Case Study: Baker Hughes achieves 60% reduction in product development time with Altair HyperWorks simulation

Baker Hughes Drills 60% off Product Development Time With HyperWorks-Driven Simulation

Baker Hughes, a global oilfield services and technology provider, faced the challenge of validating an advanced expandable liner hanger system that must perform reliably in extreme downhole conditions while reducing time and cost to market. To avoid excessive physical prototyping and ensure a robust design, the company sought to integrate high-fidelity finite element simulation into its product development process using Altair’s HyperWorks tools.

Altair delivered a simulation-driven workflow using HyperWorks (notably HyperMesh for FE modeling and HyperStudy for DOE and reliability-based optimization) and a seven-step verification/validation methodology to build and refine a 3–7 million element FE model. The results: model-to-test correlation within ±4%, a 60–70% reduction in prototypes, a 40% improvement in hanging capacity after optimization, and a cut in development time from 65 to 26 months (a 60% reduction), with corresponding cost savings—demonstrating Altair’s measurable impact on speed, reliability and cost.

Baker Hughes

Ganesh Nanaware

Staff Engineer