The Comet’s legacy is not completely negative however; these early failures helped develop the backbone of fatigue and fracture mechanics that would be used, refined and evolved over the next 70 years. Indeed, it was only 20 years after that first test flight of the Comet that NASA’s engineering team supported a successful moon landing! Industries beyond aviation and space exploration have benefited from this science as well: heavy machinery, transportation, naval, energy, medical devices…all have been fundamentally changed by the furtherance of materials science principles.

VEXTEC continues this evolutionary effort, by incorporating these “physics of failure” principles into our probabilistic Virtual Life Management® technology. We differentiate ourselves from other computational fatigue methods, by combining a component’s inherent microstructural variability with physics-based damage mechanisms and realistic loading histories to accurately predict fatigue life. As structures become increasingly more complex, with continual demands for lighter-weight materials (for both manufacturing and operational cost savings) and better performance, the need for a comprehensive reliability simulation technology becomes clear. No one wants to be the next disastrous chapter in this Comet’s Tale.

Today’s manufacturing companies face a significant challenge as they work to balance the demands of the marketplace for better performing products against the need to bring new products to market faster, cheaper and with greater reliability all while improving the customers overall experience. In fact, in a recent article by Warranty Week, their data indicates warranty costs stabilized last year (for the first time in a decade) and questions if manufacturers are beginning to put more emphasis on the overall customer experience.

Since product failures stem directly from a combination of inferior product quality and how the product is used by the customer in the “real world,” manufacturers are faced with almost an impossible task. It is not feasible to physically test for the full range of customer experiences and usage scenarios. So, what is a manufacturer to do?

The answer is computational simulation. By improving modeling, simulation and utilizing computational testing of products before launch or at the first indication there may be a problem, manufacturers can help avoid expensive product recalls or get in front of a looming problem and deliver a better experience to their customer. That is where Virtual Life Management^® (VLM^®) comes into play.  With VLM^®, manufacturers can evaluate designs, material alternatives and the full statistical distribution of how the product could be used by the customer. VLM provides a more meaningful way of predicting customer experience and warranty expenses than traditional reliability projection methods alone while reducing physical testing requirements and cost.

An article published by WIRED Magazine discusses product recalls by US manufacturers and how computational simulation tools such as VEXTEC’s VLM helps companies overcome these challenges throughout a product’s life cycle. Over the past twelve years, VLM has simulated changes in design, material processing, and usage scenarios on over 100 successful projects for commercial and government clients. Using VLM, clients have resolved in-service reliability issues, and accelerated product development processes for a variety of fatigue and corrosion applications at substantially lower costs than traditional testing methods.

It is clear that today’s brands require a warranty solution that reduces costs and increases the customer’s lifetime value. VLM has the technology to deliver that solution.

Do you have a challenge that you would like to overcome or mitigate? If so, contact VEXTEC to see how VLM can help you.