The new focus on protecting pedestrians highlights the need for stylists and designers to work closely with engineers. To get the most protection in the front end, often one of the stylistic highlights of many vehicles, they need to work together closely. Siemens PLM Software, created when Siemens bought product lifecycle management software provider UGS Corp., is one of the suppliers striving to help engineers working in different disciplines understand how their decisions impact other aspects of the design. Product development teams using PLM tools can begin by creating what Siemens calls knowledge-enabled vehicle archetypes, which let engineering departments study the feasibility of many design candidates. For example, a knowledge archetype can help determine how design elements and packaging affect injuries due to pedestrian impacts.
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