Avis clients sur SIMUL8

We see Simul8 is a collaborator in teaching and research

Commentaires : My experience with Simul8 has been excellent. I was introduced to the software by my PhD supervisor. My PhD was in distributed computing and a research project focussed on distributed simulation. Simul8 provided me with multiple licenses for the Researcher edition of their software and technical support. This helped me better understand the technical aspects of the software, which was necessary for the intended purpose of distributed execution of models. My students have also continued to receive such exceptional support. Several of our received papers have used Simul8!

Avantages :

Simul8 is a versatile discrete-event simulation (DES) software. It has a programming language called Visual Logic (VL). For learning and teaching and the implementation of a wide range of DES projects, the Simul8 visual interface, which supports drag and drop, is sufficient to develop fairly complex models. With VL you can do a lot more! As an educator, I continue using the software to introduce simulation to new cohorts of MSc students in Operations Management and Business Analytics. The students love it! On the research side, the MRes and PhD students I supervised have used Simul8 to develop proof-of-concept models for their Modelling and Simulation research and also full-fledged models to support decision-making. The customer support that we have received over the years is exemplary! This goes to the extent that the Simul8 representatives you meet at conferences are happy to go through the model and provide advice.

Inconvénients :

From the education and teaching perspective, Simul8 is a perfect solution and students will love it! On the research side, if you were to develop integration with other models and modelling paradigms, it would require assistance from Simul8 technical support. With open-source software, integrating libraries and code offers many opportunities, especially for those who know coding. However, with Simul8, some additional integration work to achieve similar objectives may be needed. The software continues to evolve and this may be possible in the near future.

Thank you for your cooperation

Commentaires : Overall experience is simply great, whole support of MA and PhD students for their thesis.

Avantages :

Quite easy to learn and understand the Simul8 environment. At the same time possibility to make advance complex models.

Inconvénients :

Everything was fine, no cons were identified.

Simul8 Review

Avantages :

It has some good features such as importing/exporting data via Excel easily. It provides ready to use simulation results. Visual logic is perfectly helpful for interact the simulation as user wants.

Inconvénients :

The software always hangs while we're using/creating simulations. In addition, due to huge amount of data is imported to the software, it slogs on to process the data. The graphs display poor visualisations.

Simul8 User Review

Commentaires : It has been positive, and as I've used it more, you learn just how capable the software is.

Avantages :

The software is very dynamic in terms of the types of problems you can solve with it. You can do a lot with the basic functionalities but the visual logic can open up even further potential.

Inconvénients :

It can be quite difficult to learn by one's self. The online help supplied by Simul8 is good but maybe more in-depth examples would be useful.

Powerful tool

Commentaires : A powerful tool for process simulation. While the user interface may appear outdated compared to state-of-the-art options, this doesn’t reflect its robust capabilities. Initial training is essential, and at least 120 hours of practice are necessary to become reasonably proficient in performing reliable simulations of medium complexity

Avantages :

The functionality and capacity to replicate "real life scenarios" .

Inconvénients :

The number of hours required to become proficient with the tool is reasonable. Given the variety of options and scenarios available, the trade-off between output and effort is more than acceptable

Simul8 - Initial outlook

Commentaires : Very positive. The system is easy to use and the models I have created already (although on the simpler side) have allowed me to identify how to tackle complex problems.

Avantages :

Simul8 is quite an intuitive software where models of processes can be readily made and adequately detailed without prolonged training. The user interface means that the system can quickly be understood and interpreted to complete tasks of increased difficulties.

Inconvénients :

I was using the 2004 version which had little support in creating neat simulation models in the workspace, this often meant I had to spend time to create a clear simulation by dragging boxes and lines. I also found the labelling system not as effective as the codified attribute system in Witness, making it harder to change objects moving through the simulation.

Simul8 to sell

Commentaires : I have worked hard to learn and understand it. Constantly changing what i use and how i use it.

Avantages :

Being able to prove to a customer that our conveyor system would work and to show any issues and changes that we would need to make.

Inconvénients :

Moving images and uploading your own small images for the activity icons would be good.

