HOLISHIP · Project

Software Platform That Cuts Ship Design Costs Across the Entire Vessel Lifetime

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Imagine buying a car without knowing what repairs, fuel, or insurance will cost you over the next 20 years — that's basically how ships get designed today. HOLISHIP built software tools that let shipbuilders run virtual "what-if" scenarios before a single piece of steel is cut, weighing everything from fuel efficiency and crew costs to environmental rules and end-of-life recycling. Think of it as a flight simulator for ship economics: you test hundreds of design choices on screen instead of discovering expensive mistakes at sea. A consortium of 47 partners across 14 countries spent four years proving this works on real vessel types — from cargo ships to offshore supply vessels.

By the numbers

EUR 11,431,746

EU funding invested in developing the platform

consortium partners involved in development and validation

countries represented in the consortium

industry partners validating the tools

64%

industry ratio in consortium — majority commercial players

total deliverables produced

real vessel types used for demonstration (merchant, multi-purpose, AHTS)

The business problem

What needed solving

Designing a ship today means making thousands of irreversible decisions early on — hull shape, engine type, equipment layout — without a clear picture of how those choices affect total costs over 20-30 years of operation. Fuel prices change, environmental regulations tighten, and maintenance surprises eat into margins. Shipyards and owners need a way to test design trade-offs digitally before committing millions to steel and labor.

The solution

What was built

The project delivered an integrated ship design software platform with multi-objective optimization, plus digital mock-ups demonstrated on three vessel types: merchant ships, multi-purpose vessels, and AHTS offshore supply vessels. A total of 24 deliverables were produced including public demonstration reports and three industry workshop clusters.

Audience

Who needs this

Shipyards designing custom-built vessels under tight cost and emissions constraintsShip owners negotiating newbuild contracts who need life-cycle cost dataMarine equipment manufacturers seeking to prove component value over vessel lifetimeNaval architects and ship design consultancies upgrading their digital toolsClassification societies and maritime regulators evaluating vessel compliance

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Shipbuilding & Naval Architecture

enterprise

Target: Shipyards and ship design firms

If you are a shipyard struggling to balance customer specs against fuel costs, emissions rules, and maintenance budgets — this project developed an integrated design software platform that lets you optimize all these trade-offs digitally before construction begins. The platform was validated by 30 industry partners across 14 countries on real vessel types including merchant ships, multi-purpose vessels, and AHTS offshore supply ships.

Maritime Equipment Manufacturing

mid-size

Target: Marine equipment and component suppliers

If you are a marine equipment manufacturer who needs to prove your components deliver life-cycle value — this project created digital mock-up tools that simulate how equipment performs over a vessel's full operational life. With 47 consortium partners testing these tools, your products can be virtually benchmarked against alternatives before a shipowner commits to a purchase.

Shipping & Fleet Management

enterprise

Target: Ship owners and fleet operators

If you are a fleet operator facing rising fuel prices and tightening environmental regulations — this project built optimization methods that evaluate total cost of ownership including maintenance, refitting, manning, and recycling from the earliest design stage. The approach was demonstrated on merchant vessels and offshore supply ships, giving owners hard data to negotiate better newbuild contracts.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What does the software platform actually cost to license or implement?

The project data does not specify commercial licensing terms or pricing. The integrated design platform was developed as a research output with EUR 11,431,746 in EU funding across 47 partners. Contact the coordinator or individual tool developers for current licensing options.

Can this work at industrial scale for real ship orders?

Yes — the platform was validated through industry-led application studies on three real vessel types: merchant vessels, multi-purpose vessels, and AHTS offshore supply ships. With 30 industry partners and 64% industry ratio in the consortium, the tools were designed for production use, not just academic exercises.

Who owns the IP and how can I access these tools?

IP is distributed among the 47 consortium partners under Horizon 2020 rules. The coordinator is Hamburgische Schiffbau-Versuchsanstalt GmbH in Germany. Based on available project data, several deliverables are public reports, but the software platforms likely require individual licensing agreements with specific partners.

Does this help with IMO emissions regulations compliance?

The design optimization explicitly includes environmental impact and life-cycle environmental footprint as core parameters. While specific IMO regulation mapping is not detailed in the project data, the multi-objective optimization approach was built to handle contradicting requirements including environmental rules alongside cost and performance.

How long does it take to integrate this into existing ship design workflows?

Based on available project data, the platform was built to plug into early-stage design processes where customer and owner specifications are first translated into technical requirements. The project ran from 2016 to 2020, with 24 deliverables produced. Integration timelines would depend on your current CAD and simulation tool stack.

