Advanced mechanical design and engineering of systems is a multi-faceted activity. Prototyping cost and testing challenges, clash with tight schedules for design development.
Such a scenario demands fast adoption of virtual simulation techniques. CAE (Computer Aided Engineering) is an amalgamation of such virtual simulation methods.
ANSYS, ABAQUS, and NASTRAN are at the front-end, while FEA (Finite Element Analysis) forms the backbone.
Structural, Thermal, Vibration, Fatigue and Durability simulations has increasingly become compulsory for design.
International standards like the ASME, DNV, API, IS, etc. have revised codes to include CAE simulations in design finalization.
A qualified design engineer is the one, who relies on the combination of their analysis skills like ANSYS and fundamental knowledge of FEA.