ANSYS Software targets the SME sector in India

ANSYS Software, the Bangalore-based company which provides simulation software for a variety of sectors including the automotive sector, has identified small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as part of its ‘go-to-market’ strategy.

Speaking to Autocar Professional on the sidelines of last week’s CII event on automotive R&D trends, Rafiq Somani, country manager, India, ASEAN, Australia and New Zealand, explained the company’s strategy saying that the challenge for innovation is now moving from OEMs to Tier 1 and 2 companies as the auto sector, as a whole, tries to resolve issues pertaining to quality and cost.

“Indian companies make frugal products but few world-class products at a good price,” added Somani. He has set his company an ambitious target saying he hopes to grow the business by 300 percent in the current  year.

“The SME sector constitutes a group of emerging players for high-end simulation as the auto sector attempts to adopt simulation at a much faster pace than at current. Many companies tend to outsource this key activity but the need is to think ahead,” said Somani. Moreover, tighter deadlines and targeted costing are now the order of the day in the automotive sector.

ANSYS’ suite of simulation caters to all sectors of the auto sector including two- and four-wheelers as well as component players and off-highway. Some of the big names include Mahindra & Mahindra, Eicher, TVS and Bosch to mention but a few.

To target the SME segment, Ansys is pitching a product called AIM. Somani is categorical that this is not a stripped-down product that compromises on feature functionality. “It was devised and designed to make it easier for the end-user. SMEs cannot buy expensive resources, we have taken the usage experience and adapted for the potential user,” he said.

Somani and country manager, marketing, India, Kaustube Nande are also putting in place a plan to establish authorised training centres to train engineers who may know software but need help on the applications front.

In any case, as part of its sales solution, Ansys provides standard training which is typically of a few weeks’ duration which includes classroom training and handholding initiatives. The aim is to bring Ansys-certified engineers in the simulation domain.

ANSYS Software has expanded its teams in Chennai and Hyderabad as it targets new opportunities and customers. Among its global customers with an India footprint is the Cummins Group.

Providing perspective on the increasing importance of simulation software engineers, Somani told the Automotive R&D trends conference that while one in every six automotive engineers is a simulation engineer, that figure is expected to grow by 2022.

Globally, ANSYS Software recently acquired Numerical Technology Canada, an Ontario, Canada-based company which works in the aerospace segment devising models for aircraft based on scenarios that include the impact of atmospheric scenarios such as ice crystals. There are no immediate interfaces with the auto sector but based on emerging developments such as the autonomous cars of the future, this may well be on small step on a long journey.