Altair > Case Studies > Revolutionizing Railcar Design: A Case Study on American Railcar Industries

Revolutionizing Railcar Design: A Case Study on American Railcar Industries

Technology Category

Sensors - Autonomous Driving Sensors

Applicable Industries

Automotive
Cement

Applicable Functions

Product Research & Development
Quality Assurance

Use Cases

Experimentation Automation
Time Sensitive Networking

Services

Testing & Certification

About The Customer

American Railcar Industries, headquartered in St. Charles, Missouri, is a leading designer and manufacturer of commercial railroad cars. The company produces every part of the car above the wheels and its customers use these railcars to transport a wide variety of liquid and solid raw materials, including oil, coal, cement, sand, grain, and other substances. The company's designs include boxcars, gondolas, and hoppers, among other styles. Each design is tailored to the specific cargo it will carry, taking into account the unique properties and regulations associated with each material.

The Challenge

American Railcar Industries, a leading manufacturer of commercial railroad cars, was facing a significant challenge in modifying railcar designs. The company had to design state-of-the-art cars while considering the specific materials to be transported. For instance, designing a car to transport chlorine, a highly corrosive substance, required a robust design that complied with federal and state regulations. The company also had to ensure that the railcar was cost-competitive, which meant developing the least costly design that provided high levels of efficiency. The company had been using finite element analysis software for many years, but the limitations of that software had begun to slow their innovation processes. The company maintains base models for various types of cars, but each customer requires modifications to tailor the cars for the specific cargos they will carry. As a result, engineers had to re-run the model for different load cases. The company was also projecting an increase in projects involving structural dynamics, which were previously contracted out due to the lack of appropriate software.

The Solution

The company adopted HyperMesh, a pre-processing tool within Altair’s HyperWorks CAE suite, to overcome these challenges. HyperMesh offered an easy-to-use interface and advanced features that addressed the company's needs. When engineers needed to change the geometry of a car, the mesh updated quickly, eliminating the need to delete and re-mesh. Moreover, the same set of HyperWorks units could be used for any software tool in the suite or offered by the Altair Partner Alliance. This meant that if a fluid dynamics analysis was needed, there was no need to purchase additional software. The company also started using MotionSolve to design mechanisms, eliminating the need to contract out the analysis to someone else. The company is now considering the use of HyperCrash to develop models that accurately indicate the behavior of various types of cargo when the railcar experiences an impact.

Operational Impact

The adoption of HyperMesh has resulted in a more efficient and cost-effective design process for American Railcar Industries. The tool's ease of use and advanced features have enabled the company's engineering team to quickly and easily modify railcar designs to meet specific customer requirements. The ability to perform different types of analyses using the same software has also eliminated the need to contract out certain types of work, further reducing costs and increasing efficiency. The company is now able to handle a wider range of projects, including those involving structural dynamics, which were previously contracted out. This has increased the company's confidence in its ability to handle any project that comes its way. The company is also considering the use of HyperCrash to simulate real-world testing scenarios, which could further enhance its design capabilities.

Quantitative Benefit

Significant time savings due to quick mesh updates
Cost savings from not needing to purchase additional software for different analyses
Financial savings from not having to contract out analysis work