Resemin Doubles Product Development Throughput and Streamlines Data Management

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Lima, Peru, Resemin is the third largest global manufacturer of underground mining and drilling and related equipment. The company’s drilling equipment provides a better, more cost-effective alternative to using traditional drilling rigs for mining and tunneling applications.

Because Resemin products must operate safely and reliably in extreme underground mining environments, the company is committed to leveraging advanced design, engineering, and analysis technologies to ensure quality and dependability.

Transforming Product Development

Shifting from AutoCAD® 2D tools to SOLIDWORKS® in 2008 enabled Resemin to shorten analysis run times from two days to two hours, reduced prototyping by 70 percent, cut its machine delivery times in half, and increased throughput, according to Engineering Manager Fernando Díaz. 

“The productivity gains with SOLIDWORKS prompted us to evaluate the 3DEXPERIENCE® Works solutions from Dassault Systèmes when we encountered a need to run nonlinear vibration and fatigue analyses to extend the durability of our equipment and develop more innovative products,” Díaz explains.

Resemin benchmarked Ansys® Simulation Premium software against Durability Performance Engineer, part of the 3DEXPERIENCE Works portfolio of solutions. The results of that benchmark on a nonlinear vibration and fatigue simulation showed that Durability Performance Engineer and Ansys both provided accurate results, but Durability Performance Engineer was quicker and easier to set up and use. The Durability Performance Engineer simulation was three hours faster—five hours versus eight hours for Ansys. In addition, the use of Durability Performance Engineer simulation tools in conjunction with SOLIDWORKS design and modeling software provided insights into improving the driller arm.

Reducing Time to Market

The results of this benchmark coupled with the solution’s compatibility with SOLIDWORKS prompted Resemin to acquire a three-year subscription for Durability Performance Engineer in addition to the 3DEXPERIENCE Works collaboration, communication, and data management solutions in 2021.

"With the capability that we’ve gained with Durability Performance Engineer, we are both improving the performance of our existing designs as well as increasing innovation in the design of new products” Díaz notes. “Working with Dassault Systèmes solutions, we’ve expanded our product line and doubled throughput from 60 to 115 machines each year.”

Athena has increased its ability to collaborate internally across its remote workforce and with customers on the cloud-based 3DEXPERIENCE platform—reducing travel requirements and associated costs—while managing data in the cloud. “We built our workflow contingent on our ISO: 9001 certifications for release and revision control,” Price stresses. “Following a formal workflow and having a collaborative project space has not only made us more efficient but has also helped us eliminate design errors and non-conformities through greater due diligence and the application of simulation tools.”

Error-free Workflows

Athena acquired SOLIDWORKS Simulation to validate designs. “One of the characteristics that attracted us to SOLIDWORKS is the accuracy and reliability of its simulation solutions,” Price notes. “For example, the ability to analyze non-uniform pressure distributions and static load simulations has become part of the due diligence that we have adopted to boost quality,” Price continues. “We haven’t had a single error or non-conformity since we began leveraging simulation and adhering to our ISO: 9001-certified workflow.”

Failure is not an Option

The simulation tools also support Resemin’s overarching product and business objectives that are particular to its underground heavy equipment mining market. “Top manufacturers in our market spend 1.5 to 2 percent of revenue—close to $2 billion—on product failures and warranty claims,” Díaz stresses.

“In addition to the loss of revenue, such claims typically result in a loss of customer trust and market share, both of which we need to avoid,” Díaz continues. “The combination of SOLIDWORKS for design and Durability Performance Engineer for running simulations in the cloud gives us a seamless solution for a synchronized design, modeling, and simulation process, which is critically important for improving product reliability, durability, and performance.”