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The Commonwealth Grants Commission (CGC), an independent statutory body advising the Australian Government on financial assistance for states and territories, was facing a significant challenge with its aging access infrastructure. For several years, the CGC’s staff had relied on a secure internet gateway (SIG) service based on a 10Mbps network link. This SIG was the only link with the outside world, and congestion and performance had gradually become a significant issue. The move to the cloud was part of an 'anywhere, anytime, any device' strategy adopted by the organization to maintain business continuity and rapidly support staff wherever they may be located. There was also a plan to shift into new premises in about 18 months and a need to improve performance to access cloud-based solutions.

DB Schenker, a global logistics and freight-forwarding company, faced a significant challenge when the coronavirus outbreak began. The company had to quickly enable the majority of its 76,000+ workforce to work remotely, ensuring their safety while maintaining business continuity. The company's operations span over 80 countries and 1400+ locations, making the task even more complex. The immediate concern was how to facilitate remote access for its employees, particularly those affected by the outbreak in China. The company's existing IT infrastructure and legacy network architecture were not equipped to handle such a massive shift to remote work.

Fairfax County, located in Northern Virginia, is the most populous county in the Commonwealth of Virginia with over 1.1 million citizens and more than 12,000 government employees. The county oversees a wide range of services including elections, tax collection, public education, social services, law enforcement, fire and rescue, transportation, and parks and recreation. With the rise in cyberattacks, especially those targeting the government sector, Fairfax County recognized the need to reimagine its security strategy. The county had hundreds of applications in the data center and in Azure that needed to be protected. The county wanted to reduce its network attack surface and decrease the risk of breaches by protecting east-west traffic inside the data center. The next generation firewalls (NGFWs) it was using to protect its data were becoming suboptimal, with hundreds of applications resulting in thousands of policies and creating unnecessary complexity. With a small, centralized IT team, Fairfax County needed to minimize complexity with a zero trust solution that was easy and seamless to deploy, monitor, and manage.

Falkirk Council, a unitary authority in Scotland, was faced with the challenge of rapidly transitioning its cybersecurity to a zero trust, cloud-centric approach in support of work-from-anywhere (WFA) model due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The council, responsible for a wide range of services for its 160,000 residents, had to modernize its existing cybersecurity solutions to accommodate the sudden shift to remote work and learning. The existing IT systems were strained under the load of the increased demand, and the council was looking for an effective way to use taxpayer funds to enhance its systems. Falkirk Council had already conducted a proof-of-concept (POC) with the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange platform as part of a larger initiative for transitioning to a hybrid cloud and on-premises IT environment.

Fareportal, a leading travel agency based in North America, transitioned from a traditional paper-based booking system to an online platform. With this digital transformation, the company faced an increased emphasis on security due to the handling of personally identifiable information. The challenge was to ensure the security of customer data and reduce fraud while maintaining the productivity of the employees. Internet access was a critical tool for Fareportal’s agents, which required the creation of unique policies for various groups in the contact center and throughout the organization. The company needed a solution that could handle the complexity of their internet access and meet their operational needs without straining their team.

GROWMARK, a large agricultural cooperative, faced significant challenges in providing zero trust access to hundreds of applications hosted on AWS and on-premises. The company had to upgrade its VPN public interfaces and technology to accommodate its remote and hybrid workforce operating in over 500 rural locations with often unreliable internet service. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated these challenges, necessitating a swift transition to a secure, reliable, and scalable remote work environment. GROWMARK also sought to tie access to identity and multi-factor authentication (MFA) to gain better visibility into online user activities. The company also aimed to replace its legacy VPN technology with a solution that could better support its remote, rural, connectivity-challenged workforce.

Guild Mortgage, a residential real estate mortgage company, experienced exponential growth since its inception in 1960. With over 250 branch and satellite offices in 27 states and banking relationships in 48 states, the company's workforce grew from 400 to over 4,000 employees. This rapid expansion necessitated a robust security strategy to support the growing business needs. Three years ago, a security team was formed to identify vulnerabilities and build a mitigation strategy. While some security technologies were in place for in-office workers, the team found that users were not as protected when working remotely. The team aimed to implement a state-of-the-art security program that could support the evolving business needs driven by their aggressive growth strategy. They needed a cloud-based solution that could provide SSL decryption and inspection, an intrusion prevention system (IPS), and data loss prevention (DLP) to enable users to work from anywhere.

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine (HJF) is a nonprofit organization that supports about 1,500 scientific research programs across military and government. These programs range from cancer research, combat care, disaster preparedness, clinical and rehabilitative medicine to infectious disease control. Amid the global battle against COVID-19, HJF was determined to fight the pandemic on two fronts: supporting domestic and international partners working on innovative countermeasures, and keeping its team and the communities in which they live and serve safe by helping mitigate the spread of the disease. To accomplish this, HJF needed to find a way to provide its staff, researchers, and partners with remote access to critical applications as they transitioned to working from home while continuing to support their colleagues in the labs.

