Zurich, Switzerland, May 11, 2010: AutoForm Engineering GmbH, the leading supplier of software solutions for the sheet metal forming industry, has unveiled the latest software version AutoForm^plus R2. This release focuses primarily on superior speed performance. Apart from this extraordinary achievement, AutoForm^plus R2 brings further powerful benefits to the users.

AutoForm^plus R2 is the second major release of the new product line AutoForm^plus. It is characterized by an outstanding speed performance, which is achieved as a result of the redesigned software architecture. When using elastic plastic shell elements and bending enhanced membrane elements, the speed of the solver is now increased by an average of 30% and 12%, respectively. This improvement in speed is made without compromising the accuracy of the results.

Deterministic parallel computing is another area in which AutoForm^plus R2 excels with the latest results. The shared memory multiprocessing (SMP) solver version has been enhanced in order to deliver deterministic numerical results that do not depend on the number of used cores or processors. Computations with identical input data that use different numbers of parallel threads now lead to identical results. On average, speed-up factors of 1.6 and 2.4 are achieved for 2 and 4 threads, respectively. By combining the SMP option and increased solver speed, AutoForm^plus R2 leads to outstanding results with an impressive speed-up factor of 3 compared to the previous version.

AutoForm^plus R2 brings further new features and benefits, such as accurate material modeling for stainless steel 1.4301, refined drawbead model, addendum profile templates and option for hidden internal cost data. Further progress has also been made in springback compensation. As a result, the user can implement more advanced compensation strategies to address complex issues that arise in practice.

Dr. Markus Thomma, Corporate Marketing Director of AutoForm Engineering, stated: “We have always been focused on short computation times and accurate results. An example to illustrate our success in this respect: Running AutoForm^plus R2 on today’s PC generation, which has an integrated quad-core processor and costs under 1000 €, enables one to simulate a B-pillar – including all operations and springback – in less than 5 minutes. Even more complex parts, such as a door inner, can be simulated in less than 2.5 hours. This remarkable speed adds tangible benefit to our customers. AutoForm^plus R2 will be available on the market in June.”

About AutoForm Engineering GmbH

AutoForm offers software solutions for the die-making and sheet metal forming industries along the entire process chain. With over 200 employees, AutoForm is recognized as the leading provider of software for product manufacturability, tool and material cost calculation, die face design and virtual process optimization. All of the Top 20 automotive OEMs and most of their suppliers have selected AutoForm as their software of choice. Besides its headquarters in Switzerland, AutoForm has offices in Germany, The Netherlands, France, Spain, Italy, USA, Mexico, India, China, Japan and Korea. AutoForm is also present through its agents in more than 15 other countries. For detailed information please visit: www.autoform.com

Contact

Dr. Markus Thomma

Corporate Marketing Director

AutoForm Engineering GmbH

Switzerland

Phone:  +41 43 444 61 61

Email:   markus.thomma@autoform.ch