Marc 2015 Released

MSC Software, a provider of simulation software, has released Marc 2015. This release has new material models for elastometers, thermoplastics and metal plasticity. It also includes has enhancements to element technology, contact, adaptive meshing and the user interface.

This release's new material models let users simulate complex dynamic behavior of permanent deformation in elastometers, thermoplastics and metal forming.

For more cohesive contact simulation, Marc 2015 lets finite stiffnesses be applied in the normal and tangential direction. This improves stress results in the contact zones and overall deformation. This can be used for discrete entities such as rivets, bolts or spot welds.

Also added is a family of elements that has improved bending behavior and can be use for compressible or nearly incompressible behavior. By using fewer elements to represent shear behavior, new elements can help save system resources, the company states.

According to a company press release, two new capabilities have been added to enhance global adaptive meshing:

• A geometry-preserving methodology that provides improved accuracy when using the global adaptive meshing technique for simulating rubber components and manufacturing problems.
• Usage of a refined template mesh activated at the 3D crack tip lets users predict energy release rate, stress intensity factor and crack propagation.

Mentat, the software's user interface, has also been improved for ease of use and productivity.

For more information, visit MSC Software.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.