Dear friends,

This issue of Groundworks describes some of the activities surrounding our upcoming FLAC/DEM Symposium in Hangzhou, China next year. I believe this is an important opportunity for anyone interested in numerical modeling of geomechanics and the broader field of applied mechanics to get together with experts from around the world to exchange the latest developments and experiences. In conjunction with the symposium, Itasca will also be holding its annual general managers’ meeting. This means that managers from all Itasca offices will be participating in the symposium also, and attendees will have a unique opportunity to meet not only with Itasca software developers, but with those directly responsible for providing consulting and research services. Finally, a number of free workshops will be presented by Itasca specialists on the Friday immediately following the Symposium.

I encourage you to participate in the Symposium by submitting a paper, or at the least registering to attend the symposium and workshops. Registration information will be available soon. Hangzhou is easily accessible for international travelers and we are anticipating a large turnout.

Hope to see you there,

— Loren Lorig, Chief Executive Officer

Symposia

Itasca International Inc. will bring together engineers and scientists from around the world to focus on key issues in earth resources engineering and materials handling at the prestigious international FLAC/DEM Symposium on Oct. 22 to 24, 2013 in beautiful Hangzhou, China. The forum will focus on selected current and future applications for Itasca’s state-of-the-art technologies.

The event is being held in conjunction with the Chinese Society of Rock Mechanics and Engineering (CSRME) Annual Seminar on Numerical and Physical Simulation. Hangzhou — one of the most scenic cities in China — is located about 45 minutes by high-speed train southwest of Shanghai in the West Lake area.

Itasca software products featured at the event include FLAC, FLAC3D, UDEC, 3DEC, PFC, MINEDW, KUBRIX and InSite. Keynote speakers include world-renowned rock mechanics expert and leader, Charles Fairhurst, Ph.D., and Peter Cundall, Ph.D., the prime developer of Itasca software products.

Itasca has issued a call for papers for work related to Itasca software. The papers presented at the symposium will describe these applications in depth, and provide a venue for critical discussion. The deadline for full-paper submissions is February 1, 2013.

For more information on the event and to submit papers visit:

www.flacdemsymposium.com

Software

FLAC3D 5.0 pre-release is available now. The full release is coming soon. Interested users are invited to check our website for the latest information including a feature list, a demonstration version and videos. The demonstration version includes most optional features. Problems are limited in size. There is no restriction to the length of time you can use the demo. Save Now with Pre-Purchase Option Current FLAC3D users can pre-purchase the version 5.0 upgrade right now with substantial savings. This option provides access to the FLAC3D 5.0 pre-release version. For more information on how to take advantage of these savings, please contact your local office or agent. Itasca Consulting Group, Inc. announces the purchase of Simulation Works, Inc. Based in St. Paul, Minn., Simulation Works, Inc. designs and develops the KUBRIX software used by design engineers and researchers in the automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, biomedical, petroleum and electronics industries to automate the more human-intensive and costly aspects of computer-aided engineering. The purchase of Simulation Works, Inc. will integrate KUBRIX software into Itasca products and services, benefiting clients and promoting expansion into new markets. Itasca’s software range includes the leading numerical modeling software for geomechanical design analyses in earth resources engineering: FLAC, FLAC3D, UDEC, 3DEC and PFC. KUBRIX is a unique, automatic grid generator (hexahedral, octree and hybrid tet-hex techniques) used in conjunction with CAD software to produce sophisticated computer models. Its capabilities meet the demanding geometrical requirements of rock structure in geo-engineering projects, including non-manifold surfaces and hundreds of materials and intersecting intermittent faults.

Current Updates:

Training

Itasca Consulting Group, Inc. Itasca Consulting Group, Inc. will host introductory training courses this fall. All courses will be taught in two- or three-day sessions at our Minneapolis office. Please visit www.itascacg.com/training for full details. FLAC - Oct 10-12 FLAC3D - Oct 15-17 KUBRIX - Oct 18-19 PFC - Oct 22-24
Itasca Consultants S.A.S. Itasca Consultants SAS Itasca Consulting Group, Inc. will host introductory training courses this fall. All courses will be taught in three-day sessions at our Ecully, France office. Please visit www.itascacg.com/training for full details. FLAC - Sep 25-27 FLAC3D - Oct 10-12 PFC - Nov 7-9 3DEC - Nov 14-16

Recruitment

Senior Engineer

Itasca is seeking a Senior Engineer in its Minneapolis office. Itasca is a growing international engineering company. The successful candidate will be responsible mainly for directing numerical analysis project work done by others and would interact with both Itasca engineers and clients on a regular basis. The projects are world-class, providing exceptional professional opportunities working with highly regarded staff in our U.S. and international offices. Some travel may be involved. The candidate should have a strong background (approx. 5 to 10 years) in geomechanics modeling with Itasca codes in mining applications and a demonstrated capability to mentor staff and direct projects. All candidates must have a Ph.D. degree in a related discipline. Please send a cover letter and resume to careers@itascacg.com and include the reference number ICG12-01 in the e-mail subject line.

