Computer simulation is now an established discipline that has an important role to play in engineering, science and in newly emerging areas of interdisciplinary research. Using mathematical modelling as the basis, computational methods provide procedures which, with the aid of the computer, allow complex problems to be solved. The techniques play an ever-increasing role in industry. Swansea University has been at the forefront of international research in the area of computational engineering. Internationally renowned engineers at Swansea pioneered the development of numerical techniques, such as the finite element method, and associated computational procedures that have enabled the solution of many complex engineering problems.