There is no such thing as one size fits all when it comes to designing a dredge. There are so many different types of dredges which are each optimized for different purposes.
The efficiency, capabilities, and performance of a dredge determine its competitiveness. There are dredges optimized for use in either inland or open waters, removing sand or hard sediments, but there is no one dredge which is the best at doing it all.
Based on what the owner wants his dredge to do, it will require different equipment, features, and purpose-built machinery. With the multitude of options, it can be overwhelming so being able to see all of the options in one place is ideal.
To create a design that fits a ship owner’s unique operational profile, starting from scratch is one way to go, but it’s often time consuming and doesn’t provide shipowners with an easily changeable base structure.
To find a solution to these challenges frequently found in traditional ship design, C-Job Naval Architects created the Interactive Design Platform.
The C-Job Interactive Design Platform is an online, user-friendly, platform where shipowners and clients can test different variables and dimensions of a ship in order to find which combination works best for their circumstances.
When using the platform, multiple energy sources and operational scenarios can be assessed at once, with the platform performing difficult calculations that engineers would previously have to do by hand, making the process much faster and more efficient than the traditional way of doing things.
The platform’s first project included C-Job’s base fleet of TSHD series. This series was made up of nine dredge variants, three to cover each of the three main classes of hopper dredges: capital, multi-purpose, and maintenance.
The initial hopper capacities in the series range from 20,000-40,000m³ for capital dredges, 5,000-15,000m³ for multi-purpose dredges and 1,500-7,000m³ for maintenance dredges.
This same tool was later utilized for the design of C-Job’s innovative CSD series which includes both self-propelled and non self-propelled Cutter Suction Dredges. The platform was used to make the design process of both series smoother, as well as to make these base models fully customizable to clients.
According to C-Job, the platform allows for users to input a variation of different variables and details, which are then simultaneously analyzed by the platform. This easy layout gives users the opportunity to adjust, optimize, and compare vessels in a simple and user friendly way. They can explore all kinds of different variables with the platform, such as which type of engine or fuel source will suit them best.
Once the analysis is complete, the platform will generate multiple design parameter studies as well as giving an estimate of the capital and operational cost of the vessel.
C-Job was recently invited to give a presentation at the WEDA Dredging Summit & Expo in Houston, Texas, where C-Job Project Manager Matthys Dijkman went into detail on the benefits, use, and underpinning purpose of the Interactive Design Platform.