OIL & GAS

MSC.Software Corp. , the leading global provider of virtual product development (VPD) products including simulation software and services, today announced the availability of the MSC.SuperForm and MSC.SuperForge 2005. These manufacturing solutions, which come bundled in one package under a single licensing system, have been designed to help engineers evaluate and optimize forming and forging processes with virtual computer models rather than performing costly trial and error tests on the shop floor. "Virtual product development doesn't begin and end during the product design phase of product development. It is a valuable environment that can be extraordinarily valuable during all phases of the product lifecycle, especially in the forging and forming area where every ounce of wasted material and scrap is wasted money," said Reza Sadeghi, vice president, solvers development, MSC.Software. "According to a poll conducted by Forging Magazine in January 2005, only 22% of the survey respondents report using computer simulation to plan production of forged parts. This presents a tremendous opportunity for MSC.Software to grow the use of our products within this segment and we are confident that the MSC.Software manufacturing solutions are well positioned to address this market." MSC.SuperForge and MSC.SuperForm provide integrated 2D and 3D finite element analysis for numerous component-manufacturing applications. Using 'shop floor' language coupled with a meshless analysis process and/or automatic remeshing technology, MSC.SuperForge and MSC.SuperForm allow engineers to spend more time evaluating results and making forging decisions rather than on making expensive and time-consuming changes to physical tests. The objective is to help customers detect and avoid problems before they occur by simulating parts like forming tools as elastic structures, the effects of different lubrications and thermal coupling by taking advantage of an integrated material database, press kinematics, and automated stage changes. MSC.SuperForm, based upon the MSC.Marc technology, is a nonlinear, finite element analysis tool and pre/post processor designed to simulate general purpose bulk forming applications such as cogging, rolling, extrusion, riveting, bending and cutting. MSC.SuperForm 2005 is enhanced with many new features, such as better automatic remeshing technology, damage prediction, multistage analysis and capability to simulate more forming processes such as blanking, glass forming and hydroforming. MSC.SuperForge, based upon MSC.Dytran technology, is a customized vertical application specifically designed for hot and cold forging process simulation such as pre-form simulations like bending and upsetting and die stress analysis. MSC.SuperForm and MSC.SuperForge 2005 have been enhanced with new features and functionality to ensure it is easy to use and provides a robust solution to manufacturing process challenges. Some of these new features include: * Integration of Solver Technologies: Users can now evaluate forging and forming simulations from one integrated set of tools via the customized, discipline-specific interfaces. * Enhanced Process Tree Visualization and Enhanced Meshing and Input Data Options: Users have enhanced tools for quickly visualizing and evaluating design and simulation factors including ambient temperature and other data options. * Improved Materials Properties: Users now have access to enhanced elastic and plastic materials data. * New functionality for press simulation: New functionality for simulation of spring supported dies, multiple object dies and hammer and screw press multiblow simulations. * Improved post-processing capabilities including real-time cutting views and rotational cutting. The combined MSC.SuperForm/MSC.SuperForge package is currently available under the MSC.MasterKey licensing system. The MSC.MasterKey system is tailored to the unique environment of every customer, maximizing productivity and engineering budgets by providing full-range simulation capabilities and flexible product management from a token-based system. For more information on MSC.SuperForm and MSC.SuperForge please visit www.mscsoftware.com/products/ .