NAPA and Bureau Veritas (BV) announced their partnership to enable more effective and widespread use of 3D models in the class approval process.
Through this partnership, the two parties seek to improve the overall efficiency and accuracy of future vessel design and address the current challenges associated with 2D drawings.
While naval architects use 3D models to design ships, the assessment of these designs by class ensure they meet relevant safety and compliance specifications, requiring them to be translated into 2D and then back again into 3D.
“This process is not only time-consuming, but it also slows down communication between class societies and designers and can lead to errors in the design,” say the two partners, adding that in order to change they aim to transform the design process with input from major shipbuilding, engineering and consulting companies.
The outcome includes the creation of a new process that enables BV to perform its rule checks without needing to re-create 3D models from 2D drawings by integrating the neutral OCX format.
Once the designer shares hull data based on the OCX format from its design software, BV imports it into NAPA Steel to automatically generate the calculation models used in BV’s rule-checking software: MARS (prescriptive rule check) and VeriSTAR Hull (finite element analysis).
In addition, BV provides access to its web-based collaborative platform (VeriSTAR Project Management) to share the comments and the progress of the design review with shipyards, designers and shipowners in real-time.
The shift to 3D approval is important as it underpins what will be the next generation of vessel designs. It also means we will be able to collaborate more closely and more efficiently with designers to better iterate vessel designs to meet the safety and sustainability challenges of the future
stated Laurent Leblanc, Senior Vice President Technical & Operations at Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore.
