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THE SOCIETY OF NAVAL ARCHITECTS AND MARINE ENGINEERS

MANAGING A DETAIL SHIP DESIGN

BY DAVID S. CHAPMAN

SOUTHEAST SECTION

JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA

MARCH 19, 1983

 MANAGING A DETAIL SHIP DESIGN

INTRODUCTION

The management of a detail ship design consists of techniques

for effective planning of specific design tasks, thereby establish-

ing a sound basis for effective scheduling, monitoring, and control-

ling. This paper addresses specific project management objectives

and activities, as well as specific detail design requirements that

can be applied to any detail ship design.

The design of a ship is an evolution of three phases. See Fig.

1. The first phase is the Preliminary Design, which is conceptual

and attempts to integrate the Owner's requirements with an efficient

and seaworthy vessel. It is during this phase that the designer

assesses the feasibility of the still crude design. The second

phase is the Contract Design, which culminates in a set of Contract

Plans and Specifications. These documents must be of sufficient

detail to permit a shipyard to prepare a bid or cost estimate.

Contract Designs vary considerably in complexity, even for ships

of similar size and sophistication. The Contract Design documents

may be little more than a performance specification, or they may

be, as is typically the case for a modern naval vessel, a detailed

specification of several thousand pages and as many as a hundred

drawings.

The third phase of the ship design is tlie Detail Design, which

consists of refining and expanding the contract design to the point

(1)
 SHIPYARD
CAPABILITIES

OWNERJ
'
REQUIREMENTS
DEVELOP & VALIDATE

DET~IL
REGULATORY PRELI,..INARY CONt:RACT
BODY DESIGN SHIP
DESIGN DESIGN
REQUIREMENTS

FEASIBILITY CONTRACT PLANS

STUDY: AND SHIP CONSTRUCTION
RESULTS DRAWINGS AND
SPECIFICATIONS
CALCULATIONS

SHIP DESIGN EVOLUTION

Fig. 1
 (2)

where design documents {primarily drawings) are useful to the

shipyard production force in constructing the vessel. The detail

design strives to validate the basic engineering in the Contract

Design. The complexity and scope of the detail design are primarily

a function of the accuracy and level of detail of the Contract

Design, as well as a function of the detail drawing requirements of

the shipyard.

This paper has broad applicability, and offers numerous

suggestions which are intended to expedite the overall ship design

effort in support of ship production. As such, it is intended to

be useful to independent design office personnel, shipyard engineering

office personnel, and to the ultimate owner and/or operator of the

vessel.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES

The detail ship design is an ideal candidate for project manage-

ment techniques and practices. See Fig. 2. The first step in success-

ful management of a detail ship design is to determine the technical

objectives of the project and develop a scope of work. The technical

objectives of the design are ordinarily spelled out in the Contract

Plans and Specifications. If not, the Project Manager must draw on

experience to establish a baseline technical objective for the design.

The scope of work is also dictated to a large degree by the Contract

Plans and Specifications, but is primarily a negotiated list of specific

engineering tasks to be accomplished by the Detail Design project

office. The scope of work should, in addition to listing what will be

r. PLANNING PHASE OPERATING PHASE

ESTABLISH DEVELOP DETERMINE PREPARE PROCEss PREPARE

OBJECTIVES THE PLAN SCHEDULES INPUT DATA . INPUT DATA REPORTS
-.
; ' +

RECYCLE TO REFLECT PROGRESS MANAGBMENT ANALYZE

____AN_D_MAN--A;-GE_ME_N_T_A_C_T-IO_N_ _.....__. ACTION . REPORTS

PROJECT MANAGEMt:NT CYCLE

Fig. 2
 (3)

done, also list what will not be done. Such activity is intended

to minimize later conflict with the Shipyard production office, the

primary recipient of the Detail Design engineering deliverables.

The next step in the design management is to determine staffing

requirements, balance manpower resources, and assign project responsi-

bilities. This procedure is crucial to the success of the detail

design, and too often lacks the necessary commitment of top manage-

ment to couple authority with responsibility. The typical engineering

department is structured along functional lines as opposed to project

lines. The reason for this is economics. In a design office with

various ship designs underway simultaneously, it is normally more

efficient to have a functional organization with individual engineers

handling work assignments for several different ship designs over

the course of a year. With a purely project organization, individual

engineers would be assigned to a specific ship design for the duration

of the project. This not only results in duplication of engineering

talent within the organization, but requires added supervisory

personnel, and hence the inherent inefficiency. Such financial con-

siderations must be evaluated with regard to the management of the

individual detail design project. Management:'$ recognition of the

needs of the Project Manager in making the detail design a success

has resulted in a hybrid of the traditional organizational structures.

