During the past ten years, both U.S. and foreign shipyards have developed advanced unitization concepts that include multi-level assemblies representing large vertical segments of ship machinery spaces. This paper describes a parametrically derived family of large, fully integrated standard machinery units that are applicable over a range of ship types and installed horsepower. The results include a hierarchy of standard units, the selection of standard unit sizes and interfaces, the development of parametric standards for system design, engine room arrangement and structural design, and machinery unit structural and outfitting design. Benchmarking is reported with respect to Japanese and European shipbuilding practices, and with respect to U.S. land based industrial plant design and construction practices. The proposed unitization concept is demonstrated in a ship-specific engine room arrangement design effort. A business assessment for this unitization concept is presented which addresses its potential shipbuilding cost and schedule impacts as evaluated by three U.S. shipyards.
Complete retrieval of multi-level Stokes vector signal by an InP-based photonic integrated circuit