Naval Vessels

Naval Shipbuilders Sailing Full-Speed Ahead with Fibersim ™ Software

Modern composite materials have been used since the 1950s in many different forms for naval, coast guard, and maritime police applications. Glass fiber reinforced plastics have been the composites-of-choice for the most part but recently higher performance materials—such as carbon and Kevlar fibers—have started to play an increasingly prominent role.

Composites are found in many primary and secondary structures in numerous naval vessels, including submarines, destroyers, patrol boats, and specialty surface ships, such as minesweepers and fast interceptor crafts used in asymmetric warfare and by police. Composites are used for a variety of parts, including bow domes and sonar covers that must be transparent to electromagnetic emissions; mast enclosures that support critical electronic components and also must be transparent to electromagnetic emissions; top deck structures; rudders; and advanced propeller blades.

Manufacturers of military vessels of all sizes are seeking ways to enhance their competitiveness. Bringing their products to market faster and at less cost is critical to accomplishing that goal. Enhancing productivity is a key driver in the face of growing global competition. Reducing cycle times translates to lower inventories, providing more time for customization, and improving the return on tooling use. Reducing engineering and production costs, labor costs, and material costs all improve the bottom line.

Military shipbuilders in growing numbers are using Vistagy’s Fibersim software to design and manufacture composite parts and, ultimately, meet these goals.

Fibersim enables naval shipbuilders to develop a complete and detailed 3D CAD model of the composite part or assembly. Consequently, manufacturers have access to a seamless link from design to the manufacturing floor; an accurate and complete composite master model defined with composite design software; a reliable prediction of potential manufacturing issues; a concurrent design and analysis process for better part optimization; and a specialized design methodology for a variety of parts.

Fibersim facilitates the manufacture of complex shapes for better hydrodynamic performance. Composites are “drapable” to a large extent over round surfaces while sheet metals are not. Therefore, hulls, decks, submarine fairings streamlined for best fluid flow performance are all ideal candidates for composite manufacturing. Using Fibersim to develop these complex shaped parts makes the process more predictable and reliable. Design changes happen less frequently and can be processed faster and with fewer communication errors. Less time is spent on non value-added tasks and more time is spent on actual engineering and innovation. In the end, that makes for a better ship.