Our Mission
To support and enable the safe and efficient use of advanced composite and other materials in a wide range of markets by using in-depth structural and materials knowledge to support good design and manufacturing best practice and to perform detailed, high quality structural analyses quickly and affordably.
PlySim was founded by Malcolm Wadia, an experienced Composite Design Engineer to not only fill a need for efficient and effective analysis of composite structures but also to support clients who have projects in new market areas or are new to using composite materials to make the most of these materials.
Malcolm graduated from the University of Bristol with a Masters Degree in Aeronautical Engineering and went on to work for a large composite engineering consultancy within a large wind energy materials supplier.
With a broad range of skills and design experience from offshore racing yachts and civil structures to full-scale tidal turbine blades and multi-megawatt wind turbine blades, he set up PlySim to offer a fresh range of Design and Analysis Services.
Composites offer a range of properties such as tremendous durability and high specific strength, which are impossible to match with traditional materials. Moreover, they allow the design of complex geometric forms and the engineering of bespoke materials precisely tailored to meet the demands of the particular application.
Wind turbine blades are a good example of the use of composite materials. All commercially available wind turbine blades are manufactured using composite materials. The requirement for high strength and stiffness to weight ratios (as they are loaded to a large extent by the blade’s own inertia) and high fatigue performance requirements mean that they could not be constructed with any other material.
Composite failure modes, and therefore design and analysis techniques used when designing composite structures, are very different and largely more complex than those in metal constructions. Therefore, specialist knowledge and experience is needed.
Markets
We can perform analyses related to any market area but have particular design and certification experience in the following markets:
- Wind Energy. From design to GL, DNV or IEC standards to production support and materials and blade testing.
- Ocean Energy. From Certification and Analysis Basis Guidance to DNV standards to Project Management.
- Marine. Design and Analysis to ISO, ABS,BV,GL,RINA or DNV standards.
- Civil and Architectural. From Design Basis Definition and Analysis to Engineering Overcheck services.