User Profile:  One2Three Naval Architects

During the past 20 years of our involvement in developing software for naval architects, we have seen naval architectural practices progressively adopt more and more software to automate various parts of the design process. Naval architecture firms have shown a willingness to embrace the latest technology to improve the quality of their work, improve design productivity, and deliver a more complete package to the shipyard.

One good example is One2Three Naval Architects  in Sydney, Australia. Although founded relatively recently in August 2005, their business is built on the extensive industry experience of principal Steve Quigley and his team of ten naval architects and draftsmen. One2Three specialises in the design of custom built pleasure boats and high speed ferries. As the name suggests, they are involved in monohull, catamaran and multihull designs.

They have recently extended their investment in technology by adding ShipConstructor to their existing Maxsurf and AutoCAD software tools. This enables them to take on a wider range of projects and deliver higher quality production drawings to their customers.

For initial stage design they have long used the range of tools in the Maxsurf suite. This covers hull modelling, stability and performance prediction. They also utilise the Workshop module in Maxsurf to do initial structural layout.

Gaussian curvature rendering on Maxsurf surface model; red indicating areas of plate strain.

After modelling has been completed using Maxsurf and stability verified with Hydromax, One2Three uses Workshop to fair stringers and develop plates. This production data is then exported to ShipConstructor and combined with a 3D DXF file from Maxsurf. In ShipConstructor, parts are defined and assigned to designated stages in the assembly sequence or build strategy. All production output, such as nest drawings and assembly drawings, is then automatically produced from the structural model and the build strategy.

ShipConstructor's renown Assembly drawing output

"The 3D structural modelling in ShipConstructor forces us to work more accurately and allows us to do more annotation and production detailing" according to One2Three. The extra time spent on modelling and production detailing is compensated by the fact that ShipConstructor automates all "less attractive parts of the job like nesting and keeping track of part names and annotation".

The quality of the production drawings is a key part of the process and as one shipyard has described it, "the best engineering drawings we have ever seen". For the shipyard the ShipConstructor output from One2Three results in significant time savings on the shop floor and a practically error-free production process without any rework and minimum material waste.

One2Three not only delivers assembly drawings and nesting data, they also use 3D walkthrough software to assist in collaboration and visualisation. On their current project the vessel is being built at Island Boats USA so tools to assist in collaboration with a distant construction location are especially useful. The software allows both design and production personnel to "walk through" the ship model prior to construction commencing. One2Three are able to deliver the 3D ShipConstructor model to the shipyard in viewable format that can be loaded onto a laptop and taken onto the shop floor to help identify parts and keep track of the build process. The 3D renderings have also proven to be a useful marketing tool when presenting new vessels to customers.

3D fly-through model.

One2Three has also recently adopted Multiframe, a structural analysis program from Formation Design Systems. This provides full 3D beam theory structural analysis of hulls and superstructures.

To further extend their scope of subcontracting capabilities, One2Three has now deployed ShipConstructor’s integrated pipe and equipment modules which will enable them to deliver systems engineering services to shipyards. When combined with the existing structural modelling, this allows the engineering team to prepare a near complete vessel model that is thoroughly checked to prevent clashes and can also deliver production output of piping systems.

More information on One2Three can be found at www.one2three.com.au.

Island Boats are at www.islandboats.com