See Fig. 3. This hybrid is called the matrix organization, .which

attempts to achieve the benefits of both functional and project

oriented organizational structures. The pure matrix has a dual

 KEY:
MATRIX ORGANIZATION
LINE AUTHORITY
DESIGN
PROJECT AUTHORITY DEPT/AGENT
MANAGER

.,.

PROJ;ECT
MANAGER

HtJI,L .MACHINERY HVAC ELECTRICAL

DEPT. HEAD DEPT.' HEAD DEPT. 'HEAD DEPT. HEAD

PROJECT _/ \_ _/ \_ _( \_
TECH'NICAL
STAFF
1-- - - T . -.- T -- T - -l
,..._.._-..~. _ __

H~L MACHINERY . HV,AC ELECTRICAL

SUPERVISORS SUPERVISORS SUPERVISORS SUPERVISORS

:.
DESIGNERS/ DESIGNERS/ DESIGNERS/ DESIGNERS/
DRAFTSMEN DRAFTSMEN DRAFTSMEN DRAFTSMEN

Fig. 3
l
 (4)

authority relationship somewhere in the organization, with a power

balance between the project management and functional sides. While

exactly equal power is unachievable, a reasonable balance can be

obtained through enforced collaboration on budgets, salaries, dual

information and reporting systems, and dual authority relations.

Regardless of the type of organization structure, the project manager

must possess technical competence and interpersonal skills in order

to be effective. The successful use of "project politics" is

essential to the success of the detail design effort.

Concurrent with the assignment of project responsibilities, the

project manager should perform scheduling activities and prepare to

implement his or her project plan. The engineering schedule is

necessarily driven by the production schedule, which in turn has a

multitude of complex and interdependent variables. The project

plan will include interface activities, drawing procedures, and

design controls.

Finally, the project manager commences control and monitoring

activities. In addition to routine engineering progress reports

and financial reports, the effective manager utilizes a network of

exception reporting, with preplanned strategies for problem resolu-

tion.
Following is a detailed analysis of some of the key project

management objectives.

SCOPE OF WORK
The Scope of Work is a baseline document that identifies the
 (5)

engineering deliverables to be produced for the shipyard production

department. The work scope could be viewed as a shopping list for

engineering tasks, whose content and complexity is a function of the

shipyard's needs and the detail of the Contract Plans and Specifica-

tions. The Scope of Work is an essential element of project manage-

ment, providing disciplines which insure complete project coverage,

avoiding omission of important tasks. The following items should be

considered for inclusion in the Scope of Work:

Design Review - Conduct a detailed analysis of the Contract

Plans and Specifications to check for consistency between these

documents and with ABS, USCG, and other criteria.

Drawing List (Preliminary) - Specify discipline of drawings

to be prepared (hull structure, hull arrangements, ventilation,

machinery, piping, electrical, naval architecture, etc) and general

level of detail to be achieved.

Advance Material Orders - Prepare a detailed estimate of

quantities of bulk materials such as steel plates and shapes, pipe,

fittings, valves, vent duct, electrical cable, joinerwork, etc.

The purpose of these listings is to permit the shipyard to compensate

for long lead times for the purchase of such material. Exact

quantities, sizes, and types of material are later calculated from

the detailed construction drawings.

Technical Specifications - Using the Contract Plans and Specicfi-

cations, the engineering department writes the technical portion of

the purchase specification for the use of the shipyard's purchasing

 {6)

department in ordering all major equipments. This activity is

critical to the timely receipt of certified vendor data, essential

to the completion of the detail ship design.

Interference Control - Identify what steps, if any, are to be

employed to minimize the magnitude and severity of physical inter-

ferences in the construction of the vessel. Such "hits" include

piping with structure, equipment, or other piping, ventilation duct-

work with electrical wireways, multiple use of the same bulkhead

piping penetration by two or more pipes, etc. Interference control

techniques could include composite drawings or models.

Test Memos - Prepare detailed test procedures to meet the re-

quirements of the Contract Specifications, ABS, and Coast Guard.

Inclining Experiment - Perform stability calculations and

supervise vessel stability test.

Anchor Model - Construct scale model of anchor and ship's bow

to ensure that anchor will drop, raise, and stow properly.

Shaft Analysis - Calculate propulsion shafting alignment

characteristics including bearing influence numbers; calculate pro-

pulsion system vibration characteristics including torsional,

lateral, and longitudinal vibrat;ons.

