SIMULIA Student Poster Competition 2026

Showcase Your Research at the Americas Users Conference.

VIAS3D invites you to present your simulation projects to industry leaders in Novi, Michigan. We handle the professional printing and exhibition costs—you focus on the innovation.

13 - 14 May, 2026

Novi, MI

Are you an engineering student or researcher looking for industry visibility?

If you are using SIMULIA tools—such as Abaqus, CST Studio Suite, Simpack, or PowerFlow—this is your platform.
We designed this competition for those who want to strengthen their professional resume and connect with global R&D leaders, without the financial burden of conference logistics. Whether you are an undergraduate or a PhD candidate, VIAS3D provides the bridge between your lab and the industry’s premier annual meeting.

What is SAUC 2026?

The SIMULIA Americas Users Conference (SAUC) is the primary gathering for simulation experts and industry pioneers across the continent.
By submitting your research, your work will be exhibited at the Vibe Credit Union Showplace (May 13–14). This is an opportunity to demonstrate your technical proficiency to the companies that are actively shaping the future of engineering.

We’ve simplified the exhibition process

1. Register

Submit your contact and institutional information to confirm your interest.

2. Access Resources

Once registered, we will send the official A1 template and technical guidelines to your email.

3. Design

Prepare your research using SIMULIA tools (Abaqus, CST, Simpack, or PowerFlow).

4. Submit

Upload your final PDF through the registration form before the April 20 deadline.

Prizes You Could Win

Extended Deadline: April 30, 2026

Why present with VIAS3D?

Zero Printing Stress: Professional large-format printing is on us. Send your PDF, and we'll handle the rest
Global visibility: Your work will be reviewed by R&D leads and industry experts from across the Americas.
Career catalyst: This is the ultimate "Power Move" for your resume, connecting you with companies that are actively hiring.
No travel required: You are eligible for all prizes whether you are at the event or in your lab.

Academic conference poster board with four research posters

Before you submit

We are excited to see your research! To ensure a smooth exhibition in Novi, please keep the following in mind:

Technical Review:

All posters are subject to a final review by the VIAS3D team. We’ll check for alignment with our official guidelines and the proper use of SIMULIA tools before moving to the printing phase.
The Selection Process:

While we want to showcase as much talent as possible, submitting your poster does not automatically guarantee a prize. Our panel of experts will evaluate all approved posters on-site during the conference.
Winner Announcements:

To give our judges enough time to review every project, winners will be announced shortly after the event concludes. We will reach out to you directly via your institutional email.
Prizes & Shipping:

If you are one of our 10 lucky winners, we will ship your tech prize (MacBook, iPad, etc.) directly to your address via professional courier at no cost to you.
Logistics

VIAS3D handles all professional large-format printing. While travel to Michigan is not required to win, please note that travel and accommodation expenses are not covered by the competition.
Ownership & Privacy:

You retain full ownership of your research. By submitting, you grant VIAS3D permission to print your work for the event and use photos of the exhibition for academic and promotional purposes.

Are you looking to strengthen your engineering capabilities and accelerate digital transformation?

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Your partner in digital transformation. From simulation consulting to digital transformation, our expert team delivers tailored solutions that drive efficiency and solve your toughest engineering challenges.

FEA, CFD & EMAG consulting

Cost-effective analysis for structural, thermal, fatigue, and electromagnetic applications (CST Studio Suite).

Simulation process & automation

Establish in-house methodologies and automate repetitive design procedures.

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Expert PLM implementation and digital twin technology to accelerate your digital future.

Plant engineering & design

Specialized support for EPC and OEM entities, from feasibility studies to digital twin implementation.

Testing, validation & data analytics

Comprehensive material calibration and AI-driven workflows.

Transform your ideas into real projects

© 2026 VIAS3D

Shawn Freeman

Sr. Technical Director, NAM, VIAS3D

Mr. Shawn Freeman has 30+ years of experience, starting his career as a Vehicle Safety and CAE engineer consulting for General Motors, Chrysler, Mercedes, Toyota, and as an employee of Ford Motor Company. Shawn then transitioned to CAE software development, holding management positions at Altair Engineering, MSC Software, and Dassault Systemes. In addition to vehicle safety, he has extensive experience in Simulation Data & Process Management, Engineering Services, Process Automation, and Custom Software Development. He is a Tau Beta Pi engineering honor society member and recently completed a 4-year term on the External Advisory Board for Ohio State University’s SimCenter. Shawn completed his M.S.E. in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan in 1996 and is a PMI-certified Project Management Professional.

