 The Holy Grail is a cup and is generally accepted as mythic, but some believe it is more than just a figment of medieval literature.
Some believe the holy grail provides eternal youth, can heal all wounds and grant everlasting happiness. The Holy Grail is often used to describe something that is sought after and very hard to attain. My first thought was, if I found everlasting youth, I could be doing FEA for an eternity, so that put me off a bit.
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 I’ve been using FEA for 25 years; I worked in many industry sectors with different software for numerous companies.
I’m working towards becoming an expert but I’m not there yet because there’s stuff I still need to learn. You see becoming an expert in FEA is like becoming an expert in mechanical engineering.  Not everything is as it seems.
There are lots people out there telling half-truths and whole lies but did you know your FEA software is also doing this?  Hex and Tet are what you call frenemies, they are friends but are secretly jealous of each other and green with envy.
It was Saturday night and their boyfriends were watching football, so they decided to go on a girl’s night out.  There are so many reasons engineering components break, I've seen quite a few and here is my top ten list. There must be many others that I've missed. I've always said that the best way to learn about engineering and in particular finite element analysis, is to study components that have already broken.
 Those were the days! When we had 3 TV channels, the remote control was a broom handle and no one had a mobile phone. Kids rode their BMX bikes on the pavement, all wearing their Parka coats with hoods over their heads and the coat flapping behind them like a Batman cape.
Times have changed and things have moved on in the world and in engineering design. The days of over designing components are long gone, engineers are using tools like CAD, CAE, FEA and CFD to make lighter, stronger and more durable products. Here are my favourite top ten tips for designing durable components.  Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is a very good tool for providing useful insight to the strength and durability of mechanical components and large structures. It’s often integrated into CAD and anyone can do it.
Learning to operate FEA software to check if components are the correct thickness or size is easy. Or is it?……… The answer is yes and no. It is easy to run analysis models and find stress levels but a bit harder to get it right first time. I get a lot of enquiries from clients to fix components that have broken because the FEA was not done properly. Embracing failure is the best way to learn from your own mistakes and those of others. Here is list of common reasons FEA Analysis goes bad!  There’s no trick to FEA, it’s just a simple trick! :)
Seriously, there are a few tips that I’ve picked up over the years and here is my top ten favourites.  To put it in one sentence, nonlinear Finite Element Analysis (FEA) results change with time or load at a rate that cannot be predicted by following the same path.
 Well before the days of finite element analysis (FEA), the days when the cowman roamed the range with his herds. Life was hard, cowmen didn’t take a bath, they just dusted off. They were bound by unwritten rules and codes of conduct based around loyalty, respect for others and fair play.
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AuthorChris Hall 
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