Shipconstructor Software News

Victaulic’s collaboration with SSI’s Autodesk ShipConstructor promises a streamlined design process, easier access to Victaulic piping specifications and proof positive that marrying hardware data and existing design technology can save time, money, weight and headaches for boat designers and shipyards alike.Is Victaulic’s time-tested turnkey approach to pipe joining right for you? That depends on a lot of things, but if better design options and a measurable benchmark of Total Installed Cost Savings would benefit your bottom line, then you’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain by trying. And now, Victaulic’s catalog content inclusion in SSI’s ShipConstructor software gives naval architects and shipyards the convenient ability to ask…

Dutch fishing company Ekofish Group has contracted Damen Maaskant Shipyards Stellendam to build a new twin-rig fishing trawler, specially designed to support eco-friendly fishing. Vripack will be using SSI’s ShipConstructor software for design and engineering work on the vessel. Vripack has brought the quality of its yacht design experience to the design of its first twin-rigger fishing vessel. Using a holistic approach, Vripack closely collaborated with both Ekofish and Maaskant Shipyards to create a practical, yet innovative design.

ShipConstructor Software Inc. (SSI) says it is excited to see that the Brazilian Government has funded training on SSI’s ShipConstructor software. Below is background to that decision. Brazilian shipyard Estaleiro Atlântico Sul (EAS) is one of a select group of bright lights in the Brazilian shipbuilding industry. With the downturn in oil prices and the impact of “Operation Car Wash” causing the cancellation of Petrobras projects, several Brazilian shipbuilding and offshore shipyards have shut down. However, Estaleiro Atlântico Sul has five projects in its portfolio and other shipyards and agencies also continue with work. That means they will continue to need skilled workers both in their own offices and in the associated supply chain.

SSI announced the recent sale of more ShipConstructor software to the Vietnamese office of Steinsvik, the major Norwegian aquaculture firm. Steinsvik Vietnam Co. Ltd. has upgraded its ShipConstructor design/engineering software to the latest version to maximize efficiency and effectiveness. The company has also expanded its SSI software investment to accommodate increased work. Among the many products and services that the global firm Steinsvik provides is the development and construction of feed barges for all types of fish farming. Robust and reliable platforms are essential in the rough conditions faced by modern aquaculture and Steinsvik prides itself on developing reliable and functional solutions that contribute to efficient operations and safe and comfortable working conditions.

The last barrier to robotic shipbuilding has just fallen. What comes next will be truly exciting. It wasn’t too long ago that SSI and Wolf Robotics demonstrated some co-development which automatically drove a fully autonomous welding robot to weld several ship panels. SSI develops Autodesk based solutions for the shipbuilding and offshore industry including ShipConstructor software, an AutoCAD based CAD/CAM product line; and EnterprisePlatform, a tool for sharing product data model information. For its part, Wolf Robotics has been integrating robotic welding and cutting systems since 1978. The collaboration was part of a National Shipbuilding Research Program (NSRP) Computer Aided Robotics Welding (CAR-W) project with U.S. shipyards.

Australian defense contractor BAE Systems Australia has recently made an investment in a broad range of SSI software and services. BAE has purchased new ShipConstructor software seats and Subscriptions while also investing in software license rentals under SSI’s flexible pay as you go model. Included as part of BAE’s investment were upgrades to its SSI ShipConstructor Workshare software to allow the company to distribute CAD/CAM work across multiple locations. BAE will also be implementing SSI’s innovative information sharing application called EnterprisePlatform PublisherLT which will allow BAE to streamline its engineering processes. BAE realized that to maximize the value of its software, proper staff training was essential.

CAD/CAM software maker SSI said it is developing solutions for Computer Aided Robotics Welding (CAR-W) consistent with its recent innovations in the area of 3D weld management. This research project is under the aegis of the U.S. Navy’s National Shipbuilding Research Program (NSRP). In December SSI representatives met with representatives from Wolf Robotics and Edison Welding Institute to advance this project. Other organizations involved include Bollinger Shipyards, Ingalls Shipbuilding, NSWCCD, Purdue University, Colorado State University, Tony Macijewski and Longview Advisors.

