Dassault Systèmes Introduces New Technology to MBSE Lab Ecosystem
New MBSE and x88 course series partnership puts students at the forefront of next-generation technology
With over 11 partnerships in four years, the Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Lab and systems engineering leadership education x88 course series welcomed a new member to its ecosystem in January 2025. The new partnership with Dassault Systèmes provides students within the lab access to a wide range of design and simulation tools through the company’s 3DEXPERIENCE platform and other software products which integrate design and data collection.
Dassault Systèmes specializes in developing software for 3D product design, simulation, manufacturing and innovation, to provide virtual experiences that allow users to test ideas, products, and collect and share data seamlessly. The company’s MBSE applications, such as CATIA Magic, are the engineering systems used by many universities to train students to enter the workforce.
“The University of Michigan MBSE Lab has a well-deserved reputation within industry for preparing engineers to work in fast-paced, demanding environments and ready to manage product requirements, systems traceability, CAD model linkage, virtual twin verification and end-to-end digital thread continuity – all within the backbone of Dassault Systèmes software,” explained the Dassault Systèmes team.
The 3DEXPERIENCE solution takes design and simulation tools and integrates them into and around the users data, serving as a single source of collaboration and reference when working in teams. The system is a complete integration of the tools students need for project management, design and implementation while working in the lab, allowing them to focus more on the engineering aspects of a project opposed to data management.
Rafaela Galera Rogano, the U-M MBSE Lab manager for the semester and sophomore in aerospace engineering, commented on her excitement for the new partnership by stating, “It is really cool gaining knowledge from the industry and having Dassault Systèmes join the ecosystem. They are responsible for a lot of software that people use in the industry, so knowing these tools in our undergraduate years will be really helpful to us when we graduate.”
Through this new partnership, MBSE students will have the ability to apply what they learn through their coursework to the most challenging engineering topics, preparing them for professional careers in the aerospace industry. Students in the lab will now have the opportunity to utilize new tools and technologies that the industry requires and wants them to use, allowing them to understand early on in their educational careers the in-depth nature of how these technologies fit into real world projects.
“We’re very pleased about Dassault Systèmes joining the x88 MBSE ecosystem here at the University of Michigan. They have been well-engaged over the past few months helping integrate their tools into our lab sequence, and have provided some great coaching of students in our gateway reviews. Having Dassault Systèmes officially join our growing list of corporate sponsors is an exciting development for our students, and for the other sponsors in the ecosystem,” commented Michigan Aerospace Professor of Practice and creator of the MBSE and x88 course series, George Halow.
The collaboration between the MBSE Lab and Dassault Systèmes sprouted out of the team’s attendance at the 2024 AIAA SciTech Forum, where Professor Halow and a group of students presented the lab’s work so far and visions for the future. While at the conference, Joe Baldwin, manager of Dassault Systèmes educational group, noticed how the lab was making a difference in students’ educational journey, providing them with first hand experiences that puts them ahead of other leading peer institutions.
“What makes George and the MBSE lab so different is that he not only understands systems engineering, but he is now deploying it in a way that is so pragmatic, and that is something that I do not see enough of,” stated Baldwin. “There is so much need for people who can put it all together, and get the job done on the timeline that it needs to get done. A big part of that and what George drills into his students is that understanding of what getting the job done means.”
As a first-of-its-kind facility for Aerospace Engineering students, the MBSE and x88 systems engineering course series has created a program unique in the academic world at the undergraduate level. The course series provides flexible product development and teaming space to support system requirements, design, analysis, verification and validation activities. Students use the lab on cross-campus projects to design, build, test and fly aircraft using industry-proven systems engineering tools and processes, beginning in the conceptual design phase and continuing throughout development and later life cycle phases.
In recent years, MBSE has become an industry best practice and U-M students with MBSE experience are highly sought after. Lydia Steeby, the MBSE Lab’s strategic initiatives manager and a junior in aerospace engineering, stated, “I think the industry is starting to shift towards MBSE and we get to learn systems engineering while we are in school. That means we are going into industry one step ahead of some professionals and that is a really unique opportunity that we have at Michigan.”
Bill DeVries, vice president of industry transformation and customer success, Dassault Systèmes North America says, “The speed of innovation and demand for new aerospace programs is experiencing unprecedented growth as we look to the future of air mobility including satellites, defense programs and the like. We are excited to partner with the University of Michigan and its MBSE Lab to support and grow the skills needed to prepare the next-generation of engineers for solid careers.”