Weight Estimate - Perform detailed accounting of weights and

centers of gravity for all vessel equipment and material.

Plan Maintenance - Identify the degree to which final drawings

are to reflect the "as-built" conditions, i.e., the desired number

of iterations in the evolution of the ship design.

 (7)

The following is a sample Scope of Work that was used by a

design firm providing engineering services to a shipyard for the

construction of a government owned patrol vessel. The detailed

drawing list of over four hundred drawings was an attachment to

the Scope of Work. Although this Scope of Work has been tailored

to suit the requirements of the particular shipyard and vessel

design, the majority of the tasks indicated should be accounted

for in any detail ship design Scope of Work.

SCOPE OF ENGINEERING
SERVICES

Inclusions (Do's)

The Design Agent will provide total design and engineering services
required for the construction of the identified vessel in accordance
with the Contract Specifications and related Contract Plans. In
all cases, the following apply to the first vessel only.

All Engineering services and working plans required by the above

contract specifications and amendments necessary for the construe-
. tion of the vessel will be provided excluding only those areas in-
tended by the Shipyard to be furnished by others, and/or specifically
excluded and separately noted herein. This design effort will in-
clude the following plans and services:

1. Hull Structure Plans, including scantlings calculations,

will be prepared to suit Shipyard's Computer Lofting.
2. Foundation Plans for Equipment weighing in excess of 60
pounds for Mechanical Equipment and 150 pounds for
Electrical Equipment. Special foundation plans will be
provided for items critically mounted or located if of
lesser weight.
3. General Arrangements and Electrical/Electronic Space
Arrangements.
4. Hull Outfitting Plans.
5. Arrangements of Machinery Spaces, Generator and Pump Rooms.
6. All Machinery and Hull Piping System Diagrams and Arrange-
ments. Pipe sized for 1-~" and below will be shown single
line; 2" and above will be double line on piping arrange-
 (8)

ment plans.
7. Prepare bill of materials for hull, piping, electrical,
mechanical, and ventilation systems which will be included
on the respective working plan arrangements. Shipyard
will put its material identification numbers on the
drawings.
B. Heating, yentilation, and Air Conditioning Diagrams and
Arrangements, including Noise Analysis Report.
9. Electrical and Electronic Plans, including Wireways.
10 . Naval Architecture, Marine Engineering, Electrical
Engineering, and other associated engineering to support
development of the working plans. Calculations developed
in support of such plans will be delivered to the Ship-
yard.
11. All working plans will be prepared on Mylar in pencil
to microfilm quality in accordance with Shipyard practices,
standards, and erection sequence. (Data to be provided
by Shipyard.)
12. Design Agent will maintain working plans and other engineer-
ing documents requiring Owner approval up to and including
first approval. After first approval, original tracing
will be forwarded to the shipyard for plan maintenance.
13. All sections in the Contract Specifications will be re-
viewed by the Design Agent to ascertain the basic design
requirements. This review will include Contract plans,
Guidance plans, other Owner furnished information. Any
conflict between the Specifications, Contract Plans, and
Guidance Plans will be called to the attention of the
Shipyard.
14. Prepare, maintain, and issue the following schedules for
items under cognizance of the Design Agent:

a. Schedule for plans and other deliverables to support

Shipyard construction schedule, and materials pro-
curements requirements.
b. Test Mermorandum Schedule.
c. Technical Specification Schedule with required dates
for receipt of certified vendors data.
15. Engineering Change Notices will be prepared to expedite
engineering information to the Shipyard giving descrip-
tion of changes to plans due to plan development and re-
lease of reservations.
16. An interference control procedure using composite plans of
the Machinery Spaces, Diesel and Auxiliary Machinery Room,
and spaces outside of the Machinery Spaces where required
will be implemented.
17. Assign a qualified Project Manager for the duration of
plan preparation effort at the Design Agent Office.
18. Provide interface for the Machinery Plant Control Equipment
 (9)

and Monitoring System vendor.

