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SANTA ANA, CA -- MSC.Software Corp. (NYSE:MNS), a leading global provider of simulation software, services and systems, today announced the availability of MSC.visualNastran for Windows (MSC.vN4W) 2002. MSC.visualNastran for Windows combines the power of MSC.Nastran with the ease-of-use of a Windows-based graphical user interface for generating models and visualizing analysis results. "MSC.Software has a very focused strategy for increasing the market for our core software products and the best way to do that is to continue to ensure the products are best in class," said Frank Perna, chairman and chief executive officer of MSC.Software. "We are confident that customers will be able to continue to reduce the design time and costs and increase their profitability with the sophistication and ease of use in the latest version of MSC.vN4W." MSC.visualNastran for Windows employs advanced computational techniques, along with access to computer-aided design (CAD) geometry, enabling customers to verify designs and reduce physical prototyping. Engineers around the world use it to analyze the stress, vibration, dynamic, nonlinear and heat transfer of a wide range of structures and mechanical components. The state-of-the-art solution modules and new geometric modeling capabilities shorten the design cycle of products, lowering costs, and improving product quality. MSC.vN4W already provides a robust set of finite element modeling and post processing functionality based on the industry leading MSC.Nastran finite element analysis software. At times, however, users may need a specific capability that is not included in the standard product. The new MSC.vN4W Application Programming Interface (API) lets you customize MSC.vN4W to meet specific engineering needs, including importing in-house tools into the interface. The new features include enhancements to the meshing functionality; small feature suppression, mesh sweeping and interactive mesh editing. There is a new enhanced render mode that increases graphical display quality while increasing performance time. Also included is a Parasolid replacement function, facilitating Parasolid geometry model update, and re-evaluation within the MSC.vN4W environment. "The API feature makes MSC.visualNastran for Windows extensible into our end-to-end process, from conceptual design through certification and support. We can share and extract data from our simulation models for other proprietary analysis, which helps us develop best practices," said Mark Beyer, engineering specialist, Cessna. "It minimizes training and allows us to develop robust processes, and actually streamlines the engineering effort by getting all the data together and in the right context." MSC.visualNastran for Windows 2002 is available directly from the MSC.Software sales team and through its worldwide network of resellers. For more information on MSC.vN4W 2002, please visit http://www.mscsoftware.com/products/.