Jefferson Health, a rapidly expanding multi-state non-profit health system, was faced with the challenge of supporting its rapid institutional growth, a cloud-first strategy, and M&A activity in the highly regulated healthcare industry. As one of the fastest-growing health systems in the U.S., Jefferson Health began adopting a cloud-first strategy to facilitate achieving its patient care and business goals. This transition necessitated the modernization of its cybersecurity posture approach. To support its growth while retaining its patient care excellence, Jefferson Health took a highly quantitative approach to managing risk. This analytical process led the healthcare system to accelerate its cloud-first, multi-cloud, adoption, including Amazon AWS, requiring the security operations team to swiftly deploy zero trust cloud security services. It was also critical to ensure cybersecurity posture was maintained while supporting organizational agility for embarking on new development and strategic ventures.

Konoike Transport, a comprehensive logistics company based in Japan, was facing a significant challenge in its digital transformation journey. The company had a mid-term IT strategy that aimed to move its ICT infrastructure to the cloud and enable work style innovation. However, the company was struggling with providing high-speed secure access to the internet, cloud solutions, and internal systems for its employees, regardless of their location. The company initially used three major carriers for WAN, and employees had to sign up to take laptops out of the office, which required complicated settings to ensure security outside the office. As the company expanded, the number of PCs, cloud service usage, and VPN connections increased, leading to bandwidth becoming a bottleneck. The company was also unable to use public Wi-Fi due to its security policy, and the internet processing speed on laptops was slow due to data restrictions.

Vaughan Co., a leading manufacturer of chopper pumps, faced a significant challenge in developing process mixing installations for wastewater treatment. The goal was to minimize 'dead zones' in the tank where solids could collect, as these solids decrease active volume and reduce process capacity. However, on-site process optimization was impractical due to the unique nature of each installation. Additionally, model testing for each installation was not only expensive but also offered limited information and could be unreliable due to scale-up issues. The company also faced difficulties in achieving convergence in numerical simulation of tank flows using conventional CFD solvers, due to the nature of the flow, which included large variation in length scales and low velocity.

The designers of a luxury super yacht were faced with a significant challenge when the initial design of the vessel was approximately 300 tons above the desired weight. The high-quality super yachts are engineered to perfection, ensuring extraordinary handling in difficult sea conditions while combining maximum power with reduced emissions. To achieve this exceptional performance, the use of lightweight and high-strength materials like carbon composites is often necessary. The designers sought the expertise of ar engineers to find ways to reduce the weight of the yacht. The engineering team was tasked with investigating the use of carbon composites materials for several access doors used by the yacht crew and service members. They used ANSYS Composite PrepPost to determine the feasibility and to optimize the composites design.

3Discovered, an exchange platform for commercial-grade 3D printed parts and products, was facing a challenge in finding a 3D modeling software package that fit their startup budget. They needed a solution that could quickly turn around designs for printing and handle models in a variety of formats or design them based on 3D scans. The company was also dealing with the issue of reverse engineering, as they often received work from design owners and customers that required this process before they could work with a 3D print house. The existing software solutions they had tried, such as Inventor or SolidWorks, were not designed to handle the large number of facets involved in reverse engineering and would often crash.

Mirage Machines, a manufacturer of portable machines for various industries, was facing a challenge in their design process. They were using detailed structural simulation at the front end of the design process to ensure the robustness and risk-free nature of their solutions. However, the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation they were using, SolidWorks® Professional and Premium packages, had limitations. These packages only allowed Mirage to conduct FEA on single parts and small assembly models. A recent project required the development of a gantry that used a series of magnets to attach steel rails. The initial design was to be base metal, but the requirement changed to include a layer of paint. This change introduced an air gap, reducing the magnets' pull force by 40 percent. Mirage needed to understand the impact of the paint thickness on the pull force of the magnets and the integrity of the structure as the arms moved along the base rail.

Energy Absorption Systems, Inc., a global leader in the design and manufacture of crash cushions, impact attenuators, and other energy-absorbing safety devices, faced a challenge with their TMA-180 truck-mounted attenuator. This device, consisting of a hinged steel frame containing energy-absorbing air-filled aluminum baffles, extends from the back of parked construction vehicles to protect people and equipment in highway work zones from vehicle traffic impacts. The company found a more reliable and economical supplier for the hydraulic cylinder that powers the rotation of the frame. However, the differences in cylinder geometry and loading necessitated a redesign of the clevis linkage connecting the cylinder to the frame. The challenge was to execute this redesign as quickly and reliably as possible to reduce the time to market for the improved product.

