Rebuilding the NAVSEA Early Stage Ship Design Environment

It has been well over a decade since the last time the Naval Sea Systems Command NAVSEA performed a full blown preliminary and contract ship design. During that time period there have been many advances in the underlying technology used by design tools, and there have also been changes to the design process as well. As a result, NAVSEA has the responsibility to evaluate tools and processes in order to develop the next generation early stage ship design environment so that we do not continue to design tomorrows ships with yesterdays tools. This paper discusses the role product model technology, high performance computing, and early stage design tools can play in the development of future naval vessels. The subject of design tools will be explored from the perspective of how they improve the early stage ship design process as well as their role in gaining insights and supporting oversight during the detailed design and construction phases of a ships lifecycle.