CadCam Report

German Yard Implements Nupas-Cadmatic

The Peene-Werft in Wolgast, Germany, has chosen Nupas-Cadmatic software solution as their main CAD/CAE/CAM system. During an implementation project of about two months, the shipyard will implement Nupas-Cadmatic for the complete Hull structure, Piping, Machinery and Outfitting including special customizations for the yard's high-tech production facilities like profile cutting robots, automated pipe workshop, web panels and their in-house material management system.

The first project - building the first of a series of heavy cargo vessels - commenced in the beginning of February 2000. A group of about 20 engineers have been trained in several disciplines of the Nupas-Cadmatic system. Furthermore, Numeriek Centrum Groningen will assist in the engineering and help production people on-site at the yard during the start-up phase of the project.

Besides the choice for a proven CAD/CAE/CAM system, the yard's choice for Nupas-Cadmatic is based on the co-operation with 'a solid partner who stands for the delivery and maintenance of a complete solution'.

NCG's Product Manager, Geert Tepper, says : "After a feasibility study of several months, the Peene-Werft concluded that Nupas-Cadmatic is the most compact and effective solution for the yard's engineering and production facilities." Autoship Upgrades Several Products

Autohydro 5.2 was recently released by Autoship. The following are some of the more salient new features of the product. Torsion moments are calculated for all ship loading conditions. Moments of inertia are calculated for tank contents and can be user-defined for lightship and added weights. Vessel total moments of inertia (about all three axes), radii of gyration (about all three axes), and rolling and pitching periods can also be calculated. There is a new draft comparison routine, allowing the user to easily calculate constant weight. The user can now input either distributed or point-load weights in user-defined groups. Lastly, the user can view a body-section at any specified longitudinal location.

Autoship is developing a totally new ship structural design program, Autostructure. It will run on NT 4 or Windows 2000 workstations, with NT Server 4 or Windows 2000 to host large networks. The program will be launched in stages, with release of the first stage expected for last month. For 2-D editing of flat parts, and for drawing production, Autoship chose AutoCAD 2000. Given that AutoCAD is already used in many ship design operations, Autoship feels that incorporation of AutoCAD 2000 will be viewed as another advantage of Autostructure. Shipyard staff will not need to be trained on new 2-D drawing software; training costs will be reduced accordingly. An important new technology, Microsoft's Common Object Model (COM), is being used extensively to support a strongly object-oriented program structure that allows for the transfer of data among Autoship (Autoship's hull modeling program), Autostructure and AutoCAD. Autostructure will be designed to save the vessel designer time. Where possible, the program carries out multiple operations from one set of user input. This is well exemplified in the Global Design module, where in one session large numbers of flat parts fitted to the hull, to existing parts and to one another can be created. Automatic trimming and fitting is supported where possible.

NNS Installs Autoship Software Autoship announced that Newport News Shipbuilding purchased Autoship-Pro (hull design/surface modeling), Autohydro-Pro (intact and damage stability), and Autostructure (internal structural modeling). Kockums Computer System Changes Name

Following the lead of its well-regarded product, Kockums Computer Systems has changed its name to Tribon Solutions, and will soon launch a new business plan. Tribon was developed, touted, installed and used as an all-encompassing ship design and production system. Tribon Solutions, the company, will comprise all the design and production stages and all the subcontractors involved in the shipbuilding process. Noting that the supply of materials and components is a critical factor in maintaining shipbuilding efficiency, the new Tribon Solutions concept includes IT applications offering shipyards a cost effective, technically advanced solution. Yachting Consult Releases New MasterShip 2000

The software side of the newest MasterSHIP version has now been released. MasterSHIP 2000 contains many improvements and a new module, Surface Tools, for the creation of developable and double-curved surfaces. A large number of templates has been added to the Parametrics module and it is now even possible for customers to define their own templates.

The Expand-02 module has been improved with a new algorithm that allows more precise and flexible expansion of double-curved surfaces on hulls and superstructures. The Parts Processor now automatically and interactively closes part contours. Use of the renewed NC-Preprocessor allows faster determination of the cutting order of the parts and the in-lead direction of the burner.

MasterSHIP CAD/CAM software is used by shipyards, designers and engineering companies to turn the design of ships into production information. MasterSHIP operates in combination with AutoCAD and is the first shipbuilding software to support the new AutoCAD version, AutoCAD 2000.

Total service concept for shipyards Yachting Consult Engineering now offers a total service concept. Besides from the typical CAD/CAM work, all logistic handling can be obtained as an integral part of their services. This includes the purchase of the steel or aluminum, cutting, shaping, bending and subsequent delivery to the yard. This "one stop shopping" is a very attractive option for yards, enabling them to meet the extremely short delivery times, which seems to be a common trend in shipbuilding lately.

Yachting Consult Engineering is active in both shipbuilding and yacht-building markets. In addition to recent work for megayacht builders, several projects in the shipbuilding market have been realized, such as a kit for a 141 ft. (43 m) Crew Supply vessel (Stan Tender 4300) for Damen Shipyards; a kit for a 194 ft. (59 m) car ferry for a German yard; and 5 kits for a 98 ft. (30 m)-catamaran ferry (River Runner 150). These kits were delivered to aluminum specialist Bayards, who supplied the hulls to Damen Shipyards. The delivery to Bayards was a complete package, containing all parts and profiles. The ferries are used for public transport in The Netherlands, and were built by Damen under license to NQEA from Australia. The newest project is a 112 ft. (34 m) research vessel for Scheepswerf Visser from Den Helder in the Netherlands.

On September 25-26, 2000 the fourth MasterSHIP CAD/CAM seminar for shipbuilders and ship designers will take place in the Netherlands. This year's theme will be "Efficient 3D-modeling for ship construction".