There may be a number of things you repeat every time you create a new model, like creating a material or defining a number of standard beam sections. It's tedious work and prone to error, but you don't have to. You can simply have a simple Python script (which you can record as a macro) […]

CAD files like this Creo (ProE) file often contain defects that leave the geometry useless for FEA purposes. Such defects normally manifest as failed geometry edits or meshing operations, and then the reason for the failed action is seldom known and near impossible to correct. In this 3 min video, I will show you how […]

What follows is a tried and tested method to create a Parasolid from an STL file using Mentat and MSC Apex. Summary of steps: 1) Import the STL into Mentat using the FEM option (Target Entities) 2) Export a BDF file 3) Import the BDF into MSC Apex 4) Using the "Geometry from Mesh" option, […]

Cleaning or simplifying geometry for analysis is an art (and if you don't think so, you've been doing it for too long!). There are few set rules and the tricks of the trade you normally learn by mistake or by looking over someone else's shoulder. With this blog (and possibly more), I do NOT imply […]