19. Preparation of Joiner Arrangements and details.
20. Shipbuilder will supply ship module breakdown. Design
Agent will review and approve for design continuity.
Plans will not be prepared broken by module sections.
21. Prepare Advance Lists of Material for shipyard use in
material ordering.
22. Prepare test memorandums for equipments and systems to
IPT (In-Plant-Test) Requirements of hull, mechanical,
piping, electrical, heating, ventilation, and air con-
ditioning systems.
23. Prepare required weight estimates and reports which in-
clude design, accepted, quarterly, and final weight re-
ports. Weights on working plans, as required, will be
provided.
24. Prepare Inclining Experiment Memo and calculations. A
Naval Architect will be provided to witness tests.
25. Prepare camera ready copies of Ship Information Book,
Damage Control Book, Compartment Check-Off-List, and
Index of Technical Man~als. Printing and covers of manuals
will be provided by shipbuilder.
26. Preparation of technical speeifications for major equipments,
including review of vendors quotations received on items
prepared (maximum of three (3) quotes per item). Ship-
builder will provide vendors data received on items pre-
pared (maximum of three (3) quotes per item). Shipbuilder
will prepare purchase order documents and solicit prices.
27. Review vendor plans for arrangement and system compatibility.
Shipyard to expedite vendors data to insure timely plan
development. Design Agent will make timely notification
to Shipyard in writing of any plan which is delayed due
to lack of vendor data.
28. Produce mylar reproducibles of "As Built" plans suitable
for microfilming.

EXCLUSIONS (Dont's)

The Design Agent has not included the following:

1. Preparation of Welding Sequence and Procedures, and Erection

Schedules.
2. Internal wiring diagrams and fabrication details for switch-
boards, panels, controllers, electronic equipment, weapons,
etc. to be furnished by equipment or system suppliers.
3. Design or layout drawings of any switchboards, consoles,
power panels, lighting panels, controllers, or other items
of electrical equipment that the shipyard will buy or may
elect to fabricate.
 (10)

4. Preparation of co 2 Fire Extinguishing Diagram, including

instructions for operation (by vendor).
5. Preparation of Shop Detail Drawings normally accomplished
by Shipyard. This does not exclude details other than
shop details required by Owner, which are not contained
on Shipyard standard drawings.
6. Microfilming.
7. Preparation of Operating and Maintenance Instruction
Manuals for Vendor furnished equipment.
B. Allowance Lists and Spare Parts List.
9. Display Models and Interference Control Models.
10. Design and details of Fin Stabilizer (by vendor).
11. Machinery Plant Control and Monitoring System design
and details including operatin.g manual (by vendor).
12. Index of Resilient Mounts (shown on foundation plans).
13. Distribution of Final and Onboard Plans.
14. Launching Calculations and Docking Procedure.
15. Propulsion Shafting details, stress and vibration analysis;
including propeller design, hub assembly details, and
servo oil distribution circuit (by vendor).
16. Provisioning Technical Documentation.
17. Engineering Operation Manual (Owner Furnished).
18. The following Electrical Plans:

a. Standard Methods of Installation (by the shipyard;

will be referenced on Design Agent plans).
b. Lighting System Schematic Wiring Diagrams (informa-
tion shown on this plan will be included in drauing
"Electric Plant Elementary Wiring Diagram").
c. A summary Symbol List (will be shown on each
applicable drawing).
d. A summary List of Fixtures and Appliances (will be
provided on each plan where required).
e. Cable Rotation Drawings and Details of Stuffing
Tubes or Cable Transit Areas (will be prepared by
the Shipyard).
f. Power and Lighting Elementary Wiring Diagrams
(normal details will be shown on the deck plans
but will not indicate hook-up information).
19. Vendor Instruction Plates (Machinery Label and Operation
Instruction Plates to be provided by the vendor furnishing
the equipment or by the shipyard. All mounting and/or
special photo-processing of these Plates to be by the
shipyard).

SCHEDULING
The successful scheduling of a detail ship design requires the
 (11)

development of a flow plan or network consisting of all activities

to be accomplished to complete the design. The network must take

into account the design activities' planned sequence, their inter-

dependencies, and their interrelationships. It is essential that

each task in the design be identified and a real time estimate

made for its duration. For example, a manhour estimate should be

made for each detail drawing to be prepared, including all checking

and processing time. It is then necessary to identify all pred~cessor

activities, i.e., all drawings, analysis, data collections (vendor,

Owner, etc) required in order to start the given drawing. It is

also necessary to identify all tasks which must proceed simultaneously.

Further, one must take into account the time required to obtain

approvals from the Owner as well as from Regulatory Bodies such as

ABS, Coast Guard, and Public Health. Only after the above scheduling

activity has been completed can one construct an overall time esti-

mate with accuracy and proceed to identify the critical paths in the

network. The baseline against which the detail design schedule is

evaluated is the shipyard construction schedule and the designer

must coordinate his scheduling activities with the shipyard planning

office. The network or flow plan must then be translated into a

timetable with specific calendar dates, taking into account ship

production requirements as well as engineering department manpower

resources. See Fig. 4.

