts to use the Kinect’s unique interface in ways we could have only imagined before. You can check some of these example applications here.
At Siemens PLM Software we are looking for innovative ways to bring the NUI capabilities of Microsoft’s Kinect to Jack. Jack is our human simulation solution that allows manufacturers to design safe, efficient and comfortable workplace environments.
Check this video and see how Microsoft Kinect and Jack could make the process of designing and optimizing manual workplace environments fast, easy and a bit more fun.
Click here to view the embedded video.
November 11 2011
Local Motors launches Solid Edge Design1
In our last post about the SEMA show and Local Motors, Mark Burhop alluded that Local Motors will be providing tools to the community to help the members working in areas of design, engineering and fabrication. It’s here and it’s called Solid Edge Design1. (Read the Press Release)
What is Solid Edge Design1?
According to the new website for Local Motors called the Forge, Solid Edge Design1 is “a professional-grade mechanical CAD program that has been created specifically for the Local Motors’ open design community. This ground breaking software makes use of Siemens PLM Software’s industry-leading synchronous technology for easy modeling of high-precision 3D models and is built upon the same technologies used heavily in the automotive industry. Before Design1, community members would have had to invest thousands of dollars for this type of functionality. Now it’s going to be available in a special version of Solid Edge at an incredible $19.95/month starting 1/1/2012.”
For all the folks that know Solid Edge well, Design 1 was created to address the core needs of the Local Motors design and engineering enthusiast. It works only in synchronous as it is easier to pick up and use. Synchronous is also very good at working with CAD files from other vendors and we’ve also included key translators for this. Functionality that Local Motors felt was less needed and would only increase the cost was removed from Design1. For example, there is no drafting, FEA, or advanced Assembly modeling.
For a limited time, members of the community can request one of the limited invites to try Solid Edge Design1 here. Beginning in Jan 2012, all members can obtain a monthly subscription.
We caught up with Isaac Oson, a former community member and now full time employee of Local Motors as their community liason. Isaac had been using ordered CAD for six years and now believes in the power of synchronous technology. Here’s what he had to say about Solid Edge Design1.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Earlier this week at the Local Motors open house, Siemens was on hand to demo Solid Edge Design1. Kurt Pennington, Application Engineer for Siemens PLM arrived about 3 pm, was handed a SolidWorks model of the well-known Rally Fighter. Within minutes he coverted the model to Solid Edge and used Design1 to manipulate the data. This is exactly what members of the community will be able to in the future for their designs. Most major CAD formats will be converted into the standard formats, the Solid Edge format, and JT. Since all CAD formats will be accepted and downloadable from the Local Motors website in their native format, having this unique ability to convert files will become beneficial for the enthusiast.
The Rally Fighter shown here was a SolidWorks assembly imported in to Solid Edge Design1 for editing parts using synchronous technology
Browser-based, 3D viewing experience
Having said all that, this is not about Design1. Its about the collaborative design and engineering experience at Local Motors. Siemens PLM also worked very hard to create a new web based JT viewer. For those of you that don’t know, JT is one of those ISO standards for lightweight 3D used heavily in the automative industry. What this means is that community members can now view 3D designs with PMI and dimensions, take measurements, section, or even control what is displayed in an assembly right from there browser.
Why is this important? Because Local Motors knows that for each creator, there are 10 more contributors willing to provide comments and help with the design. And for each contributor, there are 10 more people just wanting to see what is going on. The web based JT viewer may be the coolest thing and it is free to use inside the Local Motors community!
November 10 2011
Analyzing structures in accordance with design standards
Returning to the subject of safety for structures such as cranes, bridges and buildings (see my previous Designing for Safety blog), one of our partners Femto Engineering has created a program to help verify structures in accordance with required building and safety standards. The program is called SDC Verifier – SDC standing for Structural Design Codes – and it’s been built on top of our own Femap pre- and postprocessor CAE software using the API (Application Programming Interface). This is another great example of one of our partners adding value by enhancing the functionality of our simulation products through the API.
SDC Verifier in Femap
SDC Verifier
Working with Femap, SDC Verifier helps to build a complete set of load cases that the structure is likely to have to endure. These loads are used in the calculation of many different structural checks in accordance with design standards, after which SDC Verifier creates a full and detailed calculation report of the findings.
SDC Verifier
With the extensive structural checking that SDC Verifier performs, the likelihood of an accident through design oversight becomes greatly reduced, making the world a safer place. If you wish to find out more about this, go to Femto Engineering’s SDC Verifier web site.
