TROY, Mich., Oct. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Altair (www.altair.com) announced today the addition of leading industrial design/styling software solidThinking (www.solidthinking.com) to its HyperWorks Enabled Community (HWEC), bringing the total applications available under the HyperWorks platform to 44, including 16 third-party software applications. HyperWorks customers can now download solidThinking 7.6, the latest version of the software launched recently for Windows and Mac users worldwide, along with all other available applications, at zero incremental cost using their existing HyperWorks software license system at www.hyperworkscommunity.com .

"Participation in the HyperWorks Enabled Partner Program is an exciting opportunity to make solidThinking 7.6 available to industrial design users at existing HyperWorks customers worldwide," said Alessandro (Alex) Mazzardo, solidThinking co-founder and vice president of product strategy and marketing.

Altair's addition of third-party applications such as solidThinking provides customers with more software options to diversify and increase their return on investment in HWEC, and provides third-parties with the opportunity to gain added exposure and marketshare.

"The concept behind the HyperWorks Enabled Partner Program fits very nicely with the philosophy of solidThinking: experimenting and trying new concepts without the limitations of traditional software," added Robert Little, president of solidThinking. "We expect our participation to not only prove beneficial to potential industrial design users but also compliment solidThinking's overarching growth strategy."

The dominant tool of choice for Italian design firms and industrial designers, solidThinking is an extremely flexible, "what-if" design software. It offers one of the fastest, most deeply integrated rendering engines available to produce high-quality photorealistic virtual models, as well as a revolutionary construction tree history that allows users the freedom to change their minds at any point during the design process. Companies that already rely on solidThinking include many of the world's leading designers of furniture, electronic devices, automobiles, lighting, shoes, jewelry, timepieces, sports equipment, yachts, consumer packaging and other products.

HyperWorks is a suite of enterprise analytic applications that includes statistical, database, visualization and simulation software to help companies make better business decisions. Its patented on-demand computing licensing technology allows users to transparently share software licenses globally across a broad suite of applications. With the HyperWorks Enabled Community, Altair is extending the HyperWorks Platform from 28 internally developed solutions to more than 40 with the addition of new third-party ISV applications like solidThinking. Customers can operate all applications under their existing HyperWorks software licenses, increasing flexibility and the value of their investment.

In addition to solidThinking, popular third-party enterprise analytics applications already available for download in the HyperWorks Enabled Community (www.hyperworkscommunity.com) include DesignLife from nCode, FEKO from EMSS, FEMFAT from Magna, SC/Tetra from Software Cradle, HiQube and more.

"Altair continues to add value to HyperWorks customers with the addition of diverse enterprise analytic applications like solidThinking," said Michael Humphrey, Altair vice president of partner programs. "Since the launch of the HWEC, we have seen a very positive response from our customers who want to increase productivity through accelerated access to new innovative software technologies and gain an optimal return on their software investment."

About solidThinking, Inc. (www.solidthinking.com)

solidThinking, Inc. develops and markets industrial design/styling software that helps designers invent, explore and evaluate new ideas easily, rapidly and cost-effectively, without the limitations of traditional software. Designers use solidThinking software to create photorealistic 3D virtual prototypes of products across the design arena, from architecture and automobiles to electronic devices, jewelry, product packaging and yachts. solidThinking is a wholly owned subsidiary of Troy, Mich. (USA) based Altair Engineering, Inc.

About Altair

Altair Engineering, Inc. empowers client innovation and decision-making through technology that optimizes the analysis, management and visualization of business and engineering information. Privately held with more than 1,400 employees, Altair has offices throughout North America, South America, Europe and Asia/Pacific. With a 20-year-plus track record for product design, advanced engineering software and grid computing technologies, Altair consistently delivers a competitive advantage to customers in a broad range of industries. To learn more, please visit www.altair.com .

About the HyperWorks Enabled Community Program

HyperWorks uses a subscription-based software licensing model, where software licenses float across the enterprise, and customers can use floating licenses to access a broad suite of Altair developed and third party software applications. Customers benefit from unmatched flexibility and access, resulting in maximum software utilization, productivity and ROI. For more information about the HyperWorks Enabled Partner Program, visit www.hyperworkscommunity.com .

SOURCE Altair Engineering, Inc.