Case Study: Meccanica (engineering joint venture) identifies design flaws and saves $40k optimizing its cryogenic vacuum vessel with SimScale

Meccanica identified design flaws and optimized its cryogenic vessel with SimScale

Meccanica, a joint venture with Marco Engineering that supplies engineering design, multiphysics simulation and testing services, faced the challenge of evaluating the performance of a cryogenic vacuum vessel while constrained by limited on‑premises computing power (local workstations became unusable during long runs). After adopting Onshape for CAD, Meccanica turned to SimScale and its cloud‑based simulation platform to replace slow hand calculations and overcome local hardware limits.

Using SimScale’s cloud FEA tools, Meccanica ran static stress analyses (coarse mesh validation followed by high‑resolution runs) to characterize displacements of the vessel’s top and bottom plates and to identify limited contact regions that could cause poor closing; comparisons with and without O‑ring gaskets confirmed modeling assumptions. The SimScale workflow produced reliable results used in a successful project pitch and delivered measurable impact, including about $40k saved in hardware costs.

Meccanica