Granta to Unveil CES Selector at MS&T Summit
 CAMBRIDGE,
UK, Oct 6, 2008 - Granta Design is demonstrating a new release of the CES
Selector software at this week's Materials Science & Technology (MS&T)
conference in Pittsburgh, PA, USA. CES Selector, the software of choice for
expert analysis of materials and process decisions, is now faster to learn
and easier to use.
Enhancements in CES Selector 2008 include: a quick and simple method to specify
design objectives; a new Eco Audit Tool, enabling eco design; new
capabilities for cost analysis; further plastic selection options; and
extended coverage of medical materials.
CES Selector combines comprehensive data on the properties of materials
with powerful graphical software for analysis and selection developed at
Cambridge University and Granta. It enables designers, engineers, and
materials experts to explore materials and process options and to make and
justify rational, auditable selection and substitution decisions. It helps
materials producers to analyze and position their products. The software is
particularly valuable in balancing competing engineering, economic, and
environmental objectives.
The 2008 version makes it much easier to specify design objectives via a
new pictorial menu in which engineers view and select the mechanical,
thermal, electrical, or barrier application that they wish to study. Simple
drop-down lists enable them to choose variables (such as dimensions, cost,
strength, or CO2 footprint) to optimize or constrain. The software then
plots graphs that show the best materials for the user's requirements and
enable trade-off of competing objectives. Although the CES Selector
methodology is accepted as a standard for such rational materials selection,
users previously had to specify design objectives as mathematical formulae.
The new menu makes the software much quicker to use in practical design.
This focus on practical use extends beyond software features – Granta is
also introducing more flexible site- and company-wide licensing, and new
training options for users of the software.
Another new design feature is the Eco Audit Tool. A user enters
information about a product design's composition, processing, use,
transportation, and disposal. The tool combines this with eco property data
to estimate the energy usage and CO2 output at each stage in the proposed
product's lifecycle. Knowing which phases in the lifecycle will make the
most significant contribution to environmental impact guides design
strategy. CES Selector's analysis capabilities can be used to identify
materials and process changes that will minimize this impact. The aim is to
make such decisions early in the design phase, when they cost least and have
the most effect.
At the heart of CES Selector is a series of data modules containing
comprehensive property and processing data about thousands of engineering
materials. Updates and extensions to this data increase its relevance and
effectiveness. New price estimates are available for over 3,000 materials.
These enable users to rank materials based on 'cost per unit of function'
for an engineering application, helping them to make selection and
substitution decisions that reduce or avoid cost. Such decisions are
particularly important in a time of volatile materials pricing – nickel,
copper, and the feedstocks for commodity plastics offer recent examples of
price fluctuations.
New specialist data are also available for medical and food contact
applications and for plastics. The medical data covers issues such as the
regulatory approval status of materials and their sterilizability,
durability to chemicals, and permeability. This data has been extended to
cover not only medical plastics, but also metals and ceramics. Plastics data
now include more information on important classes including elastomers,
rubbers, and transparent plastics.
"CES Selector 2008 responds to two key trends that we see in working with
our customers," says Dr Patrick Coulter, Chief Operating Officer at Granta.
"The first is the need for practical design tools to enable decision making
early in the design process, saving cost and time. The second is the
increasing importance of environmental objectives. Enhancements in these and
other areas will increase the impact of CES Selector on key business issues
in engineering enterprises."
About Granta
Granta Design Limited is the materials information technology expert.
Granta develops the leading software for materials information management in
engineering enterprises, and the leading teaching toolkit for materials
engineering education. Granta serves sectors as diverse as aerospace,
defense, energy, medical devices, automotive, motorsports, manufacture of
consumer and industrial equipment, publishing, and materials production.
Customers realize multi-million dollar benefits in reduced cost, enhanced
performance, improved quality, and speedier design. Granta was founded in
1994 as a spinout from the University of Cambridge and the work of
Professors Mike Ashby and David Cebon.
For more information, visit
www.grantadesign.com.
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