The Metal Building Insulation (MBI) industry was facing a challenge in revising insulation performance standards. Owens Corning, a leading member of the MBI industry, recognized the need for developing thermal performance factors for MBI assemblies. The task involved numerical modeling of three-dimensional flow and heat transfer problems in insulation assemblies used in the metal building industry. The geometries of these assemblies were complex, including several materials with different thermal conductivities and narrow pockets of air where natural convective currents could potentially form. Even slight variations in the overall heat transfer rates could have a significant impact in the long run. Therefore, the roof-insulation fastening mechanisms had to be carefully designed for optimal performance.

The United States Marine Corps was set to roll out a new Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) by the end of the decade. This hybrid tank/boat was designed to carry 20 personnel over both land and sea at speeds of up to 30 miles an hour. However, the EFV contained an environmental control system (ECS) that was not up to the mark. The ECS, essentially a high-performance air conditioner, was supposed to keep the cabin air at a comfortable temperature even when outside temperatures were as high as 125º Fahrenheit, while operating quietly enough to pose no risk to the crew’s hearing. The initial prototype failed to meet these standards, leading to a re-bid process. Fairchild Controls Corporation won the re-bid and was tasked with improving the ECS unit’s airflow and minimizing operational noise, all within a strict budget and a tight deadline of 14 months.

Comatec Oy, a company providing engineering services for the industrial machinery sector, was facing several challenges in their product design and optimization process. They were dealing with complex projects from customers that presented complicated boundary conditions, loadings, and nonlinearities. The company was struggling to efficiently import 3-D models from various CAD applications into simulation tools. They also had to handle large assemblies with many configurations, which was a complex task. Evaluating stress, vibration, and fatigue for mechanical and thermal loadings was another challenge they faced. Additionally, they needed to quickly obtain and report results to customers, which was proving to be time-consuming and inefficient.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, one of the deadliest hurricanes in the United States, Mechanical Solutions, Inc. (MSI) was subcontracted to increase the capacity of a pumping station in flood-prone New Orleans. The challenge was to evaluate the vibration responses of the platform during the operation of high-power mechanical equipment. During major weather events, these high-power pumping units must work at full capacity to drain excess water out of sub-sea-level areas. The heavy equipment produces vibrations and other stresses that can cause the massive platforms supporting the equipment to fail. MSI engineers faced numerous challenges in assessing and addressing design problems of the partially submerged pumping station platforms. All design issues had to be identified and addressed before any construction began, and the project needed to be completed prior to the onset of the next hurricane season.

Kato Engineering, a company that designs and manufactures a complete line of precision-engineered, high-quality AC generators, motor-generator sets, and controls for prime, standby, and peak-shaving power generation, faced a significant challenge. The subtransient reactance of an electrical generator, which is the generator internal impedance element that is effective during the first few cycles of a transient load event, was difficult to predict. This reactance is typically determined through factory testing of new generator designs after the design process is finished. This method was not only time-consuming but also inefficient as it delayed the identification of potential issues until after the design process was completed.

In the rail industry, hardware testing is a costly and time-consuming process, often limited to research and development at the Masters and Ph.D. levels. This level of detail is often unnecessary and cost-prohibitive for typical railcar manufacturing. However, as more railcars are phased out due to service age, there is a growing demand for new railcar designs. Freight transit by railcar is favored by many companies due to its low cost per high volume shipment. A new customer of BNSF Logistics LLC (BNSFL) requested a stress analysis on their covered hopper design. When it became clear that significant structural changes would be needed to meet the Association of American Railroads (AAR) requirements, the customer requested a larger scope of work beyond FEA verification. BNSFL was then tasked to deliver both the modified CAD design and supporting stress analysis. The success of the project depended on simulation to demonstrate the railcar’s structural integrity.

Apollo Engineering was tasked with the challenge of re-engineering the aging, four-person wheeled-bobsled vehicles at Park City, Utah, which were providing a rough, uneven ride to the customers. The original design of the bobsled consisted of a two-piece fiberglass body connected by a steel yoke bolted to both pieces. The body design necessitated a long and poorly supported yoke. The challenge was further complicated by significant changes to the wheels and suspension system of the bobsled, including the removal of an axle in the middle of the vehicle, to produce a smoother ride. This meant that the yoke had to be redesigned and the forces on it had to be re-evaluated to ensure that it could withstand the stress, strain, and fatigue for safety purposes.

