Fluent’s ‘European Automotive CFD Conference’ (EACC) held in Frankfurt, Germany has proved to be a huge success. The number of attendees virtually doubled from those present in 2003, with almost 300 delegates, plus press representatives from Europe’s most influential automotive publications in Germany, France, the UK and Italy, all attending. In addition to presenters from many of the most high-profile companies in automotive and automotive–related Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) and hardware vendors, there were attendees from 20 countries at the event proving the importance of the conference to the automotive industry across Europe and beyond. There was also a large exhibition space where 26 exhibitors showcased their products and services.
Key amongst the presentations was a joint paper from Dassault Systèmes and Fluent that for the first time ever revealed details of the soon-to–be–released FLUENT for CATIA V5 product, which will make Fluent the only CFD vendor to offer a fully embedded CATIA solution, giving full associativity, helping clients to increase speed and productivity in their design process. The importance of this development was confirmed by PSA Peugot Citreon, whose paper included an explanation as to why the development of the new FLUENT for CATIA V5 has been a key factor in its move to integrate CFD into its design cycle. Delphi also showed how another innovative Fluent development, the FloWizard CFD tool, specifically developed to allow design engineers to use CFD early in the design process, had been implemented at the company to reduce design cycle times and free up CFD experts at the company to concentrate on key design candidates later in the design process. The results of this for Delphi have been improved efficiency and better results from its overall design process. The outcome of continued innovation is that today, CFD has become the fastest growing branch of the CAE/Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) business, as reported at the conference by independent US technology analysts, Daratech Inc.
Formula 1 racing also had a significant presence at the event. Both Ferrari and Sauber Petronas presented papers on the new age of the Supercomputer in F1, which allows teams with this capability to perform CFD simulations of a full F1 car, incredibly, within a day. Ferrari and Sauber Petronas proved their competitive edge extends beyond the racing track by picking up two awards at the end of the conference. Luciano Mariella of Ferrari won ‘The Best Use of a Supercomputer’ prize sponsored by AMD, and Tobjörn Larsson of Sauber Petronas won the ‘Best Automotive CFD Animation’ award, sponsored by Genias Graphics. Silvestre Artiga-Hahn of Opel AG won the final award for the ‘Best Applied Automotive CFD Paper’, sponsored by HP.
The value of the conference to attendees has been reflected in the after-show feedback. Werner Seibert, Global Automotive Segment Manager at Fluent, explains: “The list of companies presenting at the EACC this year was of the highest order: Bosch, Ducati, Honda, Hyundai, Rieter, Škoda, Valeo Engine Cooling, Visteon and Volvo, to mention just a few. The EACC offers a unique opportunity for delegates to meet influential people from automotive and related areas, to share ideas and discuss the use of CFD. The feedback we’ve had from attendees reflects this – it’s been extremely positive.”
Work is now beginning to ensure the next EACC in 2007 will be at least as high-profile an event, and a conference anyone involved in automotive CFD can’t afford to miss.
A proceedings book and CD with every paper presented at the EACC will soon be available for purchase by visiting eacc.fluent.com
