Meshless structural analysis
Simcenter SimSolid
formerly Altair SimSolid
Run structural analysis on your full CAD assembly, with no geometry clean-up and no mesh, and see results in minutes.
Minutes
Results on full CAD assemblies
Siemens: structural results in seconds to minutes on a standard PC, with no meshing first.
Smart Expert
Support from engineers
Siemens-certified expertise, and a Top European Partner award for customer support.
What is Simcenter SimSolid?
Simcenter SimSolid, formerly Altair SimSolid, is a meshless structural analysis tool from Siemens Digital Industries Software for designers and engineers. It analyses fully featured CAD parts and assemblies directly, without the geometry simplification and meshing that traditional FEA needs. Siemens positions it early in the design cycle, ahead of final validation in a solver such as Simcenter Nastran.
Analyse the CAD model you already have, without defeaturing or meshing it first
Check assemblies with hundreds of components, gaps and imperfect contacts
Compare design scenarios early, ahead of traditional FEA on the final design
Siemens image: Simcenter SimSolid results on a large lattice structure.
Book a demo with an engineerDeveloper
Siemens Digital Industries Software (Siemens acquired Altair in 2025)
Current release
Simcenter SimSolid 2026.1 (June 2026)
Typical analyses
Linear and nonlinear statics, modal, thermal and dynamics; fatigue and buckling in the Advanced edition
Connections
Contacts with friction, bolts, welds, rivets, adhesives, joints and bushings
Reads CAD
CATIA, NX, Creo, Inventor, Fusion 360, SOLIDWORKS, JT, STEP and Parasolid; links to Teamcenter and Onshape
Altair users
Coming from Altair SimSolid?
Siemens has renamed Altair SimSolid and moved it into Simcenter. The changes focus on naming, packaging and integration; in essence, Siemens says, it is the same technology. See what the other former Altair tools are called now.
Renewing a SimSolid licence? Get a quoteName
Altair SimSolid → Simcenter SimSolid
Licensing
Altair Units → still a units-based subscription in Siemens’ description; wherever you bought them, send Henrik Pahlitzsch your units and renewal date for a quote
Releases
Altair SimSolid 2026 and earlier → Simcenter SimSolid 2026.1 (June 2026), then two Simcenter releases a year from December 2026
Support
Altair support → Siemens Support Center. Bought through Volupe? Your Volupe contacts for licensing, support and training stay the same.
Volupe
Altair channel partner for SimSolid, and a Siemens Platinum Smart Expert Solutions Partner
Capabilities
Analyse the assembly as it was designed
Every detail stays in
Small holes, fillets and bosses can stay in the model, and thin-walled parts need no midsurfaces. Models open directly from Teamcenter and Onshape, and the documentation describes plug-ins for NX, Fusion 360 and Inspire that send geometry and materials straight to SimSolid, so nobody has to rebuild a simplified copy first.
Assemblies as they are
Analyse complex parts and large assemblies, including those with rough contact surfaces, gaps or overlapping geometry. Contacts can be bonded, sliding or separating with friction, and connections include bolts, welds, rivets, adhesives, joints and bushings. Since 2026.1 you can reuse, copy and filter large sets of connections.
Compare designs early
Work through design alternatives quickly, early in the design cycle. The documentation describes replacing a part with a modified design while keeping its attributes and connections. Superpose and envelope several load cases, view results across cut sections, and let hotspot detection find local maxima and minima.
Related tools
Often used with Simcenter SimSolid
Formerly Altair OptiStruct
Simcenter OptiStruct
Structural FEA and design optimisation.
→
Formerly Altair Inspire
Simcenter Inspire
Generative design, topology optimisation and manufacturing simulation.
→
Formerly Altair SimLab
Simcenter SimLab
CAD-based multiphysics workflows with automated meshing and assembly analysis.
→
Questions about Simcenter SimSolid
Answers reviewed by
Johan Dahlberg
Application Support Specialist, Ph.D.
Licences and renewals: Henrik Pahlitzsch, Business Developer, +46 76 870 11 40.
We reply within one day.