Perhaps the single most important element in scheduling the


. - . I I

SHIPYARD SCHEDULE
FIRST YEAR SECOND YEAR THIRD YEAR
-
1ST QTR 2ND QTR 3RD QTR 4TH QTR 1ST QTR 2ND QTR 3RD QTR 4TH QTR 1ST QTR 2ND QTR 3RD QTR 4TH QTR

I HuLL LOFTING I
I STEEL PRE-FAB
I .
..
I
~

ERECT MODULES I. .

.
I INSTALL MAJOR EQPT I
I OTHER OUTFITTING I I

. TEST & TRIALS

D
L- KEEL LAYING
.
L-
I

LAUNCH
... I

~ELIVERY -/\

-Fig. 4
 { 12)

detail design is the receipt of certified vendor data. Such data .

is normally supplied to the design office by the shipyard purchasing

office, unless the particular equipment is to be supplied by the

Owner. It is important to note that certified vendor documents

(equipment specifications and drawings) will not be furnished prior

to receipt of a purchase order from the shipyard {or Owner) purchasing

agent. Thus, it is incumbent upon the purchaser to order early,

and condition final payment on receipt of certified data, particularly

in the case of long lead equipment such as main engines, reduction

gears, boilers, etc. Attempts by the engineer to'substitute alternate

equipment or make assumptions with regard to vendor data will almost

certainly result in a duplication of effort, not only for the first

drawing to use such data, but also for each interrelated drawing.

The importance of timely receipt of vendor data in completing design

tasks on time cannot be understated. .Required vendor data in the

case of a major piece of equipment or machinery typically includes

'
overall sizes and service area requirem~nts (for locating the item

in a particular space on arrangement plans), piping and electrical

connection locations, sizes; and types, (for routing services to the

item), weight and centers of gravity (fo~ stability and foundation

cqlculations), mounting details (for foundatiqn design), heat genera-

tion (for HVAC load calculations), fluid and electrical performance

data (for piping calculations and electrical load analysis), and others.

With regard to interrelated drawings and pre-requisit~ engineering

requirements, the following comments are offered: (See Fig. 5)

......
 ENGINEERING SCHEDULE :I

.
. FIRST YEAR SECOND YEAR

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6

DESIGN REVIEW

I PURCHASE TECH. SPECS

I
I . '
SCANT. CALCS I HULL STRUCTURE DWGS

I HULL OOTFIT DWGS I

I MAJOR EQPT DATA I OTHER VENDOR DATA I
.
I MACHY ARRGTS I . -~ ..

I PIPING DIAGRAMS & CALCS I

I PIPING ARRGTS I
- I HVAC
- DIAG &. CALCS I
I HVAC ARRGTS I .'
I ELEC CALCS I
I BLOCK, ELEM, & ISO WIRING DIAGS I
I WIREWAYS I
I 'COMPOSITES
t TEST M~MOS & OTHER SOFTWAR~ - >
~

Fig. 5
 (13)

Hull structure plans must be preceded by scantling calculations

to assure that the detail design is structurally adequate and meets

any applicable Regulatory Body requirements (such as ABS or U.S.

Navy Design Data Sheets). Further, the scheduling of the hull

structure drawings should be consistent with the steel erection

sequence developed by the shipyard. This will generally result in

the double bottom mid-body structure plans leading the rest of the

plans. Additionally, scheduling of plans for steel castings or

forgings such as the stem or struts must allow for foundry lead

time.

Hull arrangement plans are dependent upon vendor outline

drawings for completion. It is useful to consider the development

of Compartment and Access plans shortly after the detail design

commences, indicating plan views of compartmental boundaries,

compartment accesses, and location of main girders and stanchions.

Such plans can be distributed to the piping, ventilation, and

electrical departments for use as backgrounds in routing services

in and through the compartments. A common drawing scale for all

departments' arrangement plans (except where finer detail is re-

quired) greatly facilitates the use of overlays for interference

control.

Vent duct arrangement plans must be preceded by HVAC calcula-

tions to determine air flow requirements and size equipment. Such

plans may require the re-sizing of fan rooms and major trunks.

Machinery arrangement plans are of questionable use if not

 (14)

supported by firm vendor data indicating dimensioned outlines and

service space requirements.

Machinery piping arrangement plans must be preceded by piping

diagrams and flow calculations to determine pipe sizes and validate

pump selection. Such plans must also be supported by firm vendor

data (pipe connection sizes, locations, and types as well as per-

formance data) for any equipments that use or process the particular

liquid. Additionally, arrangement plans for large piping or piping

located in the first spaces to be outfitted should be scheduled

accordingly. This would include firemains, lube oil, fuel oil, and

ballast piping. Also, critically located piping such as gravity

plumbing drains (with minimum pitch requirements) and sounding

tubes (with minimum radius requirements) should be accounted for

in the scheduling process.

