ESI Group announces keynote speakers for EuroPAM 2005

Axel Hermann, a graduate of the Clausthal University of Technology, obtained his PhD from the Institute of Applied Mechanics, TU-Clausthal. He is General Manager of the Composite Technology Centre (CTC), a subsidiary of Airbus, as well as the head of ‘pre-development’ at the Centre of Excellence in Vertical Tailplanes, Airbus GmbH. He is Professor of Production Technology at the University of Bremen. In 2004, he founded the research and supplier network CFK-Valley Stade e.V.

Pat Hearn is Director of Advanced Fuel Cell Products at Ballard Power Systems, and is responsible for coordinating and advancing new fuel-cell technologies and products that enable Ballard to maintain its leading position in the automotive, power generation and home automation sectors. Prior to this, he was Ford’s Platform Director for Automotive Fuel Cell Stacks and Director of R&D at Maxtor Management Corporation.

Other speakers include: Thomas Schnorf, Aluminium Casting and Polymer Forming Simulation, Alcan Technology & Management Ltd; Dr. Hariaokto Hooputra, Department of Crashworthiness Simulation, BMW AG; Professor Dr.Ir. Johan Steelant, Division of Propulsion and Aerothermodynamics, ESA-ESTEC; and Dr.-Ing. Philipp Hein, Automotive Research Centre, Arcelor Flat Steel Europe.
EuroPAM, first held in 1990, is a unique event where the latest developments in digital simulation are presented and demonstrated by, and to, global industry leaders. EuroPAM 2005 is expected to draw more than 400 delegates representing a wide cross-section of industries, including aerospace, automotive, biotechnology, defence, electronics, energy and manufacturing.

Over three days attendees will have the opportunity to participate in five conferences dedicated to crash and occupant safety, stamping, casting, vibro-acoustics and CFD. A workshop on predictive welding and heat treatment is scheduled on 5 October, and workshops on Open Virtual Try-Out Space and the simulation of low-cost material for the aerospace sector will be held on 7 October.

About ESI Group

ESI Group is a pioneer and world-leading supplier of digital simulation software for prototyping and manufacturing processes that take into account the physics of materials. ESI Group has developed an entire suite of coherent, industry-oriented applications to simulate a product’s behaviour realistically during testing, to fine-tune the manufacturing processes in accordance with the desired product performance, and to evaluate the environment’s impact on product usage.

ESI Group’s products, which have a proven track record in manufacturing and have been combined in multi-trade value chains, represent a unique collaborative, virtual engineering solution, known as the Virtual Try-Out Space (VTOS), enabling virtual prototypes to be improved in a continuous manner. By drastically reducing costs and development lead times, VTOS solutions offer major competitive advantages and make it possible to eliminate gradually the need for physical prototypes. This integrated protocol allows all the company’s solutions to work with each other and with applications developed by independent software vendors. By significantly reducing costs and development lead times and enabling product/process synergies, VTOS solutions progressively eliminate the need for physical prototypes during product development, thus offering major competitive advantages.

ESI Group is listed on the Eurolist compartment C of Euronext Paris, and generated sales of €60m in 2004. The company employs almost 500 high-level specialists worldwide, and covers more than 30 countries.
Virtual Try-Out Space® and VTOS® are registered trademarks of ESI Group. All other products, names and companies mentioned in this press release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

For further information, please go to: www.esi-group.com