Paris – France, June 15, 2006 - ESI Group, (ESIN FR0004110310) announces PAM-TUBE 2G, a new product suite in the stamping simulation solution line, tailored made for tube bending and hydro forming processes. PAM-TUBE 2G supports all the stages from design to product manufacturing. PAM-TUBE 2G is an intuitive software package, where the user is guided through the different steps of the process. In response to market demand PAM-TUBE 2G offers accurate tube bending simulation with realistic tool modeling and behavior for better forming simulation results, and offers coupling capabilities for more accurate product performance assessment.

 “ESI Group is engaging into a new phase of long-term partnership related to advanced tube manufacturing technology, explains Martin Skrikerud, Product Manager. PAM-TUBE 2G development has benefited from academic and industrial know-how. Thanks to a partnership with University of Siegen, Germany, and a close collaboration with DaimlerChrysler, Audi, Schuler Hydro forming, bu+Engineering GmbH, hde Solutions, Eberspächer, ThyssenKrupp Budd, we’ve brought a high level of confidence to use tube bending and hydro forming simulation in a robust product solution for industrial manufacturing.

PAM-TUBE 2G as a specialized engineering solution, accelerates development cycles in reducing tube bending design and hydro forming costs. It offers a unique environment combining specialized design tools for tube and hydro forming processes allowing concentrating on fast strain and ovalization predictions, automatic addendum design and welding consideration for mass production instead of software issues. This solution offers extensive functionality which includes; distributed parallel processing for bending, an annealing option, and multistage macro templates.

ESI Group’s Metal Forming Simulation Solutions

PAM-STAMP 2G offers a unique stamping simulation value chain, from quick stamping die design, through early feasibility, to final validation and quality control. The full range of features includes: - Parametric and surface-oriented binder and addendum generation with ‘PAM-DIEMAKER’ - Rapid and optimal feasibility analysis with ‘PAM-QUIKSTAMP Plus’, and highly accurate forming validation, which can provide surface defect visualisation, spring back prediction and automatic die compensation with ‘PAM-AUTOSTAMP’

ESI Group’s Metal Forming solutions now extend to:

- The design and simulation of tube hydroforming dies with PAM-TUBE 2G

- Part feasibility check, and rapid die creation integrated within PLM environment, with PAM-TFA, and PAM-DIEMAKER for CATIA V5.

About ESI Group

ESI Group is a world-leading supplier, and a pioneer of digital simulation software for prototyping and manufacturing processes that take into account the physics of materials. ESI Group has developed an extensive suite of coherent, industry oriented applications to realistically simulate a product’s behavior during testing, to fine-tune manufacturing processes in accordance with desired product performance, and evaluate the environment’s impact on product performance. 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 and open virtual engineering solution known as the Virtual Try-Out Space (VTOS), enabling virtual prototypes to be improved in a continuous and collaborative manner. 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 offer major competitive advantage by progressively eliminating the need for physical prototypes during product development. The company generated sales of €62.2m in 2005, employs over 500 high-level specialists worldwide covering more than 30 countries. ESI Group is listed in Eurolist compartment C of Euronext Paris. For further information, visit www.esi-group.com.

Virtual Try-Out Space® and VTOS® are registered trademarks of ESI Group. All other products, names or companies are the brands or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

ESI Group - Press Relations
Nathalie David-Franc
nathalie.david-franc@esi-group.com
Phone : + 33 (0)1 41 73 58 35