Moldflow-to-FEA

Alpine Advanced Materials specializes in bringing technology and advanced materials to the market. As a subsidiary of Catalyze Dallas, Alpine specializes in the commercialization of innovative solutions that serve various industries. Alpine wished to expand the software compatibility of their Moldflow-to-FEA process. Alpine was looking to convert components from metal materials into polymers. As part of this process, they needed to investigate the use of their specific advanced materials to maintain strength and rigidity while reducing the weight of the final product. Lastly, this project also allowed for evaluation of Autodesk Moldflow as a potential solution for future projects.

These are the project goals that Alpine Advanced Materials has such as linking of material analysis done in Autodesk Moldflow to Autodesk Nastran inside of Autodesk Inventor. Next is to better understand polymer-based product behavior as it compares to the original metal components, as well as investigate any areas of concern for structural integrity.

From Autodesk Moldflow to Autodesk Helius to Autodesk Nastran and finally to Autodesk Inventor 3D model. Alpine Advanced Materials provided a 3D model for the analysis. This model was first run within Autodesk Moldflow to understand moldability, as well as to estimate the fiber orientation within their proprietary material. The results were then mapped over to Inventor Nastran via the Advanced Material Exchange application included with Autodesk Helius PFA, which translates the fiber orientations into orthotropic material properties for each mesh node in Nastran. Finally, the required loads and constraints were applied within Autodesk Inventor Nastran to run the non-linear stress analysis.

The result proved to be effective in evaluating the process, and with additional refinement to account for the non-linear aspects of the material used the finished process evolved to be sustainable. With the Autodesk Moldflow and Autodesk Inventor Nastran models, Alpine Advanced Materials could evaluate the feasibility of both the component and the intended material. Design changes could be made where needed to further improve the component, and a better understanding of the material behavior was gained in the process. And, lastly, knowledge gained regarding Autodesk Moldflow may lead to internal adoption for future projects to couple with existing seats of the Autodesk Product Design & Manufacturing Collection to further advance the proprietary developed workflow from design to manufacturing.

"In looking for a new analysis partner, the Autodesk team at Team D3 were prompt and professional in following through with needed results. They worked hand-in-hand with the Alpine team with each supporting their area of expertise. Additional projects have since been seamlessly executed by Team D3 with the same high level of quality Alpine instills in its company culture, customer components, and supplier base.” - Alpine Advanced Materials

Delivery Date

Project Duration

Autodesk Solutions

• Inventor Nastran
• Moldflow

Services Provided

• System Integration

Customer Industry

• Other Engineering Industries