OVER SEVERAL DECADES OF DESIGNING VESSELS FOR GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE-SECTOR CLIENTS, GIBBS & COX HAS ESTABLISHED STRONG WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SEVERAL OF THE MOST RENOWNED MODEL TEST BASINS IN THE WORLD.  FROM TESTING AND FINE-TUNING THE HYDRODYNAMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF HIGH-SPEED VESSELS TO STUDYING THE INTERACTION OF WIND AND WAVES ON THE BEHAVIOR OF A VESSEL AT ANCHOR, GIBBS & COX CAN USE MODEL TANK TESTING TO OPTIMIZE AN EXPANSIVE RANGE OF VESSEL FEATURES.  

GIBBS & COX HAS EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE WITH THE SELECTION, ANALYSIS, AND OPTIMIZATION OF VARIOUS TYPES OF MARINE POWERING AND PROPULSION.   FOR POWERING OPTIONS INCLUDING GASOLINE, DIESEL, AND GAS TURBINE ENGINES, AND PROPULSORS INCLUDING FIXED-PITCH PROPELLERS, VARIABLE-PITCH PROPELLERS, SURFACE DRIVES, AND WATERJETS, G&C HAS THE CAPABILITIES TO MATCH POWER AND PROPULSION TO OPTIMIZE PERFORMANCE AND EFFICIENCY DEMANDED FOR A VESSEL'S INTENDED MISSION.  

GIBBS & COX USES CFD IN A BROAD RANGE OF APPLICATIONS; FROM VISUALIZING HYDRODYNAMIC FLOW PATTERS OF WATER PAST DISPLACEMENT, SEMI-DISPLACEMENT, AND PLANING HULL FORMS, TO OBSERVING SUBTLE AIRFLOW CHANGES RESULTING FROM SMALL GEOMETRIC MODIFICATIONS TO AN ENGINE ROOM, CFD ALLOWS GIBBS & COX TO SOLVE COMPLEX HYDRODYNAMIC AND AERODYNAMIC PROBLEMS WITHOUT FULL-SCALE TESTING. 

THE DESIGN OF ICEBREAKING SHIPS IS COMPLICATED BY THE RIGORS OF THE OPERATING ENVIRONMENT AND INCLUDES WINTERIZATION OF MECHANICAL SYSTEMS, PREDICTIONS OF ICE-INDUCED HULL LOADING, AND ESTIMATION OF REQUIRED ICE BREAKING PROPULSION POWER.  GIBBS & COX USES AN ICE BASIN TO RESEARCH THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SEA ICE AND OFFSHORE VESSELS; THE TANK SIMULATES EXTREME NORTHERN MARINE CONDITIONS, AND IS ABLE TO REALISTICALLY REPRODUCE ALL TYPES OF FULL-SCALE ICE CONDITIONS FOUND IN THE NORTHERN MARINE ENVIRONMENT.  THE FACILITY HAS VALIDATED EXPERTISE RECREATING THE MATERIAL PROPERTIES OF SEA ICE AT MODEL SCALE, ALLOWING FOR ACCURATE EVALUATION OF RESISTANCE AND STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE IN ARCTIC CONDITIONS.  

THE USE OF FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS ALLOWS THE ENGINEERS AT GIBBS & COX TO ANALYZE THE FORCES AND STRESS IMPARTED TO HULLS AND SPECIFIC COMPONENTS, AND CAN EVEN PROVIDE A VISUALIZATION OF HEAT TRANSFER THROUGH DIFFERENT MATERIALS.  FEA ALLOWS FOR THE  OPTIMIZATION OF STRUCTURAL ARRANGEMENTS, SPECIFICALLY WHEN COMPLEX GEOMETRIES AND MATERIAL PROPERTIES ARE INVOLVED.      

GIBBS & COX USES 3D SCANNING TO CREATE  ACCURATE 3-DIMENSIONAL REPRESENTATIONS OF VESSEL EXTERIORS, INTERIOR SPACES, AND SPECIFIC COMPONENTS.  IN THIS PROCESS, A SERIES OF CAMERAS WORK TOGETHER TO MAP DATA POINTS OVER THE ENTIRE SCAN AREA, ALLOWING GIBBS & COX ENGINEERS TO RE-CREATE SURFACES IN AN ACCURATELY-MODELED, 3D, COMPUTER-SIMULATED ENVIRONMENT.  

THE DESIGNERS, ENGINEERS, AND DRAFTSMEN AT GIBBS & COX HAVE ACCESS TO AN EXTENSIVE TOOLBOX OF PROPRIETARY SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS.  PROGRAMS RELATED TO HULLFORM OPTIMIZATION, POWERING & PROPULSION, AND STRUCTURAL OPTIMIZATION PLAY A LARGE PART IN THE DESIGN PROCESS OUR DESIGN TEAM USE TO EFFICIENTLY BRING PROJECTS TO LIFE.