“When the opportunity arose and we had adequate in-house knowledge and experience, we set up a core team of specialists to develop the methodology for performing the hydro-structural analyses more efficiently", says Ana Maria. “These calculations are by no means simple. They are extremely complex and require specific knowledge of both hydrodynamics and structural aspects. Our main goal was to make use of an integrated software package that covers all relevant hydro-structural aspects, and we succeeded.”
With the new software package, a direct connection is made between the hydrodynamic mesh and the finite element mesh. The pressure exerted by the waves on the wetted surface of the ship can, therefore, be directly linked to the FE model. Consequently, this means that working with (sometimes) unrealistic wave loads is cancelled out. More complex issues such as fatigue behaviour, non-linear excitation of waves and hydro-elasticity can also be simulated. Usually, various software packages are used by different disciplines, but ultimately, everything is integrated in one model, with direct link to the structural FE model. This is of great advantage for Nevesbu as a wealth of knowledge, experience and tools can be reused.