Is this only for newbuilds or also for retrofitting existing vessels?

The project scope covers the entire life cycle including maintenance, refitting, and renewal — not just newbuild design. The optimization tools evaluate operational conditions that change over a vessel's economic life, making them relevant for refit and upgrade decisions as well.

What kind of technical support is available?

The consortium included 11 research organizations and 5 universities alongside 30 industry partners. Public reports and workshop presentations from three project clusters are available as deliverables. For hands-on support, the coordinator or relevant industry partners would need to be contacted directly.

Consortium

Who built it

This is one of the larger Horizon 2020 maritime projects with 47 partners spanning 14 countries and EUR 11,431,746 in EU funding. What stands out for business buyers is the 64% industry ratio — 30 of the partners are from industry, not academia. That means the tools were built by and for people who actually design and build ships. The 10 SMEs in the consortium suggest the platform is not just for large yards. The coordinator, Hamburgische Schiffbau-Versuchsanstalt GmbH (HSVA), is a well-known German ship model testing facility — a credible technical lead. Countries like Germany, Finland, Norway, Netherlands, and Greece bring deep maritime expertise. With 11 research organizations and 5 universities providing the scientific backbone, this consortium has both the engineering muscle and the academic rigor to deliver production-grade tools.

HAMBURGISCHE SCHIFFBAU-VERSUCHSANSTALT GMBHCoordinator · DE
DNV HELLAS SINGLE MEMBER SAparticipant · EL
SCHEEPSWERF DAMEN GORINCHEM BVparticipant · NL
UNIVERSITE DE LIEGEparticipant · BE
CENTER OF MARITIME TECHNOLOGIES GGMBHparticipant · DE
BUREAU VERITAS MARINE & OFFSHORE REGISTRE INTERNATIONAL DE CLASSIFICATION DE NAVIRES ET DE PLATEFORMES OFFSHOREparticipant · FR
SOCIETE D'INGENIERIE DE RECHERCHESET D'ETUDES EN HYDRODYNAMIQUE NAVALEparticipant · FR
NEDERLANDSE ORGANISATIE VOOR TOEGEPAST NATUURWETENSCHAPPELIJK ONDERZOEK TNOparticipant · NL
SINTEF OCEAN ASparticipant · NO
ETHNICON METSOVION POLYTECHNIONparticipant · EL
ROLLS-ROYCE POWER ENGINEERING PLCparticipant · UK
BUREAU VERITAS SAparticipant · FR
DANAOS SHIPPING COMPANY LIMITEDparticipant · CY
KONGSBERG MARITIME ASparticipant · NO
NAVAL GROUPparticipant · FR
FINCANTIERI SPAparticipant · IT
DEUTSCHES ZENTRUM FUR LUFT - UND RAUMFAHRT EVparticipant · DE
BUREAU VERITAS SOLUTIONS MARINE & OFFSHOREthirdparty · FR
BALANCE TECHNOLOGY CONSULTING GMBHparticipant · DE
EPSILON MALTA LIMITEDparticipant · MT
CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHEparticipant · IT
CETENA SPA CENTRO PER GLI STUDI DI TECNICA NAVALEparticipant · IT
MEYER WERFT PAPENBURG GMBH & CO KGparticipant · DE
STICHTING MARITIEM RESEARCH INSTITUUT NEDERLANDparticipant · NL
INSTITUT FUR SEEVERKEHRSWIRTSCHAFT UND LOGISTIKparticipant · DE
INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE TECHNOLOGIQUE SYSTEM Xparticipant · FR
UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI GENOVAparticipant · IT
LLOYD'S REGISTER EMEAparticipant · UK
HOCHSCHULE BREMENparticipant · DE
FORSCHUNGSVEREINIGUNG SCHIFFBAU UND MEERESTECHNIK E.V.participant · DE
ALS MARINE CONSULTANTS LTDparticipant · CY
UNIVERSITY OF STRATHCLYDEparticipant · UK

How to reach the team

Hamburgische Schiffbau-Versuchsanstalt GmbH (HSVA), Hamburg, Germany — a ship model testing and research SME. SciTransfer can facilitate an introduction.

Order a report on this consortium See HAMBURGISCHE SCHIFFBAU-VERSUCHSANSTALT GMBH profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how HOLISHIP's life-cycle design tools could reduce your vessel costs? SciTransfer connects businesses with the research teams behind EU-funded maritime technology — contact us for a tailored briefing.

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