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Slashing the cost of crash testing

Left to Right; Dr Tim Williams, Simpact; Karen Aston, Business Innovation Centre Manager and David Mylett Simpact

A Science Park company has moved into the fast lane with a new product which is good news for crash test dummies.

Simpact Engineering Ltd softens the blow for car manufacturers with software that accurately predicts what happens in a car crash without having to crash test expensive prototypes.

The software also has a range of applications for any company involved in new product design.

Simpact, who are based at the University of Warwick Science Park Business Innovation Centre in Binley now also offer a new 3D laser scanning service which can produce a computer model of any stationary object.

Simpact are currently using this hardware to create 3D surfaces of crash test dummies and the results of crash tests for comparison with their predictions.

Managing director Tim Williams said: “We are the first company in the world to apply this technology to vehicle crash safety and this has given us the edge over our competitors.”

Simpact has been operating in the area of new product development for over six years and works alongside the major OEM's in the Midlands such as Jaguar and Land Rover.

“Our finite element software can simulate a range of loading scenarios.  Developing any product experimentally can be a very costly and time consuming process so developing a virtual design means that when a prototype is built, companies can get them right first time,” Tim added.

“Customers are now asking us to digitise products outside the automotive industry and this is opening very interesting doors for us as a company.  One example of this is the digitisation of the human body for sportswear design.”

Innovation Centre Manager Karen Aston said: “Simpact has been with us for four years and are a cutting edge company that is making a real difference in the world of automotive engineering.

“In the current economic climate, it is increasingly important to be able to diversify into other sectors and Simpact’s new applications are allowing the company to do just that.”

14/12/04