Agile Engineering Design System®
The future of turbomachinery design is here!
Computer Aided Engineering Software (CAE)
Concepts NREC is happy to announce that the transition of our design tools to the OMNIS platform is well underway! AXIAL™, our axial turbine and compressor meanline design and analysis product, has already made the transition. In addition, much of the axial context of our flagship 3-D design product, AxCent®, has also been migrated to this new platform.
OMNIS will empower turbomachinery designers by leveraging the power of Concepts NREC and Cadence/NUMECA design & analysis tools to push the boundaries of performance and durability, all in a single interface.
The Agile Engineering Design System®, the world’s best design software specialized for turbomachinery, is continuously refined through a rigorous development process. The process incorporates the most recent test data and the latest theoretical advances to aid in the design, analysis, and manufacturing of pumps, compressors, turbines, turbochargers, blowers, and fans.
These sophisticated software tools empower designers and product development teams worldwide and enable innovative solutions by applying a cost-effective concurrent development approach that balances issues of performance, reliability, operating life, and low-cost manufacturability.
Preliminary Design
Our preliminary design suite uses a meanline approach to rapidly size and analyze single or multistage machines. Each specialized module features a design wizard that leads users through the process. Our preliminary design software modules for turbomachinery design are:
- COMPAL® – Radial and mixed-flow compressors
- PUMPAL® – Centrifugal, mixed-flow, and axial pumps
- RITAL™– Radial and mixed-flow turbines
- FANPAL™ – Axial, radial, or mixed-flow fans for single and multiple stages
- AXIAL™ – Multistage axial compressors and gas, steam, and hydraulic turbines
Detailed Design
Our detailed design software modules provide well-defined 3D geometry for rotating and stationary blade rows and associated flow paths and structures. We offer the following detailed design modules for turbomachinery:
- AxCent® – Detailed 3D geometric design and rapid 2D flow
analysis of single and multistage axial and radial turbomachinery - FINE/pbCFD™ and FINE™/Turbo – Specialized 3D flow analysis that provides advanced CFD through our partnership with Cadence/NUMECA.
- PbPost™ – Pushbutton post-processing module that enables FINE™/Turbo to be launched from within the AxCent® environment. It can also import the FINE/Turbo CFD results back into the AxCent viewing environment.
- Pushbutton FEA™ – Specialized 3D FEA analysis with highly automated preprocessing and postprocessing functions
Specialized Design
- CTAADS™ – Cooled Turbine Airfoil Agile Design System for advanced 3D modeling of cooling systems for axial turbine vanes and blades
- TurboOPT II™ – Holistic optimizer and stress analysis
- Dyrobes™ – Modeling dynamics of rotor bearing systems
- GasTurb™ – Simulated gas turbine performance
Industry-Leading Turbomachinery CAM Software
Concepts NREC’s MAX-PAC™ family of CAM software provides optimal cutter-path solutions for turbomachinery components by offering users several cutting strategies that can reduce engineering costs as well as production costs. MAX-PAC is available in any combination of modules to suit part geometry requirements for flank milling of ruled-surface blading, point milling of arbitrary-surface blading, point milling of integrally shrouded impellers, or milling of single blades.
MAX-PAC has long been recognized as the best CAM software for 5-axis milling of turbomachinery impellers, blisks, and rotors, and enjoys a strong worldwide reputation with manufacturers, job shops, and 5-axis machine-tool companies.
Expertise built into these specialized tools incorporates methodologies protected by three separate patents. Compared to other CAM tools, MAX-PAC addresses only turbomachinery, and as a result, it is faster to learn, easier to use, and requires less programming and machining time. However, its most important attribute is that MAX-PAC produces higher quality parts than its competition.
Better, Faster, Cheaper
Manufacturing turbomachinery components is often a challenge due to hard materials, thin blades, tight tolerances, smooth surface- finish requirements, or difficult tool access. Concepts NREC’s MAX-PAC CAM software was built from the ground up to address these challenges. MAX-PAC enables users to produce high-quality components in less time and at lower cost. Compared to other general CAM tools, MAX-PAC is faster to learn, easier to use, and requires less programming and machining time. Its choice of cutting strategies ensures that each client has a solution tailored to their specific milling requirements. The most important attribute of MAX-PAC, however, is its ability to produce higher-quality turbomachinery components.
MAX-PAC Advantages
- Specialized for turbomachinery production
- Easy and fast to learn
- Supports a broad selection of tool geometries
- Faster machining times with optimized cutting strategies
- Smooth 5-axis toolpaths for high-speed milling
- Collision-free toolpaths for difficult geometries
- Superior surface finish and tight tolerances using a patented flank- or point-milling approach
- Produces high-quality parts that don’t require hand finishing or other reworking
Collision Avoidance
Parts are getting more complicated and manufacturing them can be challenging. MAX-PAC automatically checks the feasibility of machining your part as soon as you program in the tool, holder and geometry. Our patented collision avoidance algorithm quickly determines a smooth, safe trajectory for both the tool and holder through the pocket, or gives a warning if one can’t be found. This saves you time and money by avoiding a lot of simulations and/or test cutting.
Other CAM systems use individual points based on the part’s geometry to create a collision-free toolpath. MAX-PAC calculates an entire collision free zone and then determines the smoothest path through that zone to produce the best part in the shortest amount of time. This approach also enables MAX-PAC to machine parts other software can’t.
Other CAM systems use an approach that results in a “jerky” motion as seen here. Note how the tool flip-flops around the lead and trail edges:
MAX-PAC’s approach results in a much smoother machine motion, especially as the tool goes around the lead and trail edges:
For example, we have a large OEM customer who was trying to machine an impeller. The software they were using at the time could not find a toolpath that would enable them to manufacture the part as designed. After months of trying, they approached Concepts NREC with their problem. We were able to deliver a workable toolpath the next day. Needless to say, the customer switched software!
MAX-PAC Add-On Modules
MAX-PAC offers several different add-on modules that are focused on specific milling needs. You can purchase any combination of modules to meet your specific machining requirements.
- MAX-5 –Flank Milling
- MAX-AB – Point Milling
- MAX-SI – Integral Shroud Milling
- MAX-SB – Single Blade Milling
- 3+2 Roughing Module
- Postprocessing and Simulation
Customer Testimonials
I have found MAX-PAC by Concepts NREC to be an exceptionally powerful and yet easy to use CAM software for demonstrating our MAZAK 5 Axis machines. Time was limited leading up to IMTS 2016 so I needed something easy to learn yet powerful enough to make it look easy and MAX-PAC fit the bill perfectly. MAX-PAC does everything for me, it helps me spec the correct tool form, it provides optimized and easily adjustable 5 Axis toolpath for both rough and finish and it provides simulated toolpath. Most of the details of steering a tool around the blade are automated for clearance and stroke limits yet easily adjustable to optimize finish. Blending the radius at the hub perfectly highlights the precision of my machine as the blends look great. It’s easy to tell this software was made by people who know how to make a blisk. Cutting a blisk for a demo has become a relatively quick and easy task, giving us an excellent tool for highlighting the capabilities of our MAZAK 5 Axis machines.
Robin Cave, Applications Engineer
Mazak Corporation