Altair hosts India technology conference in Chennai

In a bid to engage industry and consumers for greater understanding of its product portfolio, simulation technology provider Altair hosted its India Altair Technology Conference (I-ATC) in Chennai earlier this month.

The two-day conference was held for the first time in the automotive hub and was attended by over 800 professionals representing Altair India customers from the automotive, aviation and industries, many of whom presented 100-odd papers highlighting advances and innovations using Altair products.

Some of the automakers in the conference included Ashok Leyland, Mahindra & Mahindra, Royal Enfield, Tata Motors, VE Commercial Vehicles, Bajaj Auto, Lucas-TVS, Escorts, Renault Nissan Technology, Tata Technologies and Valeo Technologies. 

In his keynote address, Rod Giles, Lead (CAE & CAD) of Royal Enfield, highlighted how Royal Enfield’s engineering and design division adapting simulation of physical tests to crunch time and cost. He focused on some of the advanced simulation cases like fuel sloshing, drop and jump test. He also spoke about use of Altair technologies in NVH parameters in the context of motorcycles. 

Haridas P T, Head – CAE of Ashok Leyland, articulated his thoughts on how CAE has evolved from a tool for accurate prediction to one which provides approximate but realistic and quick prediction. He said that as automation of processes spreads its influence into more areas, CAE will transform itself into a new form and will drive enterprise level decision making across various spectrums of business ranging from pre-sales marketing to product  recyclability. 

On the second day of the conference, Dr Akella Sarma, senior general manager, CAE & CFD - Mahindra & Mahindra, talked about the practical aspects of implementing simulation technology, focusing on the cultural issues in the organization. “Technologies in simulation have been improving rapidly, particularly ease of use. This makes new teams not only conversant with simulation but also help them use and leverage benefits from simulation,” he said. Dr Sarma also revealed ways to overcome challenges starting from concept to SOP (Start of Production), collaborative working between design COEs and simulation teams, and maximisation of simulation tools leading to a reduction in development time. 

Local design is key to growth

Altair India managing director Pawan Kumar is bullish on the company’s growth in India and the automotive sector as a key contributor to its future growth. He believes Altair has been working on relevant technologies and tools to provide right solutions to its customers.

Speaking to Autocar Professional, he said, “The trend of Indian automotive OEMs setting up their design centres in developed countries is not encouraging for the local industry. The developed market may have talent and capabilities but if India has to catch up with the world, engineering and product development must happen locally. This is good for all the stakeholders as there is right talent available as well as potential in India.”

India automotive is one the major sector which contributes to nearly half of the company’s revenues and has been growing rapidly over the last few years. People headcount has crossed the 600 mark with local revenues in excess of Rs 200 crore. 

BS VI and new crash test norms as growth areas 

Given long product development cycles, the company is now engaged with automakers in work on future regulations including BS VI and crash testing for vehicles. “We are currently working with automakers in India on various new technologies and regulations. There would be new challenges along the way like electrification of vehicles; we are poised to face them and continue enabling our customers find solutions. So it’s not just about structural engineering or lightweighting but we are also working on electric vehicles, battery management system and  battery systems,” said Kumar.