Common structural analysis solutions are dedicated to one or a few analysis disciplines. To build up a comprehensive level of engineering analysis capability, multiple software solutions must be acquired, and users must be trained with each new tool. MSC Nastran features multiple analysis disciplines, enabling customers with one structural analysis solution for a wide variety of engineering problems.

• Use one platform to perform linear or nonlinear analysis for the following disciplines: static, dynamic (NVH & Acoustics included), thermal, and buckling, and reduce the dependency on multiple structural analysis programs from various vendors
• Perform fatigue analysis with embedded fatigue technologies and reduce the time usually associated with fatigue life determination
• Assess the behavior of advanced composites and fiber reinforced plastics with built in Progressive Failure Analysis and User Defined Services for Mean-field Homogenization coupling with Digimat

One structural member is rarely analyzed independently. Structural systems consist of numerous components, and must be analyzed as a whole. MSC Nastran features a number of methods to join multiple components for system level structural analysis.

• Expedite meshing with Permanent Glue, enabling you to connect incongruent meshes that would traditionally require time consuming mesh transitions
• Save time constructing assemblies that consists of welds or fasteners via specialized connector elements
• Speed up the re-analysis of large assemblies by constructing Superelements, and optionally, share Superelements with other manufacturers while concealing confidential design information
• Perform contact analysis and determine contact stresses and contact regions in multi-component designs

Design optimization is a critical element in product development, but is often very iterative and requires a great deal of manual effort. MSC Nastran includes optimization algorithms that automatically seek optimal configurations in an allowed design space.

• Optimize for stress, mass, fatigue, etc. while varying design variables such as material properties, geometric dimensions, loads, etc.
• Enhance the shape or profile of structural members with shape optimization
• Find optimal composite laminate ply thicknesses with topometry optimization
• Determine optimal bead or stamp patterns for sheet metal parts with topography optimization
• Remove excess and unnecessary volume with topology optimization
• Simultaneously optimize multiple models across disciplines with Multi Model Optimization