CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
16 October 2007
Implementation Investments
ITER Virtually Defines Experimental Fusion Reactor with DELMIA Solutions from Dassault Systèmes
Dassault Systèmes ( DS ) announced that ITER, the joint international research and development project that aims to demonstrate the feasibility of fusion power, is introducing DELMIA Digital Manufacturing solutions from Dassault Systèmes as its process analysis platform. As the project progresses towards construction and building of the reactor in Cadarache in southern France, process definition and validation are becoming more and more important and will be addressed using DELMIA solutions. ITER already uses CATIA and ENOVIA as its PLM engineering platform.
Research is in progress to determine how and if reactor walls can be designed to last long enough to make a commercial power plant economically viable in the presence of the intense neutron flux. Damage can be caused by high energy neutrons knocking atoms out of their normal position in the crystal lattice.
"At this stage of the project, we are introducing DELMIA Digital Manufacturing Solutions to simulate our most critical processes, starting from concept validation of the fusion reactor and extending to its construction, operations and maintenance," explains Eric Martin, head of the ITER design office.
DELMIA Digital Manufacturing Solutions will enable ITER to optimize its construction, operation and maintenance processes. It will thereby reduce downtime and lifetime cost of the facility in addition to increasing operation safety by ensuring that construction, operation and shutdown sequences are fully compliant with the regulatory and safety constraints. By deploying the complete DS PLM solution set (CATIA, ENOVIA, DELMIA), the ITER team will be able to manage the entire project within a single environment, providing accurate, up-to-date information and streamlined processes.
"DELMIA's process planning, assembly, robotic simulation and human task solutions, as well as automatic path planning solutions from our partner KINEO CAM, provide a unique capability to help ITER solve the tremendous challenge of this complex facility," says Bruno Latchague, EVP, PLM Business Transformation, Dassault Systèmes. "This is another step in extending our collaboration with ITER into its manufacturing and operations planning."
About ITER
The overall mission of ITER is to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion as a safe energy source. The program is anticipated to last for 30 years - 10 for construction and 20 years of operation. ITER brings together seven funding partners, known as the ITER Parties. These are the European Union (represented by EURATOM), Japan, the People's Republic of China, India, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation and the USA.
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