Hadley Group Technology Selects MSC Software's Marc

Marc's nonlinear simulations expected to improve designs and save at least £50,000 per year.

MSC Software Corporation announced that The Hadley Group, one of Europe's largest privately owned cold rolled steel manufacturers, has invested in Marc and Patran to accurately simulate their patented UltraSTEEL® process, as well as for Press Tool Design, Product Development and other Ancillary Processes.

The UltraSTEEL® process was first developed in 1984 and results in stronger roll formed products, thereby allowing the use of lighter sections. To enhance their understanding of UltraSTEEL®, The Hadley Group undertook a research project in 2009 in collaboration with the University of Wolverhampton.

To support this project, the team evaluated a number of commercial CAE software systems for advanced nonlinear simulation technology. MSC Marc was chosen, because of its capability to accurately represent four key engineering areas within The Hadley Group: the UltraSTEEL® material behavior, Press Tool Design, Product Development and Ancillary Processes.

"Benchmark investigations showed clearly that Marc was the best solution in every aspect," says Dr. Martin English, Design and Development Engineer, Hadley Group Technology. "Modernizing the UltraSTEEL® process will bring many improvements not only in production, but also to Hadley's customers. Having virtual simulation and test software reduces the time for product development from up to 6 months to just a few weeks. The ability to commission production lines based on better designs will save at least £50,000 per year."

Simulation data allows engineers to increase their knowledge of the process and therefore help develop more efficient solutions to complex, value-added design problems for their existing customers. MSC's Marc will also open new markets for The Hadley Group, as they will be able to provide an indication whether UltraSTEEL® is beneficial for any given profile, bringing additional revenue of around £100,000 per annum. It will also support and ease overall project planning.

"The Hadley Group is committed to providing the best service possible to support the increasingly technical demands of our worldwide customer base," says Dr. Michael Castellucci, Group Technical Director of Hadley Group Technology. "Simulation will provide us with the key ingredient to solve previously unanswered questions, as well as provide our customers with faster and more reliable information, even before we have any physical tooling for their new product."