This presentation was made at CAASE18, The Conference on Advancing Analysis & Simulation in Engineering. CAASE18 brought together the leading visionaries, developers, and practitioners of CAE-related technologies in an open forum, to share experiences, discuss relevant trends, discover common themes, and explore future issues.

Resource Abstract

While modern simulation and modeling tools have enabled huge leaps forward in engineering, the return on investment has sometimes been unnecessarily limited. Typical reasons include:

1. Legacy software is under-utilized. The evolution of software and hardware has had a dramatic impact on the way we interact with simulation tools, but this does not mean that the underlying physics and numerics of legacy programs, or MATLAB and Python scripts, are any less valid. In fact, these tools often encapsulate years of empirical observations, and have been thoroughly validated.

2. Many tools can only be used by experienced experts. Modeling and simulation software is typically not “democratized” – not in a form that lends itself to a large corporate user-base. If more engineers (and other functions such as technical sales staff) can be empowered to use modeling software, the benefit derived can grow significantly.

3. Excel chaos. Excel is used by countless engineers, either in support of modeling or for modeling itself. Too often, the value of well-developed spreadsheets is greatly limited because of the common problems such as lack of version control, poor IP protection, and unreliable execution due to mismatches in versions. Much greater value can be realized by transforming these spreadsheets into true collaborative design tools.

4. Inefficiencies in multi-step processes. Simulation and modeling often involves more than one piece of software. Integration and automation can significantly enhance the throughput, hence the value, particularly for a frequently repeated design process.

During the hands-on workshop, attendees will use EASA, hosted on Amazon Web Services, to complete one or more of following tasks:

1. Transform a simple spreadsheet used for engineering calculations into a collaborative web app;

2. Build a fit-for-purpose web app and connect it to a MATLAB model;

3. Take a legacy structural analysis program with text file input, and modernize it with an intuitive web-based GUI.

Note: EASA is a low-code development platform. This type of technology, also known as “hpaPaaS” – High Productivity Application Platform as a Service – enables “citizen developers” or “authors” to “appify” and democratize “expert-only” software tools and models. It enables non-programmers to codelessly create custom, fit-for-purpose apps, complete with error trapping and design or business rules embedded.