Destroying the design limits of old technology

Fleet Support Limited use Autodesk Inventor to set new standards in shipboard accommodation Key benefits Short learning curve: easy to use Realistic presentation and visualisation Saves time and money Animation shows operations for non-engineering staff Company can now react more quickly to customer requirements Cost cut for developing and maintaining new projects Fleet Support (FSL), a VT Group and BAE Systems joint venture at the Portsmouth Naval Base, provides ship repair services for the Royal Navy and commercial ships. Pre 2000, the company equipped itself with an Autodesk CAD solution, partly because it was seen as the industry standard and partly because it offered a smooth and incremental transition from 2D to 3D. Laptops were equipped for use on location, and the electrical team also adopted AutoCAD with extra functionality provided through FSL-developed Visual Basic. The first task for 3D was to design equipment brackets for existing vessel structure. FSL draughtsman Tony Swateridge says: “We modelled the seats in Mechanical Desktop, then produced the 2D drawings and isometrics directly from the 3D model. We got an immediate and positive response from production because of the clarity of presentation.” And when Autodesk Inventor was available, FSL upgraded. Says Geoff Skinner, Naval architect: “In 2001 we were invited by the MoD to propose upgrades to the sailors’ accommodation on Type 42 destroyers, a project known as The Habitability Study. Instead of the usual set of 2D drawings, they required a 3D visualisation that would show the finished article accurately. They also specified a ‘walk-through’ capability, so that personnel who were not trained in interpreting drawings could get an appreciation of our proposals.” Skinner’s team used Inventor to provide the 3D presentation, along with NavisWorks for the walk-throughs. “This technique had the advantage that if someone missed or didn’t understand something, we could look at it again from another angle or reverse direction instantly,” says Skinner. “The work we did obviously impressed the MoD. They were absolutely delighted and we are now in a strong position to win the main follow-up work– providing we get the price right… There are 11 Type 42s, but they are all somewhat different: however, because of Inventor’s adaptive design capability, we can easily move our designs from vessel to vessel.” FSL says benefits so far include Inventor’s short learning curve, presentation and visualisation improvements and time and money savings. Says Swateridge: “It is excellent for visualising our designs. For example, apply a steel finish and it really does look like steel. We animated some parts, too: we showed how the new bunk arrangement went together, how the ventilation came off... This is all part of getting early understanding and fast decisions from non-engineering staff.” He adds: “Inventor’s assembly-centric design capability is good too. Say I am working on a part with the assembly in the background for reference. I can see and use the assembly and project geometry from it without slowing the system. It is good with large assemblies as well. The design that came out of the Habitability Study is huge, over 1,000 parts.” Skinner concludes: “Inventor has been very successful, and it is getting even better. With version 6 we could interpret surfaces with solids. We have now upgraded to Inventor Series 7, and have installed a seat of Inventor Professional because of its rules-based piping and tubing capability.”