Yards seize Windows of opportunity

Computer-aided design, engineering and manufacturing systems have become an integral part of shipbuilding operations worldwide over the past decade.

Investment in CAD/CAE/CAM technology has now spread to the smaller shipyards, or those yards in areas where technological sophistication has not tended to be a priority, in order for them to stay competitive and meet shipowners requirements. The switch away from mainframe to PC-based solutions has accelerated this trend.

A relatively small group of companies specialises in providing CAD/CAE/CAM systems for the shipbuilding industry. Working closely with shipyards, these software suppliers have successfully developed some important new products over the past year, which should yield considerable efficiency gains for users, cutting down on the number of man hours required during the construction and design phases, for example.

These enhancements cover several different areas of the design and production process. However, if there is a common theme within the various developments, it is the evident shift towards the use of Windows NT as the basic operating system.

Kockums Computer Systems (KCS), now renamed TRIBON Solutions, has established itself as the market leader, and its TRIBON package of CAD/CAE/CAM systems has become virtually the industry standard. In 1995, KCS had 130 TRIBON users on its books. By the end of 1999 this figure had risen to 270, and business wins in the early months of 2000 will expand its market share still further this year.

During 1999, KCS rolled out TRIBON M1, its latest generation ship design and shipbuilding software, which uses Microsoft NT based technology to facilitate the installation, use and development of 3D designing. TRIBON M1 also makes it possible for companies in different locations to co-operate on a particular project via the Internet.

TRIBON Solutions (TS) claims TRIBON M1 offers users a number of benefits, but the company believes that the biggest gains can be made in the production engineering sector. The Assembly Planning module defines vessel build strategy and creates assembly production information, while Weld Planning improves accuracy and reduced planning, welding and assembly costs, TS contends. The Factory Automation module is configured to supply the highly accurate production information needed for automation equipment such as cutting and welding robots.

In recent months, the TRIBON M1 system has been upgraded further through the launch of a new Basic Design application. This is capable of producing reliable basic design documentation, including general arrangement and classification drawings.

Another well established CAD/CAE/CAM system, used at over 120 yards and design offices worldwide, is FORAN, designed and developed by Sener of Spain. Over the past few months, Sener has widened the hardware platforms capable of supporting the system to include Windows NT, in addition to the Unix and Open VMS operating systems used to date.

A range of other enhancements have been made within Sener`s latest FORAN V40 system. The already user-friendly FORAN interface has been improved by the use of icons and pop-up menus, for example, and off-line welding robot programming is now possible through an interface between the ship structure 3D model and the welding robot controller. FORAN V40 can also automatically generate welding information, including paths and characteristics, achieving significant savings in work preparation.

A Model Navigator Virtual Reality option is another enhancement that is now available to FORAN users. This new application permits a `walk-through` of a 3D model of the vessel in real time, focussing on detailed analysis and verification of the design.

FORAN V40 also now includes a powerful automatic nesting algorithm in the module that handles the nesting of plate parts, while there is a direct link between the FORAN database and the panel line controller to automatically generate fabrication information on a just-in-time basis. Furthermore, NURBS, considered by Sener to be `the most suitable representation for the exchange of complex curve and surface data`, has been integrated with FORAN`s existing lines definition modules.

Nupas-Cadmatic`s CAD/CAE/CAM software for shipbuilding is another package that has been made available on the Windows NT platform in the past year. According to the company, a joint venture between Dutch and Finnish interests, the new Windows NT version has been introduced to satisfy the growing demand from yards wanting to run powerful 3D software in a Windows NT operating system.

A new version 4 of the Nupas-Cadmatic system is now on the market. Besides adding new features, a particular effort has been made to make the software more user friendly. Nupas Cadmatic claims that training periods required have been shortened still further for new users. `Short and easy implementation together with high levels of operational efficiency guarantees a short pay-back time, Matti Juntunen points out.

Finland-based NAPA has unveiled NAPA Steel, a tool designed to speed up the modelling of steel structures. According to the company this addition to its CAD/CAM portfolio designates functions for defining the construction properties of decks, bulkheads, shell plating and other vessel structures. This is intended to provide yards with a modelling method that is fast enough for the project stage, during which changes are frequent, while still handling enough information to serve designing needs.

Canadian CAD/CAM software developer, Autoship Systems, is now shipping Release 8 of its Autoship hull design program. New features in Autoship include editable trimmed surfaces; the new Blend surface type, which allows chamfers and smooth radius fillets to be easily created between two surfaces; real-time hydrostatics; and simultaneous multiple vertex control. Autoship Pro 8 users will receive a marine equipment parts library that will allow the designer to rapidly finish a detailed model of the fully outfitted vessel.