A community hobbyist used the free Coreform Cubit associate license to build an educational automation workflow that converts STEP geometry into STL surfaces to drive OpenFOAM snappyHexMesh case generation.
Using the Associate license to enable learning
The Coreform Cubit Associate license is designed for qualified users doing non-commercial work, often university students. It is also appropriate for hobbyists who need professional tooling to learn, prototype, and contribute back to the community. The license includes the full Cubit feature set with a 50,000-element export limit, which is often a practical fit for tutorials, coursework, and many educational meshes. For hobbyists specifically, that combination is powerful. It lets independent builders create real tools against a real API, then publish workflows others can adopt.
Educators may find that providing Coreform Cubit access to their students improves learning and preparation for real-world work by exposing them to a commercial-grade tool. In this specific case, the Automated Geometry to Mesh Generation for OpenFOAM using Coreform Cubit can reduce the time for CAD-to-mesh setup and increase the time spent on real learning.
The tool: Automated Geometry to Mesh Generation for OpenFOAM
In CFD education (and early-stage R&D), students often learn the physics faster than they learn the “plumbing” between CAD and a runnable mesh. The result is predictable: too much time spent on file conversions, surface prep, boundary naming, and case scaffolding—and not enough time exploring mesh sensitivity, boundary conditions, and solver settings.
A hobbyist developer in the simulation community, Noman Hasan, created an open-source workflow that connects three common steps into one repeatable pipeline: take a CAD STEP file (or a native Cubit file), use Coreform Cubit to convert the model into a set of STL surfaces, and automatically generate and run an OpenFOAM snappyHexMesh case based on structured inputs.
You can view and download the tool here.
The workflow
The repository organizes the automation into two scripts (one executed inside Cubit, one executed downstream):
1) Cubit-side conversion script
The Cubit script exports STL surfaces and produces a lightweight “handoff” file that captures boundary-condition intent (for example: inlet, outlet, wall) and points to the exported STL directory.
2) snappyHexMesh driver script
The downstream script reads the handoff data and user inputs, then creates a snappyHexMesh case directory, writes the supporting OpenFOAM dictionaries needed, and runs the meshing steps.
For teaching, this structure is high leverage: students can change one or two inputs and rerun the full pipeline without redoing the mechanical setup each time. In educational settings, many hours are lost each semester to CAD-to-mesh setup friction. Even a small automation bridge like this STEP-to-STL-to-case pipeline can materially improve learning outcomes by shifting effort back to analysis and interpretation.
Working on a similar project?
If you build something similar, we would like to see it. Community tools that make simulation more accessible are one of the best ways to grow the ecosystem.
About Coreform
Coreform develops next-generation computer-aided engineering software, including Coreform Cubit for advanced hex meshing and Coreform Flex for meshing-free analysis. Coreform is the exclusive commercial distributor of the Cubit meshing software and is headquartered in Utah, USA.
For media inquiries: Kimberly White · Coreform LLC · kimberly@coreform.com