New ESI Group CAAV5 based products will take major step toward realistic PLM simulation in the "Virtual Try-Out Space"

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 18, 2003-- Dassault Systemes (Nasdaq: DASTY) (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA) and ESI Group (Euronext Paris: #6584) today announced the signing of a CAA V5 (Component Application Architecture) strategic development agreement under which ESI Group will develop and sell its next generation solutions for Virtual Prototyping, Manufacturing and Environment using V5 middleware. As a result of this partnership, ESI Group will first focus on delivering within V5, multi-physics realistic simulation solutions for crashworthiness and stamping processes.

ESI Group is a world-leading provider of digital simulation software for prototype and manufacturing process engineering that takes into account the physics of materials critical for crash, safety, vibro-acoustics, stamping, casting, welding, flow and electromagnetics simulation. Under the terms of the agreement, ESI Group joins Dassault Systemes' Software Community Program as a CAA V5 Gold Software Partner.

ESI Group will benefit from the V5 environment to deploy its "Virtual Try-Out Space" (VTOS) strategy, a virtual engineering global solution that simulates manufacturing processes and the real-life performance of industrial products subjected to a wide range of phenomena in applied physics and mechanics. The availability of these advanced capabilities in the V5 product definition and associative environment will optimize product engineering, improve product performance and quality, and reduce design cycles.

"We are confident that Dassault Systemes' CAA V5 can guarantee the best environment to deliver our integrated Virtual Try-Out Space and its unique virtual manufacturing solution to the PLM marketplace. ESI Group's extended product portfolio and V5 based solutions will enable on-line decision making by creating the ideal platform for product and process resource optimization. Chaining manufacturing processes and prototype testing simulation will turn the current digital mock-up into a realistic physical digital model, reducing time-consuming and expensive hardware prototyping," says Alain de Rouvray, chairman and CEO of ESI Group.

"ESI Group's endorsement of V5 is a new step forward in delivering the best realistic simulation portfolio available for all industries," said Dominique Florack, Executive vice president Research and Development, Dassault Systemes. "In addition, I believe that ESI Group's innovative approach to multi-physics simulation complements very well existing V5 applications from Dassault Systemes and our strategic partners."

Dassault Systemes is the premier global 3D PLM solutions provider. 3D PLM enables customers to optimize their business Processes for Engineering, Manufacturing, Maintenance & Support, using Collaborative Workspaces to share a common product, process and resource model (PPR). With PPR, companies can capture, share and reuse Knowledge all along the product life cycle. The open CAA V5 (Component Application Architecture) allows extension and integration of this solution within multiple enterprise environments.

About the CAA V5 Software Community Program

CAA V5 (Component Application Architecture) is Dassault Systemes' open middleware and development environment for 3D PLM. The CAA V5 Software Community Program is dedicated to ISV (Independent Software Vendors) willing to develop, sell and support CAA V5-based applications, fully integrated with CATIA, ENOVIA and DELMIA V5. This collaboration results in the expansion of Dassault Systemes' 3D PLM solutions to cover the entire product lifecycle range, thus enabling mutual customers to take advantage of a larger set of products in response to their specific industrial needs. Spatial is the primary channel for marketing, sales and support/services for CAA V5. Information about CAA V5 is available at http://www.caav5.com

About ESI Group

ESI Group is a pioneer and world leading provider of digital simulation for prototyping and manufacturing processes that take into account the physics of materials. ESI Group has developed an entire suite of coherent, industry oriented applications to realistically simulate a product's behavior during testing, to fine tune the manufacturing processes in synergy with the desired product performance, and to evaluate the environment's impact on product usage. ESI Group's product portfolio, which has been industrially validated and combined in multi-trade value chains, represents a unique collaborative, virtual engineering solution, known as the Virtual Try-Out Space (VTOS), enabling a continuous improvement on the virtual prototype. By drastically reducing costs and development lead times, VTOS solutions offer major competitive advantages by progressively eliminating the need for physical prototypes. ESI Group (Nouveau Marche: Euronext Paris - Software - Euroclear 6584 - Bloomberg ESI FP - Reuters ESIG.LN) employs over 400 high-level specialists worldwide. The company and its global network of agents provide sales and technical support to customers in more than 30 countries. On the Net: ESI Group site: http://www.esi-group.com

About Dassault Systemes

As world leader in three-dimensional product lifecycle management (3D PLM) solutions, the Dassault Systemes group brings value to more than 55,000 customers in 80 countries. A pioneer in the 3D software market since 1981, Dassault Systemes develops and markets 3D PLM application software and services that support industrial processes and provide a 3D vision of the entire life cycle of products from conception to retirement. Its offering includes 3D PLM integrated solutions for product development (CATIA, ENOVIA, DELMIA, SMARTEAM), general-use 3D solutions (SolidWorks), and 3D components (SPATIAL). Dassault Systemes is listed on the Nasdaq (DASTY) and Euronext Paris (#13065, DSY.PA) stock exchanges. Information about Dassault Systemes is available at http://www.3ds.com.

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