Common Structural Rules Software LLC, a joint venture company formed by ABS and Lloyd’s Register (LR), has released a software upgrade which aims to simplify compliance with current and pending IACS Common Structural Rules (CSR).

A new initiative to create an open source digital platform for the creation of ‘digital twins’ for ships has been launched, with a ceremony at the Norwegian Maritime Competence Centre in Ålesund, Norway.

Marine Design & Research Institute of China (MARIC), a subsidiary company of China State Shipbuilding Corporation group (CSSC), has signed a licence agreement with Lloyd's Register (LR) for use of its ShipRight FastTrack software.

ClassNK has released the latest version of its vessel design support software PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR), developed in response to the latest updates to the IACS Common Structural Rules for Bulk Carriers and Oil Tankers (CSR BC & OT).

Korean shipyard DSME has agreed a deal to use the 3D model-based NAPA Steel software application to manage its vessel design processes, following the completion of a benchmarking evaluation involving multiple vendors.

DNV GL reports that it has completed a major upgrade to its Nauticus Hull software to provide improved support for new DNV GL rules and IACS requirements.

NAPA and C-Job Naval Architects have introduced a new Accelerated Concept Design system to automate the concept stage of the ship design process, using genetic algorithms that apply a Darwinian approach to automatically generate successive ‘generations’ of ship designs, with each new one inheriting the most successful characteristics of its predecessors.

A data analytics programme applied to the design of two new Hapag-Lloyd Cruises passenger expedition ships, currently under construction at the Vard Shipyard in Romania and Norway, has resulted in projected annual fuel savings of more than ten per cent, the company says.

DNV GL has introduced a new ‘Virtual Trial’ application, using simulated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) data to analyse, compare and benchmark the fuel efficiency of different hull designs before they are constructed.

NAPA and Japanese maritime software development firm NTT Data Engineering Systems (NDES) have announced a collaboration project to work on ship design and manufacturing support systems, with the aim of streamlining the vessel building process through the application of technology.