Although finite element simulation has been used to analyze superplastic forming for many years, there still remain challenges in how to accurately capture forming behaviours such as necking, fracture and wrinkling. Recent developments in the commercial software PAM-STAMP address these challenges. Several industrial cases will be studied which demonstrate the practical effectiveness of the new features in identifying forming problems during product design and process development. The successful application of the newly developed techniques will accelerate the development process, reduce cost and improve quality. The theoretical background of the above mentioned developments will also be presented including its finite element formulation, material models, contact description and pressure control algorithm. Particular emphasis is given to the following new features developed for superplastic forming: Improved shell formulations describing normal pressure, Enhanced viscoelastic material model with anisotropic flow potential, Arbitrary dependence of flow stress on strain and strain rate, Flexible strain rate measures for pressure control, and User friendly specification of pressure load with automatic stop. These new developments enhance PAM-STAMP accuracy in predicting necking problems in superplastic forming and make simulation model preparation even more user friendly.
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