Dassault Systèmes Announces ABAQUS for CATIA V5 Version 2.3

New Release Improves Enterprise Collaboration in Evaluating Product Performance

Paris, France, and Providence, R.I. USA, July 6, 2006 – Dassault Systèmes (DS) (Nasdaq: DASTY; Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, announces the availability of Version 2.3 of ABAQUS for CATIA V5.

Integrated within the CATIA V5 Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solution from Dassault Systèmes, the latest software product from the SIMULIA brand improves the deployment of high-value analysis workflows and advanced simulation technology across product development organizations in a wide range of industries, including ground vehicles, aerospace and defense, biomedical, and others.

Version 2.3 of ABAQUS for CATIA V5 takes advantage of the latest technology advances in ABAQUS Version 6.6 and CATIA V5 R16 to deepen its capabilities, with particular emphasis on new enhancements in contact modeling, connections, and usability. 

The tight integration of ABAQUS with CATIA enables advanced methods developed and validated by ABAQUS specialists to be deployed to the enterprise as proven analysis workflows. The software enables both design engineers and analysis specialists to use the same FEA methods and models within CATIA V5, ensuring repeatability and accuracy. The latest product release builds on the SIMULIA strategy of providing scalable simulation solutions and an open framework for performing multidisciplinary analysis within the PLM process.

"The new release of ABAQUS for CATIA V5 enhances the accessibility of powerful FEA methods and capabilities within the CATIA V5 PLM environment,” says Marc Schrank, director of product management for ABAQUS. "This PLM integrated solution enables our customers to define and deploy proven analysis methods so that design engineers and analysts are able to collaborate on evaluating realistic behavior of their products. It allows companies to do more simulation earlier in the product development process, leading to lower development costs and improved quality of their products.”

A number of ABAQUS customers, including companies such as Toyota Motor Company, Honda, Boeing, and PSA Peugeot Citroën, specify and evaluate new features for ABAQUS for CATIA V5 software as members of the AFC Customer Review Team. Improvements to Version 2.3 of ABAQUS for CATIA V5 focus on providing immediate benefits in production environments. New capabilities in the software include:

• Support of ABAQUS Version 6.6. Takes advantage of complete functionality of ABAQUS/Standard solver capabilities, including contact enhancements and performance improvements.
• Spot, seam, and surface weld modeling. Leverages the weld modeling functionality of CATIA V5 to enable rapid definition of a large number of rigid or flexible connections. New capabilities and improvements account for spot, seam, and surface welds. Connection locations can be independent of the underlying mesh, which reduces model size and complexity of the meshing requirements. Combined with ABAQUS contact capabilities and the ability to simulate large deformation, the new weld features make ABAQUS for CATIA V5 an attractive analysis tool for airframe and automotive body modeling.
• ABAQUS continuum shell technology. Enables the modeling of shell structures with continuum shell elements, which permits the use of the actual CAD geometry of the structure rather than determining an approximate midplane and appropriate offsets of adjoining components. This approach simplifies modeling and improves accuracy of simulations involving contact.
• Contact enhancements. Takes advantage of ABAQUS Version 6.6 contact capabilities, including the ability to model applications involving large sliding between parts, using the surface-to-surface formulation. Usability enhancements include the ability to view some or all of the parts in a complex contact analysis, which can assist in confirming the selection of contact surfaces.

For more information visit: www.simulia.com.

About Simulia:

In 2005 Dassault Systèmes announced SIMULIA, the brand that encompasses all DS simulation solutions, including ABAQUS and CATIA analysis applications. SIMULIA is the open platform for multi-physics simulation that can be used by our partners and customers not only for automotive, aerospace, general machinery, and consumer products, but also by industries facing complex simulation challenges, such as the biomedical, molecular sciences, geophysics, pharmaceuticals and electronics businesses. By building on established technology, respected quality, and superior customer service, SIMULIA makes virtual testing an integral business practice that enables engineers and scientists to improve product performance, eliminate physical prototypes, and drive innovation. To find out more, visit http://www.simulia.com/

About Dassault Systèmes

As a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, the Dassault Systèmes group brings value to more than 90,000 customers in 80 countries. A pioneer in the 3D software market since 1981, Dassault Systèmes develops and markets PLM application software and services that support industrial processes and provide a 3D vision of the entire lifecycle of products from conception to maintenance. The Dassault Systèmes portfolio consists of CATIA for designing the virtual product - SolidWorks for 3D mechanical design - DELMIA for virtual production - SIMULIA for virtual testing and ENOVIA for global collaborative lifecycle management, including ENOVIA VPLM, ENOVIA MatrixOne and ENOVIA SmarTeam. Dassault Systèmes is listed on the Nasdaq (DASTY) and Euronext Paris (#13065, DSY.PA) stock exchanges. For more information, visit : http://www.3ds.com

CATIA, DELMIA, ENOVIA, SIMULIA and SolidWorks are registered trademarks of Dassault Systèmes or its subsidiaries in the US and/or other countries.