Simul8 Review

Commentaires : - active weekly usage for the last 6 years
- the team has done a great job improving the tool recently
- keep adding more and better capabilities
- drop-in sessions are great. keep them going!
- increase the price of the product but don't raise by a lot since it is hard to convince management to keep allocating budget

Avantages :

- ease of use - used to be cheaper than most alternatives (which makes it easier to convince the management to allocate budget for it) - ability to use both coding (Visual Logic) and drag-drop

Inconvénients :

- charts and visualizations - sometimes unexplained bugs happen. rebuilding the model helps - recently raised prices. it is totally ok to raise the prices especially since the product got better recently. but be careful to not raise prices to the level of FlexSim and AnyLogic. In that price category, users might prefer FlexSim/AnyLogic over Simul8

Simulating materialographic processes

Commentaires : Beyond expectations. It is easy to learn the basics and create simple simulations, yet the software has so much depth, there's virtually nothing that can not be built and simulated.
The coaching sessions and all the support offered by Simul8 also helps to fully utilize the possibilities of the software.

Avantages :

Its versatility. We are working in a niche field with a lot of variables, yet we can still utilize Simul8 to its full extent to test real life scenarios.

Inconvénients :

The reporting could be further developed. Not that it is bad as it is, but as it is fully customizable, it takes time to build it. Building blocks or templates would help a lot.

Easy to use software

Commentaires : Building models simulating the manufacturing plant environment inculing assembly lines and production models

Avantages :

The user friendly interface and to build the models quickly and intuitively

Inconvénients :

There is actually not a thing that I can say I do not like but maybe there could be flexibilities that two resources can be simultaneously assigned to a product in parallel two sided assembly lines

Problem solver a simulation away

Commentaires : As a consulting firm that caters to pharma and medical devices industry, developing and design new custom-made manufacturing facilities were often needed. Simul8 allows us to easily design, validate and optimized plans and improve on strategies. Would definitely recommend to use in any industries!

Avantages :

With Simul8 we were able to develop a usable model that would meet the needs and requirements we have for the pharma and operations industry. We needed to have a system tailor-made to be able to leverage downtimes, equipment and being able to come up with strategies that fulfil stakeholders' requirement.

Inconvénients :

Graphics of model results could need improvements but as software is regularly updated, so there were signs of improvement. Some interface and vocabs used were different than other software, which lead to some confusion but some questions could be solved with their academy contents.

Great software for discrete event simulation

Commentaires : I can solve healthcare problems easily while using Simul8 rather than writing Python code by myself.

Avantages :

- Easy to understand of the UI of the software- Several options to set for simulation- Great diagram- Easy to interpret results

Inconvénients :

I used a student version of the software when I was a Master's degree student. Thus, there were limited features to use and I could not link data directly for result analysis or plotting graphs.

An SME using SIMUL8 in the Airports sector

Commentaires : Very positive.

Avantages :

The people behind SIMUL8 want to help and get you to achieve what you want from SIMUL8.

Inconvénients :

It is quite expensive for an SME to purchase, maintain and learn.

Simul8: engaging, intuitive and interactive simulation modelling

Commentaires : Simul8 allows for simulation models to be developed quickly and efficiently, due to the fact the interface and features are easy to use. My experience using Simul8 live in workshop settings in particular has been valuable - due to the ability to develop the simulations in an interactive and engaging manner. Further, the 1-to-1 coaching that Simul8 provide is brilliant - the coaches are very flexible, engaging and friendly, and really go the extra mile to support your development .

Avantages :

Simul8 delivered the most value through the ability to build complex models with an intuitive and easy to use interface. This ensured that different simulation scenarios could be run quickly and with confidence live in a workshop setting. Various parameters of the simulation can be rapidly flexed, such as resource numbers, shift patterns, process timings, etc. In turn, this allows for simulation modelling to be engaging and interactive, as well as effective in terms of delivering an accurate model with informative and pertinent results.

Inconvénients :

As someone with no prior knowledge or experience in coding, I initially found it a challenge to get to grips with the Visual Logic code. However, after a few hours getting to grips with it, the language is actually quite intuitive, and more similar to excel commands in the way that it is used. Also, there is a sidebar that allows you to search for every command and provides a definition for what the respective command/Visual logic code does.

An experience from a novice Simulation tool user..

