Each year, through the generous support of its employees and vendors, Altair commits to sponsoring the National Multiple Sclerosis Society-Michigan Chapter, in several deep and meaningful ways. We are “driven” by the importance of the organization’s mission of “wanting to do something about MS now — to move toward a world free of multiple sclerosis,” according to their website. Further, we are a passionate and motivated “Team” that formed over the years, to preserve the commitment.

Team Altair has the privilege to host fundraisers, receive corporate-matching donations up to $250 per year, paid (one 8-hour day) volunteer participation, and seek corporate sponsorship funds for the various annual events put on by the MS Society, as well as other Altair-qualified charities.

Earlier this year, on May 10, Altairian fellowship and collaboration raised $2,400 for the MS Society in a Baked Goods & Flower Sale Fundraiser. It’s one of our largest fundraisers for this campaign. Many of the flower baskets, herbs and plants come from Telly’s Greenhouse & Garden Center in Troy.

Team Altair then held their first two events in Holland, Michigan on June 1-2. The BIKE MS & WALK MS: Great Lakes West Michigan Breakaway started and finished at Hope College. We had the pleasure of promoting Altair’s music app, WEYV with stickers and sunglasses for everyone who participated in both events. And, for the first time in several years, our team was pleased to show off new jerseys and jackets!

BIKE MS was a two-day event. Three ambitious rider battled storms all day long on the first day and finished riding 75 miles. This particular group does not let obstacles stand in their way and can persevere through difficult times and difficult weather. Even though part of the route was shut down because of the rough Michigan weather, they completed the ride and crossed the finish line together, drenched and cold; and most importantly, safe.

WALK MS began shortly after the riders took off. Again, because of the weather, they cut the route down and we were only able to walk one mile before it started storming on us. It was a fast walk around the Hope College campus! Then, we helped cheer other riders in until our bike group came in.

On Day Two of BIKE MS, we were joined by three more Altairians and their spouses. It was a perfect, late-spring, sunny day for a bike ride along the beaches of Lake Michigan. Two riders rode 30 miles, one rode 50 miles, and the same threesome from yesterday, rode 100 miles today. Everyone who has ever rode in Holland for BIKE MS, has said this is their favorite ride and route.

Watch here for more news on Team Altair/MS Society events, in the near future!

No matter if you work at a small company or a multinational corporation, Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) technology can enable you to identify potential failures, improve performance, and find opportunities for lightweighting and cost savings. Often design and engineering teams rely on slow iterative design cycles, with each cycle causing delays in the product development process, losing both money and competitive advantage.

Altair HyperWorks software is used at the world’s most innovative companies for the design and optimization of their products. It enables engineers to make better decisions, optimize designs and reduce the costs of physical testing.

Sounds great, but how do you go about training designers and design engineers to effectively use CAE software? And how do you perform the complex analysis and multiple physics simulations required to model product performance under real-world conditions?

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