Richard Davies wrote: The UK has a good crop of technology pioneers in cloud computing - for example ElasticHosts, FlexiScale, Flexiant, OnApp - and also some strong government initiatives such as G-Cloud.
We will have to see whether this kind of technical leadership converts into swift mass-market adoption or not.
ANSYS, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANSS), a global innovator of simulation software
and technologies designed to optimize product development processes,
today announced that Volkswagen AG, one of the world’s largest car
producers, has signed a master agreement with ANSYS and intends to widen
its use of the most comprehensive engineering simulation solution
available today. The strategic decision to use ANSYS®
software was due both to the bandwidth of applications that can be
addressed as well as to the innovative ANSYS® Workbench™
platform that allows for a substantial process compression.
In its research and development, Volkswagen uses structural mechanics,
fluid dynamics and explicit analysis tools from ANSYS to perform, among
other applications, studies on climate control, headlights and engine
internal flow.
“Simulation Driven Product Development™ is applied in nearly
every industry to drive product development and accelerate time to
market,” said Dr. Albrecht Gill, regional sales director at ANSYS
Germany. “Mere experience and prototyping is not sufficient in today’s
dynamic environment. Forward-looking companies like Volkswagen are
increasing their use of simulation technology to lower their development
costs and gain more confidence in designs.”
"The automotive market is highly competitive, and technological advances
are being incorporated in modern cars at an ever-faster pace. To stay at
the top, there is no way around applying simulation tools to drive
product development and innovation. Our decision for simulation software
from ANSYS is based on the depth and breadth of the solution we needed
to cover our simulation needs," said Dr. Ralph Sundermeier, head of the
Department for CAE-methods at Volkswagen AG. “The ANSYS Workbench
concept is convincing because we can easily do coupled simulations and,
in this way, accurately account for the entire range of physics.”
The Volkswagen Group, headquartered in Wolfsburg (Germany), is one of
the world’s leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmaker in
Europe. In 2008, the Group increased the number of vehicles delivered to
customers to 6.257 million (2007: 6.190 million), corresponding to a
10.3 percent share of the world passenger car market. In Western Europe,
the largest car market in the world, just over one in five new cars
(20.3 percent) comes from the Volkswagen Group. Group sales rose in 2008
to 113.8 billion euros (2007: 108.9 billion). Profit after tax in the
2008 financial year amounted to 4.69 billion euros (2007: 4.12 billion).
The Group operates 61 production plants in fifteen European countries
and a further six countries in the Americas, Asia and Africa. Around the
world, nearly 370,000 employees produce more than 26,600 vehicles or are
involved in vehicle-related services each working day. The Volkswagen
Group sells its vehicles in more than 150 countries. It is the goal of
the Group to offer attractive, safe and environmentally sound vehicles
which are competitive on an increasingly tough market and which set
world standards in their respective classes.
ANSYS, Inc., founded in 1970, develops and globally markets engineering
simulation software and technologies widely used by engineers,
designers, researchers and students across a broad spectrum of
industries and academia. The Company focuses on the development of open
and flexible solutions that enable users to analyze designs directly on
the desktop, providing a common platform for fast, efficient and
cost-conscious product development, from design concept to final-stage
testing and validation. The Company and its global network of channel
partners provide sales, support and training for customers.
Headquartered in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, with more than 60 strategic
sales locations throughout the world, ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries
employ over 1,600 people and distribute ANSYS products through a network
of channel partners in over 40 countries.
ANSYS, ANSYS Workbench, Ansoft, AUTODYN, CFX, FLUENT, and any and all
ANSYS, Inc. brand, product, service and feature names, logos and slogans
are registered trademarks or trademarks of ANSYS, Inc. or its
subsidiaries in the United States or other countries. All other brand,
product, service and feature names or trademarks are the property of
their respective owners.