Electrical distribution plans must be preceded by a one-line

diagram and load analysis to validate the selection of generators

and determine sizes for main feeders, distribution panels, etc.

Master wireways can be established for major fore/aft, athwartship,

and vertical cable runs. Elementary wiring diagrams must be supported

by firm vendor data for detailed cable hook-ups.

The scheduling of the detail drawings is best accomplished with

the use of bar charts or networks, depending upon the complexity and

sophistication of the design. The network plan is a graphic flow

chart showing the interrelationships of all the separate activities

in a project. PERT (Program Evaluation and Review Technique) and

 (15)

CPM (Critical Path Method) are similar management aids that show

where and when decisions must be made in various phases of a project.

The use of such formal computer assisted methods in the scheduling

phase of the detail design may be warranted for designs of great

complexity. Regardless of the methods used, a successful scheduling

system must be able to deal rapidly with changes as the design and

construction progress.

In summary, the scheduling of a detail ship design should in-

corporate the following steps: First, break down the project into

its logical subdivisions; next, identify the points in time whereby

events must finish or begin. Within each subdivision, break down

the work into individual time using activities (drawings) that must

be accomplished. For each such activity, determine responsibilities

and estimated completion times. Take these data and construct a

network chart that shows the relationships between all parts of the

project. Putting such steps on paper will also help to show the

progressive steps from planning to completion.

DRAWING PROCEDURES

In managing the detail Ship design, it is prudent to establish

with the shipyard the preferred drawing formats and content as well

as the logistics for handling plan submittals and approvals. The

end product, principally detailed construction drawings, should,

within cost and schedule constraints, optimize shipyard production

requirements and preferences with design department (or agent)

capabilities. Following is a discussion of various drawing criteria

 (16)

to be considered.

Drawing scales must be large enough to assure the clarity and

hence the usefulness of the detail drawing, yet not so large as to

make the drawing too large and unmanageable for use in the shop

or on the waterfront. As such, the level of detail as well as the

extent of supplemental information (piece numb.ers, location codes,

test requirements, etc) play an important role in determining the

optimum drawing scale. Another consideration in determining drawing

scale is the quantity of data to be included on individual drawings.

For example, drawings that include a number of different piping

or other mechanical services in the same compartment would be ex-

pected to be to larger scale than those which include only individual

systems. For designs with many mechanical services, the designer

should consider using standard drawing scal~s. This permits the

use of plan "mats" or standard backgrounds that can be mass produced

with plan views of the various decks and compartment boundaries.

Additionally, drawings that will require microfilming may require

a larger scale to assure clarity.

Drawing medium should be considered in light of the designer's

preference and reproduction quality of the various choices. Mylar

with plastic pencils is a common medium which is durable and easy

to revise. Pencil on vellum is easier for initial preparation but

does not have the durability or reproduction quality of mylar and

deteriorates more rapidly with frequent erasures. Ink on mylar has

superior reproduction quality but is not generally as easy to use
 (17)

as graphite or plastic pencils.

Drawing format is a function of the shipyard production require-

ments. Shipyards with highly skilled craftsmen will generally require

less drawing detail than those yards without as high a level of skill.

Shipyard standards for piping, ductwork, electrical, structural and

outfitting trades may greatly minimize the detail and quantity of

ship construction drawings. Shipyard automation such as NC (numerical

controlled) parts production must also be accounted for in determining

drawing format requirements. Maximum drawing length should also be

addressed, and can be expected to range between 96" and 144". The

shorter length is controlled by the scaled length of the longest

deck, and the longer by awkwardness of using such a document on the

waterfront.

Shop drawings are generally developed from detailed construction

drawings by the shipyard production personnel to suit the particular

production capabilities of the shipyard. For example, the pipe

fitting shop will take a piping drawing which contains pipe sizes,

types, and routings, and prepare sketches of individual pipe shop

assemblies showing actual bend radii, stock length, etc. It is

imperative that the design department or design agent establish

with the shipyard production department the level of detail to be

achieved for the particular ship design.

The logistics of plan submittals, shipyard distribution, and

incorporation of approval comments should be addressed early, part-

icularly in the case of a design which employs the services of a

,
(18)

design agent for the shipyard. This will require an assessment of the

level of checking to be done by the designer, the Owner and Regulatory

-Bodies, and the Shipyard. Similar analysis should also be performed

for such activities as vendor plan review and processing and inter-

ference control.

