Tech Briefs Magazine - October 2021 - 44a

GUEST EDITORIAL
Apps are Supporting the Digitization of the
Testing, Inspection, and Certification Industry
by JAMES DEAN
The global testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) market
is worth an estimated $250 billion. Growth of the market is
being fueled by rapid developments in developing economies,
high adoption of outsourced service models by manufacturers,
increased requirements for the adoption of uniform standards,
and the enforcement of rigorous government regulations and
standards across various sectors. Many firms in this space are
now assessing their investment and acquisition strategies to
capitalize on emerging and innovative technologies. Element
Materials Technology, for example, recently established a $10
million innovation fund to support technology-led investments.
Much of the activity in this space - whether innovation,
acquisition, or investment - now encompasses " digital " , and
many companies are creating, incubating, or acquiring digital
capabilities to speed up the delivery and supply of solutions and
applications that align with their digital innovation initiatives
and ambitions around industry 4.0. Central to much of this is
simulation, and the development and deployment of simulation
applications, which are known to be key innovation enablers.
A good example of simulation-driven innovation can be
found at Plastometrex - a science-based technology company
in Cambridge, U.K. - developing novel mechanical testing
systems underpinned by digital tools for the TIC sector. In
conjunction with our hardware, our software packages are
designed to make mechanical testing faster; more versatile; and,
importantly, more insightful. We built them using the COMSOL
Multiphysics®
software and built-in Application Builder.
Our first commercial product - the Indentation Plastometer
- was launched in November 2020. It uses a technique called
indentation plastometry to measure stress-strain curves and
metal strength parameters from a single indentation test
in under three minutes. It combines the ease and simplicity
of hardness testing with access to meaningful strength
information from tensile testing, but in a benchtop-based
product. It solves a particular set of problems that often
render conventional tensile testing somewhat cumbersome
and inflexible. It is, for example, quicker than the tensile test
because there is no need to machine tensile test coupons. You
can also test small volumes of material and real components;
map properties over surfaces - welds, for example; and probe
the behavior of additively manufactured components. Highthroughput
testing is an additional advantage.
The progress at Plastometrex has been enabled by the
digital tools available from COMSOL, which are now being
used to modernize (and digitize) an industry and a set of
test techniques that have not changed that much in almost a
century. For example, the underlying mathematical framework
for indentation plastometry involves inverse finite element
analysis and optimization methods - capabilities available
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software. However, it is the ability to deploy
these capabilities through powerful, versatile, and bespoke
simulation applications that forms the basis for the early success
of our company. Our new product initiatives are also utilizing
COMSOL's digital simulation tools as we look to penetrate,
modernize, and remain competitive in the global TIC market.
with COMSOL®
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
James Dean has an undergraduate degree
in materials science from Imperial College,
London; a master's in gas turbine engineering
from Cranfield University; and a PhD in
materials from the University of Cambridge.
He is a former coordinator and senior teaching
associate at the Centre for Doctoral Training in
Computational Methods for Materials Science
at the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, and
founder of Double Precision Consultancy,
a COMSOL Certified Consultant that was
sold in January 2021. He is a cofounder of
Plastometrex and its CEO.
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Tech Briefs Magazine - October 2021

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