Platinum components are now very widely used in the manufacture and processing of glass. At first sight it is, therefore, surprising that finite element modelling (FEM) is seldom used in their design. The reason for this is to be found in the specific type of mechanical loading at high temperatures and the lack of appropriate mechanical property data for the structural materials. Using the example of a glass fibre bushing from an indirect melt fiberizing process, this paper will demonstrate the use of FEM to determine the stresses resulting from the hydrostatic pressure of the glass melt,the intrinsic weight of the bushing, the stresses caused by the forces applied to withdraw the fibres from the bushing, and the stresses induced by the inhomogeneous temperature distribution in the bushing.
