What working model FEA does everyone use

I am wondering what FEA program people are using. we Curently have MSC
working model, its an old version and we have never even used it yet we are
just in the process of installing it. What would you guys recomend? MSC or
Cosmos? does anyone know if MSC Working Model will work with SW 03 and SW
04, I belive that the version of MSC we have was bought when SW01+ was out.
Looking for everyone impresion on these two or are there other programs out
there that are better?

Nathan

 

IMHO, MSC "Visual Nastran" (new name of "Working Model") and Cosmos are very
similar programs.
Both are very well integrated in SW and will do all the "standard" linear
analysis without noticeable differences.
I personally have a slight preference for MSC for reasons that I can detail,
but maybe it's only because I used it more...
If you're happy with your Working Model, upgrade to Visual Nastran, you
won't be disappointed.
You should be able to use WM on SW2003 or later, I can't see a reason why it
wouldn't run (except that the motion module won't handle the new "mates").
Try and tell us.

 

You've said nothing about your analysis requirements.

 

I was pondering a switch to COSMOS. We consulted local FEA guru Vince
Adams, who is well versed in COSMOS and MSC NASTRAN.

For our needs, COSMOS fell short. Of greatest concern was COSMOS'
inability to do large displacement nonlinear (which we need). Also
noted was that COSMOS can not combine multiple element types (i.e.
plate + rigid + gap) in a single analysis. We're sticking with MSC.

We are fortunate to someone available like Vince Adams. He is in a
position to make unbiased recommendations, as he is not directly
affiliated with any single FEA software pushers. He is available for
this type of consultaion and can be reached through Impact Engineering
Solutions in Milwaukee, WI (USA).
http://www.impactengsol.com