The use of fully automated drawing production is still in its

infancy for drafting of detailed ship construction drawings, but

promises to revolutionize drawing production for ship construction.

CAD (Computer Aided Design) systems are becoming increasingly popular

where repetitive drafting by machine permits significant increases

in productivity. CAD/CAM systems, where the manufacturing function'

is integrated with the design, are already in place to varying degrees

at many Shipyards in the case of numerically controlled production of

hull structure shapes and plates. Such techniques can eliminate the

need for hand produced drawings but still require the services of a

hull designer/engineer.

INTERFACE ACTIVITY

If a detail ship design is to function effectively, there must

be strong communication between the engineering activity and the

other activities which are essential in the delivery of a ship. Such

other activities include production, purchasing, contracts, and

inspection (Owner's representative, Regulatory Bodies). A pre-

planned means for communicating needs and problems between engineering

and each of these activities is ~ssential, regardless of whether the

detail design is accomplished by the shipyard or an independent

 (19)

design agent. Such planning necessitates the assignment of responsibility

and notice of authority for all major elements of the ship construc-

tion project.

DESIGN CONTROLS

Interference control is by far the most critical element of

design effecting the timely and effecient production of the vessel. In

order to be of benefit to the production of the ship, interference

control must be timely and accurate. Token efforts at interference

control are of insignificant benefit to the Shipyard production depart-

ment and may cause more harm than good by wasting engineering talent.

On the other hand, serious efforts at interference control can pay big

dividends in reduced rework and material waste by the production depart-

ment. In order to be successful, interference control must not merely

be sanctioned by, but must receive the active support of engineering

management.

There are numerous tools available to the designer for interfer-

ence control. The most popular such tool is composites, consisting of

two dimensional projections of outfit items within a compartment

against a background of hull structure. Overlays can also be used

for this method. The outfit items would typically include piping,

wireways, vent duct, and equipment. Allowances are also made for

equipment service or removal space requirements as well as space

reservations for future equipment requirements. Composites are

normally prepared for congested areas such as machinery spaces and

service trunks. Plan views are prepared for various ranges of eleva-
p
(20)

tion or for the entire compartment, with vertical offsets of piping

and equipment identified so as to determine the existence of "hits"

that must subsequently be corrected.

Another means of interference control is the use of models,

which give a three dimensional representation. Because of their

high cost, models are generally used only for the most congested of

spaces in highly sophisticated designs. In some cases, modeling

may be the only way to avoid rework by the shipyard production depart-

ment.

"Holes Control" is a form of compositing where bulkhead and

deck penetrations are identified on a scaled structure background.

This procedure in addition to helping to identify interferences, also

serves to assess the structural integrity of an area with multiple

close-spaced penetrations.

Computer assisted interference control is now possible, with

programs available for piping systems. Such tools have great poten-

tial, provided they are integrated as part of a CAD/CAM system.

The shipyard production department must realize that no inter-

ference control technique will be foolproof unless the fabrication

group is accountable to the interference control group. Unless and

until a totally integrated CAD/CAM system is effected for ship

production, interference control can do no better than reduce the

quantity and seriousness of the "hits" to be encountered during

fabrication.
Quality control is a key issue to be addressed by the designer.
 (21)

Departmental checking by the various engineering disciplines must

assure compliance with Owner (specification) and Regulatory Body

requirements, as well as good engineering practice. Failure to

adhere to the ship specifications is inexcusable, except where it

may be technically impossible to achieve such compliance. Such

cases must be well documented, with efforts to resolve such items

commencing as quickly as possible. Independent checking enhances.

quality while increasing engineering expenditures. Such checking,

if judged to be warranted based on a sampling of errors found and

if managed effectively, is cost justified on the basis of reduced

overall production costs.

Cost controls for the detail ship design effort are essential

if an engineering budget is to be maintained. Budget hours for

individual drawings, consolidated by engineering discipline, are

essential for the engineering project manager and the contracts

manager. Changes in the engineering Scope of Work must be supported

by changes to the engineering budget.

Change orders are an essential vehicle for effecting Owner

directed changes to the ship construction contract. To the extent

that such changes impact the design of the vessel, it is essential

that a system be in place to assure that such design changes are

implemented efficiently and thoroughly. A possible failing is to

incorporate an individual system change but neglect to modify

affected reference drawings. One means of accounting for such

' (22)

changes is to route a copy of the ship specification change through

the various engineering departments, requiring that each such depart-

ment assess the impact of the subject change order on the drawings

for which it is responsible. The department would be tasked to

estimate the budget impact of the change on a plan by plan basis.

