Case Study: GEA achieves safer cafeteria reopening with Dassault Systèmes CFD simulation

GEA boosts cafeteria reopening confidence to 60-70% with Dassault Systèmes

GEA, a major German technology systems provider, faced the challenge of safely reopening its large staff cafeteria at its Oelde site during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company needed to understand the risk of virus propagation through aerosols and airflows to protect its employees. GEA contracted Dassault Systèmes' Engineering Services organization to leverage its expertise in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation to model this complex scenario.

Dassault Systèmes created an accurate digital twin of the cafeteria and used its SIMULIA PowerFLOW solver to simulate numerous airflow and contamination scenarios. The solution provided GEA with a comprehensive risk assessment, revealing unexpected virus hotspots and blind spots with low air exchange. The results gave GEA a 60-70% confidence level for its reopening strategy, allowing the company to implement targeted safety measures, revise its seating plan, and protect its cafeteria workers based on technical facts.

GEA