KEY to METALS Expands Material Property Library Exclusively for Altair Partner Alliance Users

TROY, Mich., April 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Altair Partner Alliance announced today that its existing partner, Key to Metals AG, has enabled the brand new Premium Edition of its software exclusively for availability to users of the Altair Partner Alliance (APA). KEY to METALS Extended Range expands the previous library to include a more extensive list of metals, while the Premium Edition includes everything offered by KEY to METALS and Extended Range, as well as adding new materials, such as ceramics, composites and polymer materials. Also included exclusively for APA users is the brand new functionality that allows selection and export of advanced property data from the database into specific solvers ready for direct import into CAE software.

KEY to METALS (KtM), originally launched within the Partner Alliance in January 2012, and has experienced great success since, being well received by APA users. KtM quickly became one the APA's most downloaded tools, with an average of more than 50 companies using monthly and over 300 users worldwide.

"We have been extremely satisfied with our experience as part of the Altair Partner Alliance thus far," said Neil Baumann, COO for KEY to METALS. "We have chosen to provide a unique application to our APA customers to enhance their user experience, as well as to allow for increased versatility and extended capabilities of the library."

Developed exclusively for APA users, KtM has introduced KEY to METALS Premium Edition. This version provides brand new functionality that allows users to efficiently and accurately move material property data from the KEY to METALS database into CAE software, including Altair's own HyperWorks, through an array of customized and solver compatible formats. Premium Edition also includes a new non-metallic material property library, called PLUS, already containing more than 10,000 polymer materials, as well as ceramics and composites, and more than 500 stress-strain curves for plastic materials, which continues to grow constantly.

"It is no secret that material properties are key to getting correct answers with finite elements simulations," said Dave Mason, Altair's vice president of global automotive. "We are very pleased with the success of KEY to METALS in the APA program, and are confident the expanded material libraries and integration with HyperWorks in this new Premium Edition will bring tremendous value and opportunity to our users."

This Premium version includes KEY to METALS Extended Range, which provides an unparalleled material properties resource for advanced structural and thermal calculations and analysis. It provides stress-strain curves, fatigue data, fracture mechanics information and creep data for thousands of materials. Combined with readily available elastic range properties for more than 100,000 materials worldwide, Extended Range saves users time and money through intelligent search methods and enhances the depth and quality of information required for CAE and FEA analysis.

KEY to METALS utilizes international cross-reference tables, making it possible to find and compare materials from around the world. Such data as chemical compositions, mechanical and physical properties, heat treatment diagrams, and properties at elevated temperatures are available to users. KEY to METALS supports global businesses by being available in 21 languages, including Japanese, Russian, Chinese, Korean and Arabic, to name a few.

Applicable almost anywhere in the engineering world, KEY to METALS and Extended Range are currently functional in a large number of industrial sectors, such as automotive, aerospace, heavy machinery, power and energy, electronics and technology, plus many more diversified groups. KEY to METALS Premium Edition is expected to have an even larger array of possible and functional applications, due to its extension into non-metallic materials.

Available for the last 12 years, Altair's innovative units-based licensing system allows HyperWorks users customizable access to a growing portfolio of applications, optimizing their return on investment (ROI) by making more than 28 in-house-developed applications available by use of a single pool of recyclable HyperWorks units (HWUs).

After experiencing this original licensing model's success, Altair has offered the opportunity for third-party companies to run their own applications under this unit-based system, a collaboration now known as the Altair Partner Alliance. The overall flexibility of these HWUs empowers users and allows them access to the largest and most complete suite of CAE applications available, making the benefits to participating HyperWorks customers infinite. The ROI increases for users each time a new application is added to the offering, since any of the partner programs can be accessed using the same leased HWUs they are already using to run HyperWorks. This makes more than 55 additional applications available at no incremental cost or long-term commitment.

HyperWorks users can download KEY to METALS Premium at www.altairalliance.com/ktm. To learn more about KEY to METALS, please attend one of the introductory webinars, being held on April 22, 2013 at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. EDT. These webinars will be hosted by Altair and presented by KEY to METALS.

About Key to Metals AG

Key to Metals AG, the developer of KEY to METALS, the world's most comprehensive metal materials database, has provided the engineering community with its invaluable resource for more than a decade. Now a truly multilingual platform, the only one of its kind, KEY to METALS supports global business by being available in 21 languages. Offering the most dynamic update policy on the market and certified data quality, KEY to METALS ensures its users are provided with the most up-to-date and accurate information available. The primary focus of Key to Metals AG is to provide the engineering world with the most complete and comprehensive material resource available while continually increasing its power and functionality to add vast amounts of value to businesses and activities we support. For more information about Key to Metals AG, visit www.keytometals.com.

About Altair

Altair empowers client innovation and decision-making through technology that optimizes the analysis, management and visualization of business and engineering information. Privately held, with 1,800 employees, Altair has offices throughout North America, South America, Europe and Asia/Pacific. With a 27-year track record for high-end software for engineering and computing, enterprise analytics solutions, and innovative product design and development, Altair consistently delivers a competitive advantage to customers in a broad range of industries. To learn more, please visit www.altair.com or www.simulatetoinnovate.com.

About the Altair Partner Alliance

Altair's HyperWorks platform applies a revolutionary subscription-based licensing model in which customers use floating licenses to access a broad suite of Altair-developed, as well as third-party, software applications on demand. The Altair Partner Alliance effectively extends the HyperWorks Platform from 28 internally developed solutions to more than 50 applications with the addition of new partner applications. Customers can invoke these third-party applications at no incremental cost using their existing HyperWorks licenses. Customers benefit from unmatched flexibility and access, resulting in maximum software utilization, productivity and ROI. For more information about the Altair Partner Alliance, visit www.altairalliance.com.

SOURCE Altair