In the world of e-machine design and development, time is always the enemy. As the sun rises on another day at an e-mobility company, three engineers from different departments gather around a conference table, faces tense. The prototype deadline looms just weeks away, but a critical design change has thrown their timeline into chaos. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“We need to modify the axial flux design to address the thermal issues,” explains Elena, the thermal specialist. “But recreating the electromagnetic model in our simulation tool will take at least two weeks\u2014time we simply don’t have.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This scenario plays out daily across the industry. While the world races toward electrification, the tools and processes used to design these critical components often remain fragmented across disciplines, creating invisible walls between the very teams that need to collaborate most closely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
When Michael, an electrical engineer, spends weeks perfecting an e-motor design in a dedicated tool like Simcenter E-Machine Design<\/a>, his work represents just the beginning of a much longer journey. For that design to become reality, it must undergo a detailed design validation as well as thermal validation, structural analysis, and NVH testing\u2014each requiring the model to be painstakingly recreated in different simulation environments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n “I once spent three months just recreating an axial flux machine template in 3D for a more detailed analysis,” recalls Michael. “That’s three months of innovation time lost to what amounts to digital paperwork.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n This disconnect doesn’t just waste time\u2014it fundamentally limits how teams can collaborate. When each model recreation takes weeks, the rapid back-and-forth iteration that drives innovation becomes impossible. Engineers make conservative design choices simply because they can’t afford the time to explore alternatives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Imagine instead a world where Michael’s meticulously crafted e-motor design flows effortlessly between tools and teams\u2014where a single click sends the complete model, with all its complexity, directly into the next simulation environment Elena uses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This is precisely what the new model transfer capability across the Simcenter portfolio now delivers. It’s not just a feature\u2014it’s the digital thread that weaves together previously disconnected tools disciplines. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When Michael finishes optimizing his axial flux machine design in Simcenter E-Machine Design<\/a>\u2014after exploring hundreds of variants in just hours rather than weeks thanks to its equivalent circuit approach \u2014he no longer needs to create a 3D model for validation or to package up documentation and specifications for the thermal and mechanical teams. Instead, he simply transfers the complete model to Simcenter 3D<\/a> or Simcenter STAR-CCM+<\/a> with a single action. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena receives not just data or specifications, but a solver-ready 3D model, complete with proper mesh and simulation setup. What once took weeks now happens in moments. The geometry, materials, and electromagnetic properties transfer intact\u2014even complex features like skew and end-windings that would be particularly time-consuming to recreate manually. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWeaving the Digital Thread<\/h2>\n\n\n\n