How is Simcenter SimSolid licensed?
According to the product documentation, SimSolid runs on Altair Units, which Siemens still describes as a units-based subscription: your team draws units from a shared pool for the products it uses. Siemens’ Dumarey case also used units licensing. SimSolid comes as Standard and Advanced editions, and what applies to you depends on your contract. Whether you bought from Altair, another partner or Volupe, send us your units and renewal date for a quote, or read how Altair Units work now.
What does Simcenter SimSolid cost?
Each set-up is quoted individually. The price depends on how many engineers need access, the licence term and the edition: according to the product documentation, SimSolid comes as Standard and Advanced, and analyses such as fatigue and linear buckling need Advanced. If you already run Altair SimSolid, tell us your current set-up, the analyses you use and your renewal date, then request a licence quote.
What changed for Altair SimSolid users?
Siemens completed the acquisition of Altair on 26 March 2025. With the June 2026 release, former Altair products joined Simcenter, and Altair SimSolid became Simcenter SimSolid. Siemens says the changes focus on naming, packaging and integration and that, in essence, the technology is the same. Altair’s support services have moved to the Siemens Support Center. If you bought SimSolid through Volupe, which supported it as an Altair channel partner, your Volupe contacts for licensing, support and training stay the same.
How does Simcenter SimSolid compare with OptiStruct, Inspire and SimLab?
They cover different steps. Siemens positions SimSolid early in the design cycle and traditional FEA solvers such as Simcenter Nastran or Simcenter OptiStruct for final validation. Simcenter Inspire brings simulation into a CAD-like environment for designers; the SimSolid documentation adds that Inspire can run the SimSolid solver for linear static and modal analysis. Simcenter SimLab is a process-driven multiphysics environment for structural, thermal, electromagnetic and fluid analysis.
How accurate is meshless analysis in Simcenter SimSolid?
According to the product documentation, SimSolid generalises the finite element method: each part can be one region or a few large regions instead of a fine mesh, and multi-pass adaptive analysis refines the solution automatically. Global plus local adaption gives more precise stresses. Accuracy is checked against well-known reference solutions. Limits: small-strain plasticity, no large sliding (so no snap fits), and contact and geometric nonlinearity cannot be combined. Ask our engineers about your case.
Which analyses can Simcenter SimSolid run?
Siemens lists linear and nonlinear statics, thermal, modal and fatigue analysis and stress linearisation, plus dynamics in the time and frequency domains, random response, buckling, global-local, composites, thermal stress, and squeak and rattle. According to the product documentation, fatigue, linear buckling, transient thermal, and squeak and rattle need the Advanced edition. Loads include bolt and nut tightening, hydrostatic, bearing and remote loads, and results include stress, strain, displacement, safety factors and modal frequencies. Ask our engineers whether your case fits.
Which CAD formats does Simcenter SimSolid read?
Siemens lists CATIA, NX, Creo, Inventor, Fusion 360, SOLIDWORKS, JT, STEP, VDA, Parasolid, ACIS, PLMXML, CGR and STL. SimSolid connects directly to Onshape and Teamcenter, and the documentation describes plug-ins for NX, Fusion 360 and Inspire that transfer geometry and materials. Since 2026.1 you can save and open SimSolid projects in Teamcenter, and transfer geometry, materials and the active design configuration from Designcenter automatically.
Does Volupe offer Simcenter SimSolid training?
Yes. Our introductory Simcenter SimSolid course takes half a day and covers importing an assembly with automatic contacts, connection types such as bolts, welds and rivets, linear static and modal analysis, and post-processing and saving scenes. Scheduled online dates are on our training page, and we run customised training on site or online for companies. Ask about Simcenter SimSolid training.
Talk to an engineer in your region
Every Volupe business developer holds an engineering degree. Find your regional contact below, or send us a message.
Ask us about Simcenter SimSolid
Use this form for licence quotes, demos, training and technical questions.
What happens next
- A reply within one day.
- A scoping call with one of our engineers.
- A quote, demo or other next step that fits your enquiry.
After purchase: support from Volupe simulation engineers.