Cover Letter for Specialist Engineer in Modelling and Simulation

Dear Sir,

I am a specialist engineer/scientist with a strong exposure and passion for modelling and simulation. Most of my experience is in vehicle and heavy vehicle handling, design, control and powertrain. I also have extensive experience in the general analysis and modelling of the dynamics of mechanisms and systems in the MSC/ADAMS, Dymola/Modellica, LMS/DADS and NASTRAN environments. My current focus is on simulation for design and control, but my earliest experiences were in testing and measurement.

I am currently employed part time (85%) as a Simulations Engineer with RABiT (www.rabit.com.au) modelling a set of vehicles; the 1997 Jeep Cherokee and the BMW 328i E46 for handling and braking studies. I also aid with supervising joint venture and University of Melbourne (UoM) specific projects as part of the Joint Venture between Pacifica Group Technologies (PGT) and UoM. This role also entails contributions to the modelling and analysis of componentry and controls developed for an Electro-Mechanical Brake as part of the by-wire development program for our joint venture partners, PGT.

The remaining time, and many weekends, are spent completing a postgraduate degree at the UoM, the working component of which I expect to complete by the end of 2006. My postgraduate work is on the steering control of a heavy vehicle road train. This involves the development of several new designs for vehicles, controllers and actuators, and the proof of these concepts within a dedicated solid body simulation environment. The theoretical work centres mainly on the application of nonlinear systems and control. The majority of this degree’s simulation work is in MSC/ADAMS, with support for controller and model development in Matlab/Simulink and Dymola/Modelica, respectively.

I have been involved with modelling and simulation since 1997 when I joined the Australian Road Research Board as a vehicle modeller, and have gained an in depth appreciation of many environment’s strengths and weaknesses. I have developed macros and purpose built functions, imported and tested flexible bodies for deflection and stress recovery, co-simulated controllers in Matlab/Simulink, and applied the wide variety of ADAMS and DADS capabilities including CAR, LINEAR, CONTROLS, FLEX, AUTO-FLEX.

I have applied the latest C++ solver features in these packages, and developed code in FORTRAN, C++ and Java for purpose built models. I have recently completed a course in advanced solver work within the FORTRAN environment at MSC Software. In additon I have applied MSC/NASTRAN to automotive stress applications over a period of several years with GM Holden, using mostly the linear stress analysis tools such as 101 and 103 solutions.

With my family in mind I see my next career step as joining a project driven group for at least a 5+ year duration role in its research or design CAE area, potentially leading a team. My preference is to work for a company or institution with a significant profile in the robotics/aerospace/automotive sector and having established CAE research and development credentials.

I look forward to any further discussions with you regarding my suitability for your projects.

Craig Fletcher
cf@unimelb.edu.au