VALIDATING RESULTS FOR THE CAPABILITIES OF FLOATING DOCKS USING AUTOHYDRO MODULE FROM THE SOFTWARE PACKAGE AUTOSHIP

Ships are complexe structures, designed to operate in challenging marine environments, and understanding how various forces impact their structure is essential to know which are the capabilities of the construction. In this context, the paper presents a study of the structural loading effects, for different types of folating docks. So, three types of docks are analyzed, distinguished by their lengths and the placement of lateral tanks on the main deck. The first two are small docks, each with the length of 60 meters and a maximum docking capacity of 828 tone. Talking about the constructive version, the two small docks are presented with continuous upper lateral ballast tancks – Dock60_CWT and discontinuous upper lateral tancks – Dock60_NWT. The third dock is significantly larger, measuring 209.2m in length, with a maximum docking capacity of 27,000 tones – Dock_VARD_Tulcea. The study uses ModelMaker module of AutoShip software package to modelate the 3D body plan of the floating docks. Next the AutoHydro module of the same software is used to perform hydrostatics, stability and longitudinal strength analyses under various loading conditions. The results obtained form AutoHydro are compared with those generated using an own program package – the FDOCK software, which returns data about overall strength, bending moments, shear forces and transverse stability under various loading scenarios. The analyses are conducted under a range of loading cases to reflect realistic operational conditions. These scenarios include the following loading cases: without docked mass, with maximum docked mass uniformly distributed, and configurations representing sagging and hogging mass distribution conditions. The inclusion of these diverse cases ensures a thorough understanding of the dock’s structural performance under varying operational demands. This study is particularly relevant in the context of modern maritime engineering, where floating docks are increasingly used to support diverse vessel types and sizes. By leveraging advanced software tools like AutoHydro, the own program package FDOCK or other, this research highlights the importance of accurate modeling and simulation for ensuring safety, optimizing dock design, and improving operational efficiency. The findings provide valuable insights into the structural behavior of floating docks, offering practical recommendations for their application in the shipbuilding and maintenance industry.