An adaptive method for scheduling the sequence and route of builder trials for a new ship

Abstract

Before a newly built ship is brought into service, it has to undergo various trials as part of its delivery. The builder shipyard aims at completing the maximum number of trials in the minimum possible time. Many trials have one or more prerequisites and every trial may have certain environmental requirements for its conduct. At sea, the success of any specific trial cannot be guaranteed. A dynamic tool is needed to help decision makers rapidly construct alternative trial sequences after the failure of any trial, and aid them in deciding whether the trials can be continued, or the ship has to return to the harbor for repairs. This thesis develops such an adaptive tool, which generates an optimal sequence and feasible route for conduct of a given set of trials, minimizing the total time required in the absence of failures or adverse environmental conditions. The tool allows the user to generate alternate sequences of trials if an early trial fails. Simulation of the conduct of trials, under varying environmental conditions, reveals that the number of retries is the most important factor affecting the outcomes. It also identifies bottlenecks in the network, providing insight about onboard spare supportability for important systems.