Conferences

Itasca will be attending:

Recent Staff Publications

Corkum, A. G., L. J. Lorig and D. O. DeGagné. (2012) "Continuum Representation of Brittle Rock Failure Bulking-Induced Displacedments Around Tunnels," in 46th U.S. Rock Mechanics / Geomechanics Symposium (Proceedings, ARMA, Chicago, June 2012). Paper No. 12-176. Alexandria, Virginia: ARMA.

Damjanac, B., D. Martin, M. Diederichs, D. McCreath and T. Lam. (2012) "Long-Term Stability for a Proposed Nuclear Waste Deep Geological Repository: Bruce Nuclear Site, Ontario, Canada," in Rock Engineering and Technology for Sustainable Underground Construction — EUROCK (Proceedings, ISRM International Symposium, Stockholm, May 2012). Stockholm: Rock Engineering Research Foundation & Swedish National Group of ISRM (BeFo).

Han, Y., B. Damjanac and N. Nagel. (2012) "A Microscopic Numerical System for Modeling Interaction between Natural Fractures and Hydraulic Fracturing," in Proceedings, 46th U.S. Rock Mechanics / Geomechanics Symposium (Chicago, June 2012), Paper No. 12-238. Alexandria, VA: ARMA, 2012.

Haycox, J. R., H. C. Moretti, J. M. Reyes-Montes and R. P. Young. (2012) "Enhanced Interpretation of Fracturing from Acoustic Emissions and Ultrasonic Monitoring at the Aspö Pillar Stability Experiment," in Rock Engineering and Technology for Sustainable Underground Construction — EUROCK (Proceedings, ISRM International Symposium, Stockholm, May 2012). Stockholm: Rock Engineering Research Foundation & Swedish National Group of ISRM (BeFo).

Katsaga, T., and D. O. Potyondy. (2012) "A Generic Stope Model for Investigation of Fracturing Mechanisms in Deep Gold Mines," in 46th US Rock Mechanics / Geomechanics Symposium (Proceedings, ARMA, Chicago, June 2012). ARMA 12-541. Alexandria, VA: ARMA.

Liu, H., F. Durán del Valle, J. Xiang and B. Sener Kaya. (2012) "Simulation of Three-Dimensional Pore-Pressure Distribution for Slope-Stability Analysis," in Proceedings, 46th U.S. Rock Mechanics / Geomechanics Symposium (Chicago, June 2012), Paper No. 12-452. Alexandria, VA: ARMA, 2012.

Nagel, N. B., M. A. Sanchez-Nagel, X. Garcia and B. Lee. (2012) "A Numerical Evaluation of the Geomechanical Interactions Between a Hydraulic Fracture Stimulation and a Natural Fracture System," in Proceedings, 46th U.S. Rock Mechanics / Geomechanics Symposium (Chicago, June 2012), Paper No. 12-287. Alexandria, VA: ARMA, 2012.

Pettitt, W. S., J. F. Hazzard, B. Damjanac, Y. Han, M. Pierce and T. Katsaga. (2012) "Microseismic Imaging and Hydrofracture Numerical Simulations," in 21st Canadian Rock Mechanics Symposium: RockEng12 — Rock Engineering for Natural Resources (Proceedings, CARMA, Edmonton, Canada, May 2012), pp. 549-560. Westmount, Quebec: CARMA, CIMICM.

Riahi, A., J. Hazzard and L. Lorig. (2012) "Effect of Anisotropy of Permeability in Slope Stability of Large Open Pit Mines," in 21st Canadian Rock Mechanics Symposium: RockEng12 — Rock Engineering for Natural Resources (Proceedings, CARMA, Edmonton, Canada, May 2012), pp. 119-126. Westmount, Quebec: CARMA, CIMICM.

Sellers, E., J. Furtney, I. Onederra and G. Chitombo. (2012) "Improved Understanding of Explosive-Rock Interactions Using the Hybride Stress Blasting Model," in Second Southern Hemisphere International Rock Mechanics Symposium SHIRMS 2012 (Proceedings, SAIMM, Sun City, South Africa, May 2012). Symposium Series S71, pp. 1-15. Marshalltown, South Africa: SAIMM.