Gretchen

Sr. Operations Director, NAM

Gretchen brings over thirty years of experience in sales, channel management, marketing, and HR to VIAS3D. For the last sixteen years Gretchen has been working in the Dassault ecosystem both in the partner channel and as an employee of Dassault. Gretchen has developed and managed direct and indirect sales channels, helped build a small start-up software company into an international player in quality inspection reporting, opened new markets and established sales in new product lines, and developed marketing and sales strategies that have consistently surpassed revenue targets. She has a lifetime focus on persuading, educating, and developing new relationships through her marketing, human resources, sales, and training background. Gretchen holds various training and coaching certifications and has received multiple sales and achievement awards. She also holds a BA degree from JFK University. Gretchen believes that creating efficient processes, providing teams with the right information and support, and developing strong connections and communication with people is the best way to support repeatable, sustainable growth and profitability.

Mark

VP, VIAS3D Academia, NAM

Mark brings to VIAS3D an impressive background in the engineering simulation domain where he has worked with customers across all industries and market segments. Most recently at Dassault Systèmes, Mark successfully built multiple SIMULIA high-achieving sales teams including indirect partner sales (CPE), High-Tech, Life Sciences, CPG, and Energy & Materials. Leveraging 3DEXPERIENCE for Education, the most advanced cloud solution for product and learning innovation, VIAS3D Academia aims to empower students to become the leading innovators of tomorrow using the latest simulation technologies. Mark is a champion of scientific computing and simulation.

Miguel

VP, Sales & Operations, Mexico CPE

Miguel Villalpando was a Sales Director who helped Dassault Systèmes built the business transformation channel, managing the relationships with key international customers in Mexico. Before starting with Dassault Systèmes, Miguel spent seven years with Siemens PLM on different roles, and previously 2 years with FEMSA. Miguel is a mechanical engineer, with a master degree on IT administration, graduated from the ITESM. Miguel enjoys practicing football, and spent quality time with his family.

Bhavesh

MD, India

Bhavesh comes with close to 20 years of experience in the simulation domain and has worked with customers across industries and segments. Previously at Dassault Systèmes, Bhavesh led a passionate team of experts to grow the SIMULIA Brand in India, especially focusing on the industry adoption of multidisciplinary Multiphysics solutions from SIMULIA. While at Dassault Systèmes, Bhavesh has managed several key responsibilities, from interacting with key customers across Asia on enterprise simulation solutions to working with strategic customers in India for the adoption of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

Segah

Global Director, Finance & Accounting

Segah studied Economics in Bilkent University. She started her auditing career in PwC and after 4 years experience in PwC, she moved to EY where she worked during 8 years, lastly as a Senior Audit Manager. She has extensive experience in International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (US GAAP). She has Audited Certificate in Capital Markets in Turkey and CPA.

She served clients that are registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in accomplishment of SOX 404 requirements. She has been involved in the projects of financial restructuring of the large groups. She acted as accredited trainer on IFRS and USGAAP, arranged various trainings externally and internally.

Arindam

CTO, Engineering Services

Arindam Chakraborty, Ph.D., PE (CA, TX) has more than 18 years of combined academic and industry consulting experience in the domain of simulation and engineering analysis. He has degrees in Civil (Bachelors), Aerospace (MTech.) and Mechanical (PhD) with focus on computational solid and structural mechanics, non-linear FEA, fatigue and fracture, reliability and optimization, and composite structures. His industry experience spans Oil & Gas, Nuclear, Process & Petrochemical, Consumer Packaged Goods, Life Science, Hi-Tech. and Industrial Equipment. He has been involved with consulting project management and leadership, business development, development of new technology and future growth strategy with a strong focus on public safety regulations (BSEE, NRC, FDA) and Digital Transformation. He has experience in automating complex engineering problems using codes in FORTRAN/C/C#/VBA/Java/Python/FOX Toolkit, including Abaqus automation scripts. Dr. Chakraborty has more than twenty-five conference and journal publications and many invited talks and panel discussions. He is also actively involved with many code (ASME, API) and international conferences committees. He is also a Dassault Systèmes Certified Training Instructor and taught University courses as invited lecturer.

