Simufact Welding
Predict distortion, residual stress and HAZ properties — before the first tack weld.
Simufact Welding delivers high-fidelity thermal, mechanical and metallurgical simulation for all major arc, beam and resistance welding processes. Engineers predict weld distortion and residual stress in complex multi-pass assemblies and validate fixture and clamping strategies before committing to physical trials.
How the Heat-Affected Zone Forms
Real-time thermal field during a multi-pass arc weld — temperature distribution, HAZ extent and cooling rate updated continuously.
Simufact Welding is the industry standard for weld process simulation. It models the complete welding cycle — heat input, material deposition, phase transformations, residual stress build-up and post-weld distortion — for any combination of processes and joint configurations, from simple single-pass butt welds to multi-pass, multi-component assemblies with hundreds of weld seams.
The solver couples thermal, mechanical and metallurgical physics in a single simulation run. This means engineers don't just get a distortion map — they get the full picture: where residual stresses will cause fatigue failures, which regions are susceptible to hydrogen cracking, and how changing the weld sequence or inter-pass temperature alters the final component geometry.
Simufact Welding is routinely used for production sign-off of safety-critical weldments in aerospace, power generation and heavy engineering — reducing physical iterations from dozens to two or three. See why a dedicated manufacturing solver captures this better than general-purpose FEA.
- All major arc processes: MAG, MIG, TIG, SAW, FCAW, SMAW
- Laser welding, electron beam welding, plasma arc
- Resistance spot welding and seam welding
- Friction stir welding and linear friction welding
- Multi-pass, multi-component assembly simulation
- Weld sequence, fixture and clamping optimisation
- Phase transformation and microstructure prediction (martensite, bainite, ferrite)
- Automatic distortion compensation geometry export
Technical Overview
| Solver core | MSC Marc nonlinear implicit FEA |
| Thermal model | Goldak double-ellipsoid heat source |
| Phase model | CCT/TTT metallurgical transformations |
| Material DB | 500+ materials incl. Inconel, Ti alloys |
| Assembly size | Single part to 100+ component assemblies |
| HPC | Parallel solver; scalable to 256+ cores |
| Outputs | Distortion, residual stress, hardness, microstructure |
Talk to a Welding Simulation Expert
We can run a demonstration on geometry representative of your weldments — including your alloy grades and process parameters.
Fewer Trials. Less Rework. Better Welds.
Typical outcomes from manufacturers using Simufact Welding in production.
Simufact Welding covers the full scope of weld simulation challenges in a single solver environment.
Weld Distortion Prediction
Angular distortion, longitudinal bowing, transverse shrinkage and buckling — all predicted in a single simulation run for the complete weld sequence, including the effect of jigging and release from fixtures.
Residual Stress & Fatigue
Full 3D residual stress tensor mapped across the weld and HAZ. Export to CAEfatigue or MSC Nastran to assess fatigue life under service loading with the correct initial stress state.
Microstructure & Hardness
Phase fraction evolution (martensite, bainite, ferrite, austenite) and resulting hardness distribution in weld metal and HAZ. Critical for corrosion resistance and toughness qualification.
Weld Sequence Optimisation
Compare hundreds of weld sequences automatically. Identify the sequence that minimises distortion or residual stress for complex multi-pass, multi-joint assemblies without physical trials.
Fixture & Clamping Strategy
Evaluate fixture positions, clamp forces and release sequences. Find the optimal restraint strategy that achieves dimensional compliance on release, accounting for springback from residual stress.
Heat Treatment & Stress Relief
Simulate PWHT (post-weld heat treatment) and stress relief annealing cycles. Predict residual stress relaxation and any distortion changes resulting from the thermal cycle.
Import CAD geometry, define weld seams interactively on the model, assign materials from the integrated database and set process parameters.
Define the welding process type, heat source parameters, travel speed, inter-pass temperature and complete weld sequence including fixture and clamp release.
The coupled thermal-mechanical-metallurgical solver runs on workstation or HPC. Large assemblies with hundreds of weld seams solved overnight.
Review distortion, residual stress and microstructure. Export compensated geometry, stress fields for structural analysis and process validation reports.
Simufact Welding covers all major industrial joining and heat treatment processes.
| Process Category | Process Types | Key Simulation Outputs |
| Arc Welding | MAG, MIG, TIG, SAW, FCAW, SMAW, Plasma Arc | Distortion, residual stress, microstructure |
| Beam Welding | Laser (conduction & keyhole), Electron Beam | Keyhole geometry, narrow HAZ, distortion |
| Resistance Welding | Spot, seam, projection welding | Nugget formation, indentation, expulsion |
| Friction Welding | Friction Stir (FSW), Linear Friction (LFW) | Material flow, temperature, tool wear |
| Brazing & Soldering | Furnace brazing, induction brazing | Joint fillet, thermal stress, void prediction |
| Heat Treatment | PWHT, stress relief, normalising, quench | Residual stress relaxation, distortion change |
Simufact Welding is used wherever weld quality, dimensional accuracy and structural integrity are business-critical.
Fuselage frames, engine mounts, landing gear. AS9100 / NADCAP weld qualification support.
Body-in-white assemblies, battery enclosures, exhaust systems, chassis welded components.
Pressure vessels, turbine casings, steam generators. EN13480 / ASME VIII weld qualification.
Large structural weldments, hull sections, subsea equipment. Distortion control for large-panel assembly fit-up.
Mining equipment, construction machinery, rail vehicles. Thick section welds in high-strength steels.
Job shops and tier suppliers reducing scrap, rework and qualification costs for demanding weld specifications.
Simufact Welding residual stress and distortion fields feed directly into your structural analysis chain.
Ready to predict distortion before you weld?
Book a demonstration and see Simufact Welding running on components representative of your weld challenges.
Frequently Asked Questions
Simufact Welding predicts weld distortion, residual stress and heat-affected zone (HAZ) properties for arc, beam and resistance welding processes, before the first physical tack weld.
It covers all major arc processes (MAG, MIG, TIG, SAW, FCAW, SMAW), laser welding, electron beam welding, plasma arc, resistance spot/seam welding and friction stir/linear friction welding.
Yes — it simulates everything from a simple single-pass butt weld up to multi-pass, multi-component assemblies with hundreds of weld seams.
It couples thermal, mechanical and metallurgical physics in one simulation, giving distortion, residual stress and microstructure (phase transformation) results together.