Avantages :

The simplicity to represent a process or discrete event/s in terms of activities and working around them makes SIMUL8 a powerful tool. We have tried to implement a 'Process Digital Twin' of course in 1-D simulation, but to get some insightful results with the process.

Inconvénients :

It requires some baseline understanding about the statistics, a bit of programming (if you plan on using Visual Logic) and importantly, defining your problem scenario and expected deliverable/s out of the SIMUL8 models; but again, the SIMUL8 TEAM is awesome with this regards.

Simul8: a handy multipurpose simulation platform

Commentaires : From an educational view (as this was my experience with Simul8 up to now), and after discussing with our students who used the software for some case studies, our impression and experience was really great. Surely, the supporting material and the high level lecture given from Simul8's representative, played an important role for all of us to know better the world of simulation and learn the wide possibilities and usage in real problems.

Avantages :

Simul8 is a highly useful product that can adapt to a variety of users and applications. Namely, from undergraduate students that have their first contact with simulation concept and techniques, up to engineers, consultants and staff from any industry that want to design and study real applications. It is a very easy to learn and use simulation environment with many features and customization options while it provides special features and programming environment for expert users.

Inconvénients :

It could be an improvement in the graphical representation of models meaning an integrated library of ready-to-use objects.

Fast and Flexible

Avantages :

It's very easy to get started and build your first simulation model. The range of features and customization options make it a great way to model both simple and complex processes. The interface and different graphical elements lets me show stakeholders the most important information from the model in a concise and attractive way. I also have the option to use the software as a desktop application or in the browser which is extremely flexible. The Support team are also absolutely fantastic and really help answer any questions that I may have - they are such a great asset!

Inconvénients :

There's nothing that springs to mind that could be improved, the software is regularly updated and new features are always being added which is great!

Simul8, a very flexible and powerful simulation tool!

Commentaires : I've been using Simul8 for almost 2 decades on and off. I love what I can do with it, especially in creating very nuanced test data for projects.

Avantages :

It is easy to get started with it. The modeling options are generic and easy for business users to understand. Once you have a stable simulation, the coding language allows you to create very sophisticated simulations.

Inconvénients :

I would like to be able to use some of the simulation graphics for documentation. I'm sure this is more my issue than the product.

Logistics Simulations

Commentaires : Positive experience. Technical support has been fantastic, and the software has answered all the needs I have so far.

Avantages :

Visual interface is great for observing and validating simulations. Graphics are useful for visualizing what is actually going on. Incorporating of visual logic is great for interfacing with excel, and customizing your own time or event based actions. When you hold mouse over a setting, there is usually a great explanation which is really helpful. It does what I need it to! So I can't complain there. I am still a new user so I have a good deal to learn, but overall, I'm having a positive experience and haven't encountered any issues I couldn't work out with some (excellent) technical support!

Inconvénients :

Could improve variables - it would be nice to be able to declare variables in the visual logic code, instead of having to go into information store and declare before using. Would be nice to have an option to see all visual logic in one place as opposed to broken up and nested in each activity, makes it tricky to monitor when counters are updated, for example. Would also be nice to see some common event based visual logic pre-made, for example, when activity complete, send time of day to a spreadsheet cell, and increment the row for the next completion time. Would like to highlight several activities and change all parameters, such as resource details. It might just be my use case, but a lot of labour goes into updating a batch of settings across multiple activities that could be a global change. An example is for making a resource travel with work item - have to go into details in resources of each and every activity. The default settings add a travel time based on arrow length - I would make that off by default. Graphics interface feels a little buggy when scrolling and zooming - clock jumps around. It appears you have to use the same units across the whole simulation. Clock in hours and others in minutes would be helpful. Granted, I am using an old version of the software, and I am a relatively new user of the software. None of these are dealbreakers for me, just hopefully helps the development team improve or potential users get started.

A powerful tool

Commentaires : Overall I have had a very positive experience of using the software. We've used Simul8 for looking at explaining why ambulances queuing at emergency departments in recent years has increased. Currently are using it to look at staff required to deal with call demands at GP practices. We also use it for training other analysts to help them understand what discrete event simulation is and can do.

