The Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI), Bureau Veritas (BV) and NAPA report that they have completed the first phase of a Joint Development Project (JDP) to enable 3D model-based approvals for the classification of ships.
The project aimed to validate the feasibility of 3D model-based approvals (3D MBA), where classification reviews are directly based on the 3D model provided by the designer, rather than requiring multiple conversions to 2D drawings, which is the traditional process.
The first phase of the project tested the entire classification process to ensure that all steps were properly carried out, and examined how the various software applications used would need to be improved to support the process.
A ship designer operating under the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) umbrella, SDARI used the NAPA Steel software during the project, while BV used NAPA Designer for the automatic generation of calculation models to perform rule checks.
Utilising an open file format (OCX), BV could work with the 3D model provided by SDARI to perform the design review with its in-house rule checking software: MARS and VeriSTAR Hull. BV’s structural assessment comments were then linked directly to the 3D model for review by the other parties.
“We are proud to take the next step in our digital transformation, by developing 3D model-based approval procedures in collaboration with NAPA and BV,” said Lu Li, Vice President at SDARI.
“This will significantly streamline ship design processes, thereby boosting our capacity and competitiveness at a time when the decarbonisation transition brings new challenges for ship designers and engineers. With this project, we found that using 3D models with BV for classification rule checks and approvals is a win-win situation.”