Once changes have been made to a drawing as a result_ of a change

order, it is essential to note the reason for such changes in the

revision column of the drawing.

Preference or "opinion" engineering is to be avoided in order to

maximize the efficiency of the detail ship design. The goal of the

design is to achieve a design that is consistent with the ship

specifications, Regulatory Body requirements, and good shipbuilding

practice. Additional design optimization iterations do not enhance

the schedule or the budget of the detail design. As such, "value

engineering" incentives should be evaluated on the basis of their

impact to the total design effort.

Engineering revision notices are prepared by the designer to

alert the production department to changes to drawings already issued

to production. Such notices are essential in avoiding production

rework, and must be timely and accurate. The notice should clearly

identify the changes made and the reason for the change (incorporate

change order, relocate to avoid interference, correct error, etc).

Problems of a technical nature must be subjected to an efficient

system for problem resolution. Of course, the project manager should

 (23)

anticipate problems, and take preventive action, when and if appro-

priate. Questions on interpretation of apparent ship specification

and contract plan inconsistencies should be referred to the Owner

along with a recommended course of action. See Fig. 6. The same

holds true for interpretation of Regulatory Body requirements. The

key to successful problem resolution is to first identify the problem

clearly and accurately, with proper references to the matter in

question. Secondly, the problem, with recommended solutions, must

be communicated in timely fashion to persons with the authority to

resolve the issue. Finally, there mustbe a means for identifying

outstanding problems for personal attention by the project manager

as part of his follow-up activity. Of course, any problem resolu-

tion requiring design changes must ensure that such changes are

actually incorporated into the design.

The control process for the detail ship design requires the

input of extensive and varied data. It is essential that a system

of exception reporting to the engineering project manager be im-

plemented wherein the manager is alerted to problems of such a mag-

nitude as to require his or her active intervention. Otherwise,

the manager may soon become bogged down and lose his or her overall

perspective of the design. Such exception reporting can and should

be applied to unresolved specification or Regulatory Body conflicts,

budget overruns, schedule delays, weight excesses (if necessary for

stability and/or powering considerations), quality failures, unresolved

I
-
.

FOUND a RECOMMEND NOTICE No.

-

CONTRACT DOCUMENT:

SPECIFICATION PAGE SECTION

. CONTRACT DWG. NO. REV
OTHER

1. DISCREPANCY I ERROR I OMISSION I RECORn ONLY (CIRCLE ONE)

2. DESCRIBE PROBLEM: .,

;3. RECOMMENDED ACTION:

. .
SUBMITTED BY: OWNER ACTION REQD BY: (DATE)
.
DATE:
.

OWNER RESPONSE:

FIG. 6
 (24)

interferences, serious delay in receipt of vendor data, etc.

CONCLUSIONS

The two primary reasons for the failure of a detail ship design

to adequately support the shipyard production department are late

receipt of vendor data and inadequate interference control. The vendor

problem is not within the designers control. Without the support of

the shipyard purchasing department, lack of valid vendor data cripples

the design effort and hence the production effort as well. The inter-

ference control problem can be controlled to an extent by the designer.

It must be recognized that the designer cannot control the mechanic's

adherence to his or her drawing, and that interference control is a

means to reduce, not eliminate, physical interferences.

Additional causes of design effort failure include too frequent

change orders by the Owner, too much time identifying and solving

problems, and lack of talent within the design department.

Looking to the future, detail design capabilities must be flexible

enough to accommodate and support new technologies of ship production.

CAD/CAM and pre-outfitting of ship sub-assemblies or modules are

examples of such recent technology. Regardless of the tools used,

the success of the detail ship design in supporting ship production

activities will continue to depend upon the engineering project manager's

ability to plan, schedule, and control the design activities with the

support of the shipyard planning, purchasing, and production activities.

This paper is intended to offer some common sense approaches and

observations on managing a detail ship design. It is hoped that the

&
0 0
(25)

contents herein will benefit some future design activity.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The author is the General Manager of the Cape May - Lewes Ferry

in Cape May, New Jersey, and formerly served as a project manager

for the J.J. Henry Co., Inc. He is a graduate of Webb Institute of

Naval Architecture, earned his M.B.A. from Drexel University, and is

a licensed Professional Engineer in New Jersey and Delaware.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author gratefully acknowledges the opportunities afforded

him in project management while at J.J. Henry Co., Inc., and in

particular the guidance and support of Mr. A.C. Brown, Senior Vice

President, and Mr. David F. McMullen, Vice President.