QuesTek Innovations LLC, Evanston, Ill., announces that QuesTek International has agreed to a joint venture with Tokyo-based Itochu Techno-Solutions (CTC), which provides sales and consulting services for a range of materials-related software products. These include software for alloy design, materials process design, materials characterization, and related databases, while providing support and consulting services. The new joint venture is called QuesTek Japan K.K.
QuesTek has been a pioneer in Integrated Computational Materials Engineering (ICME) technologies and its unique Materials by Design methodology, which combines physics-based models, vetted thermodynamic and kinetic databases of the elements, and predictive property models to allow for efficient materials design, process optimization, modeling, and simulation. A recent example of QuesTek’s application of ICME was the development of the first high-temperature aluminum alloy for additive manufacturing (3D printing).
As a company, CTC is deeply involved in providing application support for software that creates comprehensive simulations to predict the properties of materials. Founded in 1972, CTC reported sales in the last fiscal year of over $4.1 billion, and has 8600 employees worldwide.
According to Dr. Greg Olson, QuesTek Chief Science Officer and Massachusetts Institute of Technology Thermo-Calc Professor of the Practice, “With more than 30 years of experience in Japan’s technology markets, CTC is well-positioned to be a strong partner for QuesTek. As a lead-up to this joint venture, we’ve worked closely with CTC engineers and executives, and have found them to have the technical skills, the market knowledge, relationships, and track record to be the ideal partner for us in Japan.”
