Dassault Systèmes today announced that is has acquired Simulayt Limited, a provider of composites and advanced draping simulation technology. We all know composites are where it’s at in terms of reducing weight while meeting performance requirements, so this acquisition makes a great addition to DS’ offering for the aero, auto and other industries.

Simulayt’s has been a part of DS’ partner ecosystems for years. The company was founded in 2004 to commercialize a product called “Layup Technology”, which is used for advanced fiber simulation and ply modeling capabilities. Layup Technology was first developed by Dr. J. W. Klintworth in 1991 for the aerospace composites industry but also found resonance with Formula 1 racing teams. Simulayt’s products include Advanced Fiber Modeler for CATIA V5, Composites Link for CATIA V5, Composites Modeler for Abaqus/CAE, Composites Modeler for SolidWorks and Composites Modeler for Femap. Layup Technology is also licensed for use in MSC Software’s Patran Laminate Modeler and Anaglyph Limited’s Laminate Tools. No mention was made in DS’ press release about whether non-DS partnerships would be affected by the acquisition.

Simulayt CEO John Klintworth said in a press release, “I am very excited to actively contribute to Dassault Systèmes’ leadership in this market,and to focus my efforts on further advancing the next-generation PLM design to simulation to manufacturing composites solutions.” DS, for its part, seems ecstatic that Mr. Klintworth will be joining DS, writing (without attribution), “John Klintworth’s extensive network and wide recognition in the global composites community will be instrumental in reinforcing Dassault Systèmes thought leadership and targeted partnerships.”

Dominique Florack, Senior Executive Vice President, Products, R&D, Dassault Systèmes added: “Simulayt’s strong technical expertise is widely recognized and its manufacturability simulation technology is systematically winning in all benchmarks. The ability to further integrate this technology within our Version 6 platform is critical in addressing the composites materials and processes of tomorrow, with lifelike modeling and product/production simulation experiences.”

The DS press release doesn’t include any data, such as the price paid or how many employees are involved, but I believe Simulayt to be a very small company.

This is clearly a technology tuck-in for DS which wants to bolster its offering for its key markets, auto and aero, and address new areas in consumer products, marine and other industries.