New methods…new Arc? While ship construction techniques have developed rapidly over the years, they're still complex and labour intensive processes where any number of things can go wrong. And "going wrong" means additional expenses in an already highly expensive industry, as well as a loss of competitive edge. Industrial Technologies © PhotoDisc Therefore, when new technology enters the market - especially the European industry, it stakes a great deal on the time and money savings to which it'll contribute. Surprisingly, not every ship coming off dry-docks for the first time is sea worthy. Occasionally one capsizes, lilts or lists to one side. Bad design may be responsible, but more often than not, the fault lay somewhere in the construction process. Flaws that could have been overcome with effective interactive processes for design construction. The sheer volume and complexity of considerations requiring assessment in order to build a ship involves many specialists. From engineers to structural design specialists - and with the advent of modern computerised technologies, software specialists. It is with these cross-platform requirements in mind that the MOBISHIP project was fashioned. The project's original goals were to establish an effective software solution that could integrate all the considerations required at the earlier stages of design, based exclusively on 3D modelled, single design methodology. The initial investigation of the project was to assess user requirements specifically for the necessity of an interactive and integrated 3D modelling utility. Complete with a flexible database structure that could keep concurrent 3D data model and management from concept to initial design, split into various categories such as hull and systems structure as well as spatial concerns throughout the ships' building phases. More, it had to be interactive and suitable for network structures so that linked tasks could be transferred from concept to design completion and implementation. The objective of the programme was to improve the entire ship building process throughout Europe, but in such a manner as to make European shipyards competitive with other industries where labour is cheaper. In the future development of the project the consortium will form the next generation of 3D design systems that will allow the user-defined analysis and simulation of designs before their actual successful development.
