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Force Protection Industries Chooses HyperWorks Simulation Platform for Military Vehicle Product Development

HyperWorks provides CAE backbone to support Force Protection Industries development of vehicles for soldier protection and improved mission flexibility TROY, Mich., (July 08, 2008) – Altair Engineering, Inc., a global provider of technology and services empowering innovation and decision-making, today announced that Force Protection Industries, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Force Protection, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRPT), has implemented the HyperWorks CAE solution for engineering design analysis.

Force Protection Industries, which pioneered the manufacture of vehicles for the U.S. military’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) program, has adopted HyperWorks exclusively to drive their design process with simulation. Force Protection Industries is using HyperWorks to develop multiple versions of the company’s three vehicles: Buffalo, Cougar, and Cheetah. Force Protection Industries will utilize HyperWorks to ensure that its vehicles meet or exceed all standards required by the U.S. military.

“We selected HyperWorks for our analysis work for several reasons,” said Mark Edwards, executive vice president of development, Force Protection Industries. “First we were impressed by the performance, value and breadth of the HyperWorks offering. It provided us with a powerful pre-and post-processing environment and integrated linear and nonlinear solvers that we need today and into the future. The selection of HyperWorks allows us to cost-effectively scale to meet our existing and growing analysis needs.”

“In addition to great software and client support, Altair was also there to consult with us on challenging design matters and the execution of our high-water analysis workload. We looked at many engineering consulting companies before choosing to work with Altair’s ProductDesign division. As a preferred consulting partner, they are very competitive, have deep automotive design knowledge, and are experts with our analysis toolset.”

"Altair is proud to be a part of Force Protection Industries' design and analysis tool set,” said Michael J. Kidder, Altair vice president of corporate marketing. “Their vehicles have established a solid reputation of life-saving performance in the field, and their ground-breaking work in MRAP design is now being emulated by other manufacturers. We look forward to aiding Force Protection Industries as they continue to push the bounds of quality and safety in the protection of our troops.”



About Force Protection Industries, Inc.

Force Protection, Inc. is a leading American designer, developer and manufacturer of life saving survivability solutions, predominantly ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles currently deployed by the U.S. military and its allies to support armed forces and security personnel in conflict zones. The Company’s specialty vehicles, the Cougar, the Buffalo and the Cheetah, are designed specifically for reconnaissance, forward command and control, and urban operations and to protect their occupants from landmines, hostile fire, and improvised explosive devices (IEDs, commonly referred to as roadside bombs). The Company is one of the original developers and primary providers of vehicles for the U.S. military’s Mine Resistant Ambush Protected, or MRAP, vehicle program. For more information, please visit www.forceprotection.net.


About Altair

Altair Engineering, Inc. empowers client innovation and decision-making through technology that optimizes the analysis, management and visualization of business and engineering information. Privately held with more than 1,300 employees, Altair has offices throughout North America, South America, Europe and Asia/Pacific. With a 20-year-plus track record for enterprise analytics, product development, and advanced computing, Altair consistently delivers a competitive advantage to customers in a broad range of industries. To learn more, please visit www.altair.com.

Company contact:
Tommy Pruitt
Sr. Communications Director
Force Protection, Inc.
843.574.3866

Company contact:
Michael J. Kidder
Altair Engineering, Inc.
Tel.: +1.248.614.2400, ext. 269
media@altair.com