Chris

Vice President Sales USA and Canada, VIAS3D

Chris has over 27 years of Dassault Systemes channel experience. He began his career as an applications engineer then transitioned to sales and sales leadership roles. Over the last 20 years, he led the sales efforts for the largest and most successful Dassault Systemes channel partners in North America and brings his “Customer for Life” philosophy to VIAS3D.

He earned a BBA from Temple University’s Fox School of Business and has relevant coursework in mechanical engineering and computer science.

Beyond engineering and design, Chris’s sales leadership experience includes 3D printing and driving CAM software. He joined VIAS3D in January of 2023.

Vikram

Sr. Director, Scientific Simulations, NAM

Vikram Dhruva, MS, MBA is a Managing Member and Director of Scientific Simulation Sales at VIAS3D. Vikram Dhruva is a Structural Engineer with more than 20 years of experience in Applied Mechanics, Design, non-linear FEA (Implicit & Explicit), Fatigue, Durability, Reliability, and Fluid Structural Interaction simulations in Automotive, Aerospace, Industrial Equipment, Life Science, High-Tech, and Energy industry. Vikram Dhruva has worked on more than 250+ advanced engineering analysis projects and helped many companies across all industries to set up a design and simulation group. He also helped many companies to customize the simulation tools for the designer and analysis as a vertical solution using Python.

Prior joining to VIAS3D, Vikram Dhruva worked with Dassault Systèmes SIMULIA Corp for over 20 years and managed North American and Latin American simulation sales business initiatives in supporting customers from multi-geo multi-industries and developing the sales channel partner. He has recruited more than 50 partners in the Americas and enabled them to sell the simulation and to provide local support. He has also taught many advanced simulation classes and part of the advanced class development team within Dassault Systèmes during his initial time at SIMULIA.

Burak

Executive Chairman

Burak Ozturk is a mechanical engineer with over 15+ years of experience in the Oil and Gas Industry. He has a strong theoretical background in thermal-fluid sciences, structural design, and analysis, mechanical components and design, and FEA. He founded VIAS3D in September of 2015 to place the company at the cutting edge of the industry technology and innovation through identifying directions, collaboration and facilitating, and managing internal/external R&D projects. He is an Adjunct Associate Professor at The University of Houston, and lectures on a Course in ‘Pipeline Design’ in the Mechanical Engineering Department. He also teaches in the College of Technology, where he is a member of the Industry Advisory Board (IAB). He holds some 25 conference and journal publications and is an expert in his field.

Anytime. Anywhere. Secure.

A fully connected single cloud-based platform which lets you create innovative products virtually with advanced CAD, CAM and CAE.

Growth never stops. Neither should you or your products.

Increase the product design performance with the design, simulation and product management tools on 3DEXPERIENCE.

Stay relevant by using collaborative methodology for Design, Scientific Simulation and Manufacturing and accelerate the product innovation.

Interoperability made easy.
Data Integration Connectors available.
Leverage the strengths of existing CAD tools such as SOLIDWORKS, CATIA V5, NX. Leverage the strengths of existing Simulation tools such as Abaqus/CAE, CST Studio Suite.

Gain access to the world-class and most-trusted SIMULIA Abaqus and CST Studio Suite, CATIA and CATIA Magic, ENOVIA PLM and DELMIA to stay one step ahead in the industry.

Sumanth

Global CEO

Sumanth has 25 years of Industry experience most of which has been with Dassault Systèmes. He started as an application engineer and took on many roles including onsite program manager at P&G, Sales Manager & Central region general manager in US. Sumanth then relocated to Singapore to manage Asia pacific business and strategic accounts. In 2013, he relocated back to US to take on SIMULIA’s VP of strategy, marketing and market development teams and was part of SIMULIA Exec team until 2019. In this role, Sumanth had the privilege of spearheading acquisition of 9 simulation companies and his organization started many strategic initiatives including Additive Manufacturing, Living Heart project etc. Sumanth joined VIAS3D as COO in early 2020 and helped develop and diversify VIAS3D as a multinational platinum partner of DS.