Alastair
NX CAE Symposium – Final Sessions
Following is Marks last post from the NX CAE Symposium
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After lunch on Day 2, we all returned to our seats for the afternoon presentation line-up. Randy Huber of Caterpillar gave the attendees a spirited mini-history of Caterpillar’s products, elaborate with its various acquisitions over the years. He went on to illustrate Caterpillar’s long legacy, and continued heavy dependence on CAE methodologies for swift, robust product development. My favorite of the numerous examples shared, was the animated result from motion analysis of a wheel loader in action [Pictured below].
The remainder of the afternoon featured numerous insightful presentations from key members of Siemens PLM’s CAE Center of Excellence, and CAE Product Management organizations. Speakers included including Doug Wenk, Paul Caito, Rick Licursi, and May Taylor.
Late in the afternoon, after all the scheduled presentations had been delivered, and as organizers prepared to wrap up the event, in walked a surprise guest…..Joe Gibbs!
We were all absolutely thrilled to see the pro football hall-of-famer take to the stage to address us and even entertain a few questions. I found Joe instantly likeable, his charisma and warmth filling the room in milliseconds. He spoke anecdotally, drawing from both his professional wisdom, and personal life in equal amounts – punctuated frequently with humorous remarks that had the room erupting in laughter. I came away with the following interpretation of Joe’s philosophy – do what you enjoy, do it with passion, and it’s okay to try something different – just take that passion with you.
See you next year,
Mark
November 08 2011
Joe Gibbs Racing Facilities – NX CAE Symposium
Following is another report from Mark, at the NX CAE Symposium
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After the day’s presentations, attendees of the 2011 NX CAE Symposium were invited to participate in a tour of JGR’s facilities. Mark Bringle of JGR led the tour, educating and amusing us all with fabulous NASCAR race car build facts. Being an engine enthusiast, I was intrigued by the 800+ horsepower capable V8 engines that are at the heart of these racing machines. This remarkable output culminates from 5.8 liters of displaced volume, 12:1 compression, highly restriction-optimized induction and exhaust ducting, and the use of 100% ethanol fuel (E100).
It was eye-opening to learn of the highly structured program employed for pit crew member recruitment and training. These crucial members of the race team are often former professional athletes, and undergo grueling development routines comprised of weight training, video analysis, and repetitive pit stop practice runs. Mark elaborated that tire changers typically have a limited-time pit career, succumbing eventually to back trouble due to the awkward body maneuvering required by the job.
After the day’s formal agenda, attendees were treated to an evening of food and beverage, and go-kart racing! The top eleven racers from the various events were then given the opportunity to compete in a final race – with an Apple iPad as the grand prize.
[Eleven finalists pictured below]
Mark
NX CAE Symposium Day 2 – Keynote and Panel Discussion
Following is another blog post from Mark, on Day 2 of the NX CAE Symposium.
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The Symposium kicked off today with a customer key note by Kendra Short of Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) entitled ‘Mars Science Laboratory.’ Kendra delighted the group with an insightful overview of the challenges and unique solutions employed by JPL in making Mars exploration, as well as the recovery and analysis of scientific specimens possible. She shared pictures of the latest rover, named ‘Curiosity’ undergoing a variety of validation tests prior to its scheduled launch date on Nov 25th. [Picture of Curiosity undergoing thermal testing below]
CAE veteran, Dennis Nagy chaired a thought-stimulating panel discussion just before lunch. One of the hot subjects that surfaced was the influence of parallelization and cloud computing on CAE productivity. Kendra Short of JPL highlighted how analysts are often unable to fully evaluate the parameter trade space during concept studies, due to limitations in computational capacity. Charles Macdonald of Hendrick Motorsports noted that fee-based, third party cloud services may fit better with the business models of certain organizations. Steven Mueller commented that in the context of high performance computing, the larger challenge is addressing solver license cost, rather than CPU hardware cost. Doug Wenk of Siemens PLM sees cloud and high performance computing as a key enabler for CAE-based optimization efforts. [Picture of Dennis and panel members below]
Mark
NX CAE Symposium – Jon Heidorn Introduction
Following is todays last report from Mark and the team, at the NX CAE Symposium.
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Jon Heidorn, VP Marketing Americas, kicked off the NX CAE Symposium this morning at Joe Gibbs Racing in Charlotte, NC. Siemens PLM has been a long time sponsor of Joe Gibbs Racing since 1997, and this morning, Jon Heidorn was proud to announce the continued extension of this strategic partnership for four more years through 2016. 
The NX CAE Symposium will span the next two days and will include a great lineup of exciting presentations from industry analysts and customers using NX for simulation.
Jon also thanked our key sponsors who helped to make the NX CAE Symposium possible.
Mark
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