About us

At Vanguard FSI we design and verify equipment operating at the limit —high temperature, pressure and severe thermal cycling— for EPCs, manufacturers and operators around the world. We simulate the fluid and the structure as a single problem, from the calculation model to the construction detail.

Design and simulation engineering, since 2006

Our track record

Since 2006, specialists in molten salt tanks for CSP plants.

Our track record begins in 2006 and spans two decades of projects for the industrial and energy sectors, with deep specialization in molten salt tanks for concentrated solar power plants: we have taken part in the design and calculation of the tanks for the main CSP plants in South Africa — Kaxu, Xina, Bokpoort, Kathu and Ilanga — and for the Heatcube thermal energy storage systems from Kyoto Group. The name is no accident: Vanguard is the commitment to apply innovation across the entire design process, keeping in mind from the very first sketch how the equipment will be manufactured and assembled.

Aerial view of a central-tower concentrated solar power plant surrounded by thousands of heliostats, under an orange sky at sunset.

How we work

From the physical problem to the calculation report, in five steps

Every project starts with a technical conversation: understanding the physical problem before opening any software. From there, the process is systematic. We work under confidentiality agreements from the first contact when the project requires it.

  • 1 · Understand

    Operating conditions, load cases, code requirements. We define the scope together.

  • 2 · Model

    Geometry, mesh and boundary conditions tuned to the phenomenon to be captured, with the construction detail present from day one.

  • 3 · Simulate

    CFD, FEA or the coupled problem, with Ansys Fluent and Ansys Mechanical on high-performance computing hardware.

  • 4 · Verify

    Systematic validation and verification (V&V): mesh independence, benchmarking against references and code checks.

  • 5 · Report

    Complete, traceable calculation report, with every check documented.

The team

A team that masters high-fidelity analysis and designs with fabrication in mind

We are a team of engineers specialised in mechanics, thermal and structures, with a command of high-fidelity simulation tools and a defining trait: when the workflow needs a tool that doesn't exist, we build it.

This dual capability — calculation engineering and in-house tool development — is what makes Synapp possible, along with the way of working we have described.

Insulated pipeline running across a plain towards an industrial plant at sunset.

Synapp

Our in-house calculation platform: more resolution, more verifications, more quality

  • Integrates CFD and FEA

    Imports Ansys Fluent thermal maps directly into the Ansys Mechanical finite element model, so the mechanical calculation starts from the most realistic temperature distributions.

  • Analyses to code

    Design and service conditions to ASME VIII Div. 2 and ASME III Div. 5, with fatigue and creep assessment to API 579/ASME FFS-1.

  • Optimises time steps

    Links the Fluent and Mechanical models to select the relevant calculation instants: less computation time, without losing accuracy.

  • Documents

    Exports stress time histories for every simulated case and generates the complete calculation report.

  • Reaches down to the concrete

    Post-processes stresses into design forces and calculates reinforcement to EN 1992-1-1 and ACI 318-25.