Software helps speed car to road. (Assembly in Action).

Use of Delmia's (Troy, MI) manufacturing software solutions enabled TWR Group Ltd. (Leafield, U.K.) to take the Renaultsport V6, 24-valve Clio concept car to full production in 18 months.

Paul Burton, projects manager, is certain that this rapid transformation would have been impossible without software from Delmia and computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided engineering (CAE) and computeraided manufacturing (CAM) tools from Dassault Systemes (Woodland Hills, CA). "The Renaultsport Clio is a radical version of the Clio and has little in common with its more conventional sister. There are many changes to the design. Wheel arches have been raised, and the hack seats and trunk have been eliminated to house the engine," says Burton.

TWR uses computer-aided three-dimensional interactive application (CATIA) software as its core CAD system and CATIA FEA for CAE. Delmia's IGRIP and Quest programs optimize robotic off-line programming and determine the best factory layouts.

IGRIP provides scalable robotic simulation for modeling and off-line programming of robotic workcell applications, such as welding, painting, dispensing and material handling. Quest creates a complete 3D digital factory environment for process flow simulation, and analysis, accuracy and profitability.

These digital manufacturing technologies were brought together at TWR's Leafield headquarters. This site boasts the largest virtual reality center in Europe with the greatest amount of computer power worldwide. The cars are built in Sweden at the firm's manufacturing plant.