CAD/CAM software maker SSI said it is developing solutions for Computer Aided Robotics Welding (CAR-W) consistent with its recent innovations in the area of 3D weld management. This research project is under the aegis of the U.S. Navy's National Shipbuilding Research Program (NSRP). On December 10-11, 2015, SSI representatives met with representatives from Wolf Robotics and Edison Welding Institute to further advance this development. Other organizations involved in the project include Bollinger Shipyards…

Chilean maritime services and logistics company SAAM S.A. has signed a contract with naval architecture firm Robert Allan Ltd. for a new generation of RAmparts 2400-W Class tugs. The first two boats for SAAM’s Peruvian affiliate TRAMARSA, named Chincha and Tupac, are now under construction at Wuxi Shipyard in China with others soon to follow. The RAmparts 2400-W Class tugboat is a twin Z-drive, diesel-powered tug, designed for ship-assist and terminal support operations. Ship-handling is performed over the bow using a split drum hawser winch.

"Intuitive Weld Management" and "Innovative methods for leveraging a 3D model" are two of the white papers that representatives from CAD/CAM developer SSI will present this week at the 17th International Conference on Computer Applications in Shipbuilding (ICCAS) in Bremen, Germany. According to SSI, the papers showcase innovative techniques and implementations of cutting edge software technology with real-world applicability for addressing challenges in today's shipbuilding industry. Tracking and managing welds through all stages of shipbuilding is usually a disconnected, inefficient, laborious and error-prone process. The solution…

SSI's CAD/CAM ShipConstructor software utilizes a Marine Information Model (MIM) to store a wealth of data that can be leveraged for maintenance, repair and lifecycle support. Slated to exhibit at the American Society of Naval Engineers' Fleet Maintenance & Modernization Symposium (FMMS) from September 1-2 in San Diego, SSI USA informs that its representatives will be on hand to explain the ins and outs of MIM. At the core of SSI’s MIM is a complete virtual model of the entire vessel including each of the various disciplines from hull production design and structural detailing to outfitting and assembly sequencing. All engineering disciplines work within a single integrated environment…

U.A.E based offshore jackup rig builder Lamprell Energy Ltd., will implement SSI's EnterprisePlatform software solution to allow its engineering team to automate manufacturing processes. Acording to SSI (developer of ShipConstructor software), the immediate benefit will come from streamlining and automating Lamprell's processes used to control robotic machinery on the production floor (e.g. CNC Profiling Machines) based on information from the engineering department's ShipConstructor-based product data model.

SSI announced it will host the Autodesk Bulgaria Shipbuilding Seminar for shipbuilders, naval architects and marine engineers to learn about the challenges facing the shipbuilding industry in Bulgaria and find out how Autodesk's Extended Digital Prototyping solutions, (including ShipConstructor software) can be used to help during the complete shipbuilding workflow. This includes software solutions for bid proposal; conceptual design; hull design and analysis, hull structure; simulation (upfront simulation and verification of existing design); CFD; mechanical; P&ID, HVAC and routing system; outfitting and equipment; existing data re-usage; new data creation; shipyard planning and optimizations; visualization; manufacturing drawings and publications; and web and mobile apps.

Holland Shipyards has selected SSI's ShipConstructor software for its new shipbuilding activities. Holland Shipyard undertakes newbuilding, repair and conversion of small and medium-sized vessels. Florian den Besten, Naval Architect with Holland Shipyards, explained his company's thinking when purchasing new CAD/CAM software. He said, "First of all, the system is user-friendly as ShipConstructor is AutoCAD based and contains all features needed by our architects. Secondly, the architects appreciate the ease of making 2D drawings with the MarineDrafting application of the ShipConstructor Hull Structure Premium Suite. The 2D drawings are used for workshop and classification drawings. The simplification of the technical drawings, by using appropriate symbols, makes them clear and readable.

