At CAL International we combine traditional engineering precision with the latest technologies to create an exciting blend of innovation and cutting-edge design. Precision Engineering requires precision planning and so we use FEA routinely across our projects to ensure we get it right, first time minimising expensive mistakes.

FEA can be integral to the design cycle or applied as an independent verification and so CAL offers a secondary boutique service for clients who have their own design capability and want to use FEA and design simulation to validate design and to save time and money.

FEA exists because every experienced engineer has seen horror stories of design teams under extreme pressure who have rushed out prototypes and then attempted to ‘retro-engineer’ it into a sustainable product.  The results are seldom pretty and FEA is the smart solution allowing teams to simulate and validate design ideas before committing to building an expensive prototype.

CAL International takes simulation very seriously. We have strong academic credentials and a comprehensive suite of simulation software, both static and dynamic, that allows us to cheaply and quickly validate design concepts ultimately reducing product development time and costs.  The CAL capability is very sophisticated and goes well beyond linear analysis to include vibrational (modal and transient) and heat transfer analysis along with the various full ‘life cycle’ analysis methodologies that may require redesign or inform a pre-emptive maintenance schedule.

The potential uses of FEA are limitless but at CAL International we focus on two core FEA/ Simulation services;

Design Development with integral FEA

Weld contact assessment on lifting equipment

Precision engineering sits at the heart of the CAL offering, we incorporate mechanical and electromechanical design to deliver the best solution which invariably throws up a number of design options that we then validate using the Finite Element Method.

Our speciality is to deliver robust engineering designs in the most efficient manner by combining years of practical experience, the latest academic research and computer-driven Finite Element Analysis modelling.  This process allows our design team to quickly narrow in on the most viable solutions options and then we develop these options by examining the repetitive function and wider life cycle considerations such as key component manufacturability & replacement, ease of assembly, validate the Full Life Cost etc.

The CAL solution design team, with integral FEA, is both sector and solution agnostic. In conjunction with the CAL New Product Introduction (NPI) team we can confidently deliver “Complete Solutions” from design concept ‘cradle’ through the full product lifecycle to ultimately the solution ‘decommissioning’ grave.

The CAL FEA team is also available to support clients who have their own design capability and want to use FEA and design simulation to validate their designs or to offer optimisation suggestions. Naturally the Design Validation service can be a broad as the capabilities of FEA but in most circumstances the requirements are mechanical requiring the product to be assesed against load, force, pressure, heat, electromagnetic interference, vibration and any other physical stimuli that the product, or individual components, could be exposed to during its full life cycle.

Aircraft Wing under Vibration Analysis (Lab scaled)

Whilst mechanical engineering sits at the heart of most precision engineering the CAL Design Validation team is definitely not constrained to the mechanical arena, almost all solutions are equally assessed by our team of electrical engineers, electronic engineers, our system integrators, and increasingly our Software Development and Cloud Ops Teams are required to provide a provide a holistic review.

Additional services that the Design Validation Team can provide include;

• Optimising for Occupational Health: Providing designing support and advice for HSE material handling, operator safety and security aspects
• Heavy Machinery Conversion and Upgrading: Providing complete design and engineering support to upgrade heavy machinery such as providing new special attachments or modification for new functions.

In addition to all of the above CAL also has a specialist MedTech team bringing medical and Biotechnology specialisation support as required.

The CAL copyrighting team can also support with the broader legal/ Intellectual Property Rights considerations that often arise from an innovative design.