VEXTEC In IBM: "Making the World Work Better"

Profiled with Alcoa, Amazon and Goodyear
Exceprt from "Making the World Work Better"

Predictive models are also emerging  as powerful tools to anticipate breakage. Manufacturers dole out tens of billions of dollars in warranty payments a year. Knowing when and how a product will fail would not only save money but also improve the safety of workers and customers. This is what a Tennessee startup called Vextec is attempting to do.  Funded in part by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and using a database of the world's known metals, Vextec has developed a way to predict the durability, performance and lifetime cost of machine parts by simulating the behavior of their component materials. Working for clients ranging from the US Navy to medical device manufacturers, the company simulates the workings of turbine blades, automotive axles and other machine components to reveal how various metals behave under differing levels of stress. "The problem that all industries face is that products come off the assembly line looking good, buy they fail prematurely," says Loren Nasser, the company's CEO and cofounder. "Product development has always been a trial-and-error-process. Failure incurs bad press, warranty costs, recall costs and the loss of consumer confidence. That's what we're trying to change."  (READ MORE)