The Executive Control Board of the National Shipbuilding Research Program (NSRP) has selected a new round of research and development projects for award, as part of the program's continuing mission to reduce costs associated with U.S. shipbuilding and ship repair. These new projects, valued at over $11 million, including cost share, were among those proposed in response to Research Announcement 13-01, issued in June. Objective: The goal of this project is to transfer a cost-saving and quality-enhancing technology from the aerospace industry to the shipbuilding industry. The vision is to demonstrate the superiority of laser peening over select current shipbuilding processes in specific applications.

Ship Constructor, Military pose some challenges. Madrid’s Sener Ingeniería y Sistemas S.A. (Sener) is hoping to regain a foothold via its FORAN CAD/CAM software in the North American market, and to use that opening to crack the Big Six military shipyards, landing at least one lucrative long-term contract. But first, it’s going to have get past its chief competition on these shores, Vancouver-based SSI’s ShipConstructor software, CATIA from Dassault Systèmes of France, and Nupas-Cadmatic, jointly owned by Numeriek Centrum Groningen B.V. of the Netherlands and Cadmatic Oy of Finland.

Rooted in early computer-aided design (CAD) and manufacturing applications, design and construction software is firmly at the helm of most shipyards today, enabling the production of  better designed, more efficient and consistently built ships produced with measurably less waste: less waste of time, materials, man hours and most important, money. The ROI can be substantial, and is traceable throughout the entire process, across all sub sectors such as project management, purchasing, materials, labor and build sequencing.

ShipConstructor 2014 R2.1, released from SSI, has been specifically designed to rapidly respond to emerging trends in ship design and engineering as identified by SSI's new Client Council program, the company said. "Both technology and industry requirements are evolving quickly so our clients continually need to adapt," explained SSI CTO Denis Morais. "SSI's Client Council program has been designed to address this by having focus groups of similar clients propose new features that SSI can quickly incorporate into our software.

SSI and its representatives continue to engage with leaders of the shipbuilding and offshore industry to help increase productivity and solve business challenges. On April 23, Sincronia, SSI's representative for ShipConstructor software in Brazil, is sponsoring the first seminar focused on the shipbuilding and offshore construction cluster in the state of Pernambuco. Estaleiro Atlântico Sul (EAS) and the American Bureau of Shipping are cosponsors of this event which has been organized by SOBENA (Society of Brazilian Naval Engineers), in partnership with Petrobras, Transpetro, EAS, FIEPE and the Federal University of Pernambuco. The seminar…

SSI USA Director of Operations Patrick Roberts recently had meetings with U.S. senators, congressmen and navy brass to discuss the upcoming Pentagon Department of Defense Budget as it relates to the U.S. Navy shipbuilding programs. It was noted that Roberts' position is somewhat unique in that as an industrial engineer representing SSI, he was able to bring a neutral, yet broad and objective perspective to analyzing this subject. This is because SSI's ShipConstructor software is not only used by shipyards building both versions of the navy's Littoral Combat Ships…

Wishing to enhance their elegibility for jobs in Western Canada's expanding shipbuilding industry, a group of University of British Columbia (UBC) Mechanical Engineering students approached SSI about further training in the company's ShipConstructor CAD/CAM application. The developers responded by putting on a special training course for them, plus access to the software. The students had found ShipConstructor software to be the industry production standard at the Canadian marine design offices where they were serving internships, for instance at STX Canada Marine and Robert Allan Ltd.

Elliott Bay Design Group's (EBDG) New Orleans office partnered with Gulf Island Marine Fabricators, LLC. on the class design and production engineering for the EB-210CC OSV (Offshore Support Vessel). The scope of this new design project included detail design, structural, mechanical, piping and outfitting design as well as 3-D assembly drawings of the vessel structure utilizing ShipConstructor software. In addition, EBDG is the primary point of contact for all regulatory body requests for information.

On the sidelines at Norshipping 2013 in Oslo, Maritime Reporter caught up with Darren Larkins, a 14-year veteran of Ship Constructor, serving the last two years as CEO. The topic: the evolution of the company from that of an engineering tool supplier to a more consultative role, an evolution culminating in the changing of its name from Ship Constructor to SSI. Why the rebrand from Ship Constructor to SSI? Traditionally our core business has focused around ShipConstructor which is an engineering tool focused on the shipbuilding core disciplines.