Feature 3 | YACHT DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION Concurrent engineering eases design
Research into concurrent engineering is evolving. Te University of Southampton, with the support of the British Marine Federation (BMF), is investigating its application in the context of Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP) boats. A.J Sobey examines the latest developments.
communication of data and information between subsystems of design. The practical philosophy has increased the competitiveness of boatbuilding companies by reducing design times while increasing profits and quality. As a means of remaining competitive
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within this market the BMF and some of its members are supporting a PhD CASE studentship through the National Composites Network (NCN) at the School of Engineering Sciences (SES) at the University of Southampton, set up to investigate the potential for concurrent engineering to be introduced into the UK boatbuilding industry. The aim of the research is to develop a concurrent engineering system, consisting of a number of tools and a design environment, for use in the field of boat design. Te project is now entering its third and final year with a number of tools having already been developed for use. A concurrent engineering environment
needs to be specific to the industry within which it is to be introduced. Te boatbuilding industry has been limited in this area due to the lack and expense of tools available to it. To counteract this, the concurrent engineering environment has been designed and built using commercial soſtware with the core transfer based on the European Space Agencies ESTEC Concurrent Design Facility (CDF). For concurrent engineering to be
successfully implemented within a company an engineering environment must be created to ensure that communication between subsystems can be effective and easy. There are two main sorts of communication: information that involves human interactions (such as questions and comments) and numerical data which would
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oncurrent engineering is the parallel, as opposed to sequential, design of products focusing on
form the characteristics and dimensions of the design. For these two sorts of communication a different transfer method has been used. Te tools that have been developed to aid communication between subsystems have been based around three main principles: low cost; high Tech; and easy to use, understand and change.
Grid computing Te use of a joint grid computing network within the boatbuilding industry will benefit design and reduce computing costs. Te use of shared resources through distributed grid computing will allow the industry to reduce the cost of software using floating licences. It will also facilitate far larger computational power, allowing faster results and a reduction in the time required to render images. Te ability to use one set of computers will allow the cost of IT support to be shared between members reducing cost and increasing productivity. Te introduction of grid computing will also increase the functionality of databases thereby allowing much easier sharing of data across the entire industry. One of the main problems in producing
models for engineers is the requirement for accurate data. It will be possible within the grid computing network to develop relational databases that could be shared within the UK boatbuilding industry, and give many advantages through the shared experiences of the companies. Te aim will be to create two shared databases. Te first of these would contain material data created independently, this will increase the number of materials that could be tested as each set of criteria would only need to be done once rather than for each company. Te second major database would be a
parts database, storing information on all potential parts for boat design. Tis will be filled by the companies creating the parts, over the internet, and would create a
searchable, up-to-date database accessible by all of the companies. A further use of this database will be to provide a link to the design history tool, allowing weighted searches. Tis in turn will allow the industry to have a greater say in development of new products and effectively allow the industry to work together without sharing of primary data or information. A third and final set of databases will need to be created for each company individually holding information on past designs.
Structural modelling Te process of boat design can be more easily achieved when a subsystem designer has a greater knowledge of the subsystems that interact directly with their own. Optimisation aids this process by using modelling of different subsystems to produce the best result for a set of criteria, showing the potential compromise between the different engineers. The modelling being carried out at
the University of Southampton aims to increase the ease of design for production by amalgamating production codes with structural codes. Te structural modelling is being carried out using three methods: Lloyd’s Register Rules for Special Service Craft; First Principles Modelling; ISO 12215-5. Each of these structural codes interacts
with the optimisation algorithm, with each technique being optimised separately. The first principles approach has been created using Navier grillage theory and Tird Order Shear Deformation Teory. To constrain these different theories properly the use of deformation, buckling and World Wide Failure Exercise criteria have been used (Puck, Tsai and Zinoviev). Tese different codes are being compared for potential cost savings and to investigate the possibility of reduced hull thicknesses decreasing emissions.
Ship & Boat International March/April 2009
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