Creating a Smart Digital Shipyard

Samsung Heavy Industries to collaborate with Dassault on MBSE solution.

This week, Dassault Systèmes announced a major order from Samsung Heavy Industries, which requires the companies to collaborate to establish a “smart digital shipyard.”

Samsung Heavy Industries wants to become “a global leader in the high-tech shipbuilding sector.” To reach this goal, the company will use Dassault’s PLM platform 3DEXPERIENCE as the basis of its digital system.

(Image courtesy of Dassault Systèmes.)

(Image courtesy of Dassault Systèmes.)

The announced agreement revolves around a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Dassault and Samsung Heavy Industries. The Samsung shipyard is one of South Korea’s five largest in terms of new shipbuilding, slightly larger than Hyundai Heavy Industries which signed a cooperation agreement with Siemens on the PLM side earlier this year.

Specifically interesting in this context is that these agreements usually cover large volumes of users, normally involving several thousand seats, which means that they can be described as large businesses in the PLM area. According to my research, in Siemens case we’re talking about around 10,000 seats of NX CAD and the cPDm solution Teamcenter. In light of this, it’s reasonable that over time Samsung’s bet on Dassault’s 3DEXPERIENCE platform will involve thousands of seats as well, although no numbers are revealed in the press material.

I write “over time” since it is not a question of a big bang installation, where everything comes at once. Instead, implementations happen in step-by-step processes to set up the new PLM apparatus—often related to new ship models—which in the later phases tends to contain a series of automated steps that mean both speed and quality in the development work increase significantly.

I asked Dassault Systèmes’ Woonsung Jung, Korea CSE senior manufacturing sales, about the details of the deal. Besides ENOVIA, does the deal also include CATIA and DELMIA?

“The priority of this collaboration will be production optimization which involves DELMIA and ENOVIA,” Jung said. “We are not at liberty to disclose the deal volume or particular specifics.  SHI MoU is an engagement to provide the value expected for the optimization of the production as a priority and MBSE strategy.”

Dassault’s Woonsung JUNG. (By courtesy of Dassault Systemes)

Dassault’s Woonsung Jung. (By courtesy of Dassault Systèmes)

He also stated that Dassault’s collaboration with Samsung Heavy Industries, “is a great opportunity to showcase Dassault Systèmes’ leading edge technology, and realizing a new paradigm in the Korean shipbuilding industry. It will positively contribute to innovation in production capabilities at SHI.” 

That being said, Hyundai isn’t alone in taking new high-tech paths to the future. Samsung Heavy Industries is also investing heavily in building a digitally-based smart product development apparatus. 

To that end, Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform-based smart yard will, “support a unique digital thread that integrates disparate data sources and real-time operational information.” Digital twin technology will also play an important role. Already a standard product development method in the transport and mobility, space and high-tech industries, MBSE will enable Samsung Heavy Industries to strengthen its competitiveness in the ship development process and accelerate this process thanks to full traceability from concept to production.

Speeding Up Production and Assembly with MBSE

The idea is to design the shipyard to optimize the scheduling and execution of shipyard operations, as well as to streamline and automate the flow of information required for construction, in order to speed up production and assembly. A central point in this endeavor is modern Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) technology. With this, Dassault states in the press material, “Samsung Heavy Industries will be better able to meet the growing demand for liquefied natural gas carriers by improving its capacity to produce them and shorten the delivery time.”

“Automatic systems have been shown to greatly affect the efficiency of operations in all industries. A smart shipyard in the shipbuilding industry will also help to lower construction costs and improve the quality of ships,” comments Jung Nam Lee, DT Director, Samsung Heavy Industries.

By introducing model-based systems technology, Samsung Heavy Industries can design more sophisticated and durable ships that require more automation, new systems and propulsion, and higher safety and control.

3DEXPERIENCE in the Leading Role

According to the release, “MBSE, which is already a standard product development method in the transport and mobility, space and high-tech industries, will enable Samsung Heavy Industries to strengthen its competitiveness in the ship development process, and to accelerate this process thanks to full traceability from concept to production.”

The collaboration with the “Smart SHI Team” from Samsung Heavy Industries will enable Dassault to organize a digital transformation advisory group to define and validate new processes and tools required to achieve the smart shipyard. This will involve Dassault’s core technologies and experts from its local offices and global headquarters.

Dassault Systèmes’ 3DEXPERIENCE platform-based smart yard will, “support a unique digital thread that integrates disparate data sources and real-time operational information.”

Digital twin technology will also play an important role.

Digital Ship Twin Carried Through Digital Shipyard Model

A key point is connecting the digital twins of the designed ships and the digital twin of the engineered shipyard. Automating and standardizing business processes with artificial intelligence and optimizing planning and operations within the shipyard and with the supply chain, will enable smart innovations for both production methods and production execution.

Simply put, the result will be a 3D model of the ship that will “float” through a 3D model of the shipyard. This makes it possible to virtually test, change or optimize processes and production flows in advance, before building expensive physical ships or production facilities, in order to be able to go straight to relevant physical production.

“It is essential for Korea’s shipbuilding to accelerate its transformation with new and advanced technologies that allow it to keep its leadership in productivity and quality for complex vessels, and we are proud to support SHI in this journey,” says François-Xavier Dumez, VP of Marine & Offshore Industry at Dassault Systèmes. “Through our cooperation with Samsung Heavy Industries, we’re given an opportunity to introduce and implement our outstanding marine industry solution experiences and achieve a new paradigm in the shipbuilding industry in Korea.”