PDFCompanies are always on a quest to find and employ best-in-class solutions to help them improve their product design process. This is particularly true in the area of simulation and analysis (S&A) for which hundreds of computer-based analysis codes are available. One vendor can’t possibly satisfy all of the specialized needs of companies in this critical area of product development since the range of solutions crosses a number of highly technical domains such as finite element analysis and computational fluid dynamics. Altair Engineering, based in Troy, Michigan, has created an innovative program that allows it to provide its customers with access to a portfolio of solutions from other sources that augment its own product offerings. CIMdata believes that this program, called the HyperWorks Partner Alliance (HWPA), offers substantial benefits to engineers and analysts as well as the S&A vendor community.
Altair’s well-regarded suite of S&A and related solutions, called HyperWorks includes tools for many S&A disciplines including CFD, Composites, Crash & Safety, Durability, Manufacturing, NVH, Optimization, and Vehicle Dynamics. The HWPA initiative teams Altair with a group of carefully selected solution providers to give users access to a range of capabilities that expands on these Altair offerings. Altair has extended its token licensing strategy and technology to include the partners’ solutions. This is a very interesting model whereby Altair and the partner agree on the number of tokens, called HyperWorks Units, required to access each partner solution. Thus, HyperWorks customers can access the partner’s as well as Altair’s solutions using the same token pool. The customer may add to their token pool as required to support the level of use they require for all of the solutions they need. Customers may also employ this to balance direct licenses for the partner’s solution with the HWPA units as a means of better managing peak demand.
Among the technology available to HyperWorks customers, the HWPA adds the following solutions to the HyperWorks suite: analyses for ergonomics, hydraulic and pneumatic systems, electromagnetic effects, acoustics and noise, vibration, composite materials, CFD, durability and fatigue, and others. All of which synergistically increase the flexibility, usefulness, breadth, effectiveness and value of S&A well beyond the capabilities provided by any single solution or supplier of solutions. These partners benefit in a number of ways. They gain access to Altair’s global sales channels, which provides an effective way to expand into new industries or geographical markets and leverage Altair’s global marketing efforts. The partnership results in royalties based on product usage, which provides the partners with more resources to reinvest in product development, providing a direct benefit to their customers.
Some of the members of the HWPA provide solutions outside the traditional S&A realm. An example is Mindjet, who offers a solution for capturing and organizing ideas graphically to help people better understand their value and how to proceed with advancing the ideas. This application can be used to help evaluate simulation and analysis scenarios, allowing users to pick the most appropriate scenario for a particular situation. Altair continually adds new partners to the HWPA, increasing its range of offerings and its value to its customers.
This partnership program provides a number of business benefits to the over 500 companies who take advantage of it. They gain access to capabilities that they might otherwise find difficult to justify financially. They can access these solutions in the same way they access Altair’s solutions—using HyperWorks tokens, which means they do not always need to purchase direct licenses for each application, thus saving money. They can also try out these solutions without paying extra to do so. Because of the token model, they can use each solution only as needed, without paying annual licensing fees for each product. CIMdata believes that the HWPA helps to extend the footprint of S&A across industry, removing licensing and access as obstacles to the adoption of new technologies. It provides an innovative approach that is valuable to both industrial users and solution suppliers alike.