Avantages :

I find that the visualisation aspect of using Simul8 software for discrete event simulations really helps management and frontline staff to enagage in discussions around how to improve their system and gives them more confidence in results. Some of the features included make producing a model quicker for me than alternative solutions. One of the main reasons I'll use Simul8 over alternatives is the speed of reply and the very knowledgeable support staff. The ability to export full documentation of your model does help in making it more transparent to those who want to reproduce a similar model in alternative software and it does now connect to R as well as Excel. Really like the ability to use the online version of Simul8 as well as the desktop version. You can build simple models with the standard features quite rapidly which is great for beginners but the additional features like Optquest and Visual Logic expand its possibilities much further.

Inconvénients :

The obvious one is being a commercial company there is always going to be a cost and my organisation being public sector means there is a push right now to use opensource solutions instead. I sometimes find the visual logic help on the website doesn't resolve my query but a quick sometimes usually export to R or Excel for final versions. It is possible to occasionally crash but I can't remember it ever not recovering my work.

Best customer and technical support in industry

Commentaires : I use the software as a teaching tool but my students always work in a practical project for the final part of their course.

Avantages :

The software is intuitive and easy to use. Being visual means customers will clearly see what the model is doing and will be able to interact with the modeller to improve the model and make it more adequate for the needs of the customer. But the BEST thing about this software is their technical and customer support. It is best to none. And this is vital when you are using software like this. Simul8 is a company that makes each user valued and for this reason is always ready to help you with any questions you might have. If I could give it 10 marks, I would.

Inconvénients :

Their online help needs improving but in the end if you don't find online what you are looking for, you can always ask their technical support who are more than happy to fully explain to you what the problem is, or how to do what you need to do

Simul8 for eCom fulfillment

Commentaires : I am making heavy use to the VL capability. Most of my Activities have an attached VL routine. I am simulating Robots and Operators in pick aisles using WMS simulated pick lists. Testing Optimization algorithms for efficient Robot travel, Operator travel, and Robot "swarming" to meet Operators at a pick face.

Avantages :

Very flexible, fast, user friendly, and intuitive.

Inconvénients :

A little buggy. Crashes several times a week. Memory overflow seems to be the biggest cause. Also, multi Activity changes can cause crashes.

Powerful and intuitive

Commentaires : I used SIMUL8 mainly in the healthcare sector. I may have done in the last 5 years approximately ten projects, big and small. I also use SIMUL8 with my students to teach operations management. SIMUL8 is powerful because it is fast but also because it is intuitive. This makes the results of a simulation easy to explain to customers that are not familiar with simulation.

Avantages :

The pros: The software is intuitive and easy-to-use. It has all the features to simulate complex organizations. I have been using it regularly since 2014. SIMUL8 is constantly being improved and users are involved in setting priorities for new developments. The SIMUL8 team offers excellent support. They have engineers experienced in all types of industries. In the field for which I mainly work (health care), I have always found all the support I needed for my projects. I have tested other simulation software and can confirm that SIMUL8 is powerful, well designed and robust. Its cost (license and maintenance) is very competitive compared to other simulation software.

Inconvénients :

3D animation is not the strength of SIMUL8, but the 3D animation features offered by SIMUL8 are more than enough to test, debug and present the simulation results to customers. 3D animation is not the most important feature of a simulation program. Simulation speed and presentation of results are essential and SIMUL8 is fast and provides results that are easy to manage and interpret.

"What If" analysis beyond Microsoft Excel

Commentaires : We wanted to model our mechanized warehouse investments and thus have started to introduce the value of simulation and so far the feedback from the leadership has been "interesting, very interesting, let's see how we can use this..."

Avantages :

SIMUL8 has enough intuitive configuration based features coupled with visual logic that I spent most of time building the model as opposed to learning the tool. Given how quickly, I was able to setup my model meant that I soon found myself using step through logic features like "work item tracking" to validate the results my model was generating.

Inconvénients :

The share feature is a great way to engage others but the 1 week limit is a bit short - the base default should be longer.

Best discrete event simulation software

Commentaires : Excellent

Avantages :

Simul8 is an easy to use simulation software and very user firendly. Most features are intuitively used but if you need more detailing in model building then Visual Logic is there to help.

Inconvénients :

I wish to see more on 3D modelling and animating things in the model.