Tokyu car to streamline design processes

Railway rolling stock manufacturer aims for greater business efficiency and improved quality with 3D product development from basic concept to detailed design

IBM and Dassault Systemes (DS) have announced that Tokyu Car Corporation, a manufacturer of railway rolling stock and specially-equipped cars, is streamlining its vehicle development process using Catia V5 and Enovia SmarTeam, developed by Dassault Systemes and part of IBM's PLM solutions portfolio.

"We have selected a PLM solution with an extensive proven track record that reflects IBM's and Dassault Systemes' expertise in the heavy industries to help us increase our efficiency and enhance safety, an absolutely essential prerequisite for railway rolling stock," said Kunihiko Koiwa, Engineering Department General Manager, Tokyu Car.

"The solution will help us be more competitive by cutting costs via an accelerated time-to-market, and at the same time enhancing the quality of our products".

Tokyu Car needed to realise a collaborative environment for both design and assembly, as well as simulating railcar operating conditions.

It selected Catia V5 and Enovia SmarTeam, enabling its engineers to design efficiently and with precision, while ensuring compliance with various railcar lifecycle requirements.

"Innovation and collaboration are key for product differentiation" said Chris Bahr, director, PLM Solutions, IBM Asia Pacific Services.

"By exploiting the power of our PLM solutions and streamlining its product development processes, Tokyu car is able to focus on its core business, adding value to their products and better responding to their customers' expectations".

"Improving design and manufacturing processes by using PLM solutions is extremely meaningful in the manufacture of large-scale, complex products such as railway rolling stock," said Christian Nardin, managing director, Dassault Systemes Asia.

"Using Catia V5 with Enovia SmarTeam, Tokyu Car will be able to perform advanced simulations to confirm the safety of its products, and the resulting streamlining of its business processes will provide tremendous value to the company".

Using the IBM PLM solutions developed by Dassault Systemes, Tokyu Car can check for design interference among structural components in 3D, including spaces between complex design elements such as pipes and wiring, and prepare designs using digital mock-ups (DMUs).

Enovia SmarTeam also enables Tokyu Car to accumulate expertise, and reuse its data.

In the future, Tokyu Car plans to further expand its PLM implementation to foster collaboration in 3D among its design and manufacturing divisions.

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