TNO Prins Maurits Laboratory (TNO-PML) is a renowned institution in the field of defense research, providing scientific and technical advice in areas such as explosion safety, munition effects, ballistic protection, and survivability of weapon platforms. The laboratory combines experimental facilities with numerical analysis capabilities to deliver high-quality research. However, the challenge lies in the application of these research findings in real-world scenarios. The main applications of their research tool, AUTODYN, include terminal ballistics, injury biomechanics, safe field storage of ammunition and explosives, effects of bomb attacks and explosions onto structures, explosive materials processing, and mineblast modeling. The challenge is to effectively utilize these applications in a way that enhances the safety and efficiency of defense operations.

Voith Turbo Scharfenberg, a leader in the railway industry, faced the challenge of designing railcar couplers that could absorb the enormous energy created by a train collision, thereby enhancing passenger safety. The energy absorption systems had to meet specific standards and were required to function effectively not only during heavy impacts but also during smooth train operation or minor impacts. The components of the absorption system, particularly the rubber elements, undergo large deformation during a collision, making the simulation of these hyperelastic materials a challenge. Additionally, the specific nonlinear force-path characteristics of the absorption elements had to be met. The design assessment based on simulation of different collision scenarios was necessary to optimize the coupler and its energy absorption characteristics.

ISGEC Hitachi Zosen Limited, a leading manufacturer of complex pressure vessels and heat exchanger equipment, was faced with the challenge of utilizing the maximum temperature capability of materials for the design of structural components in the oil and gas sector. The current ASME code (Section VIII, Division 2) limits the generation of fatigue curves up to a maximum of 371 °C. However, manufacturers wanted to use ASME Code Case 2605, a special rule for fatigue evaluation of 2.25Cr-1Mo-0.25V steels at temperatures greater than 371 °C and less than 454 °C. The challenge was to carry out full inelastic analysis, such as ratcheting elastic shakedown analysis, using the actual time-dependent thermal and mechanical loading histograms. The existing methods of treating plasticity and creep as two independent phenomena in stress and strain calculations using spreadsheet-like applications were subject to human error and could lead to unrealistic damage parameters.

Epta, a global leader in commercial refrigeration solutions, was facing challenges in evaluating and validating the performance of multiple refrigeration system designs under various working conditions. The increasing global engineering trends necessitated a deeper understanding of physics and large-scale simulation efforts. The traditional methods were not efficient enough to deal with these demanding requirements. The need for a robust, fast, and convenient environment, especially during production peaks, was evident. The challenge was to find a solution that could provide a flexible configuration to manage multiple projects simultaneously without compromising on the speed and scale of simulations.

The development of onshore wind farms requires a detailed understanding of how prevailing wind conditions interact with local terrain and potential wind turbine installations. Many of the software programs currently in use are not well suited to complex onshore terrain where factors such as atmospheric stability, forestry, and turbine interactions play a significant role. The accurate prediction of wind conditions including wind speed, wind shear, wind veer, and turbulence intensity both under ambient and waked conditions is vital for intelligent project design. The challenge lies in finding a solution that can accurately model these complex wind climates and optimize turbine placement to maximize energy yield and minimize risk.

NEM Energy b.v. was faced with a significant design challenge in their concentrated solar power (CSP) system. The CSP system uses mirrors or lenses to concentrate sunlight onto a small area to drive a heat engine connected to an electrical power generator. The key challenge was to increase the stiffness of the mirrors for CSP. This was crucial to ensure that as much reflected light as possible is directed to the target, called a receiver, without incurring a cost premium. Stiffness was critical because a mere 1-degree rotation error for a heliostat 380 meters away from the tower resulted in a 6.6-meter tracking error, meaning the reflected light was delivered 6.6 meters from the intended target on the tower.

Holcim (Brazil) S.A., a leading global supplier of cement, aggregates, and concrete products in Brazil, was facing a challenge in the regulation of particle size used in creating cement. The size of these particles can significantly affect the efficiency of the cement production line. The company was seeking technology gains that could reduce operational costs and increase production efficiency. The challenge was to replace the expensive and time-consuming trial-and-error testing of separator performance with computer modeling. They also needed to simulate and classify the particles’ paths as a function of particle diameter to consider possible improvements that would increase separation efficiency.

Royal Philips Electronics, a global leader in the electronics industry, faced a significant challenge in the development of its Ceramic Discharge Metal-halide (CDM) lamps. The primary challenge was to create a lamp design that was both thermally and mechanically robust, capable of lasting a specified lifetime. To achieve this, accurate simulation of the gas discharge, wall temperature, and mechanical stresses were required. The complexity of these factors made it difficult to develop a lamp that could meet the high standards of durability and longevity that Philips aimed for. The challenge was not only to create a lamp that could withstand the rigors of use but also to understand the intricate interplay of various physical factors that could affect the lamp's performance.