SNAME Maritime Convention

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Glossary

1

Naval architecture

The engineering discipline covering the design, construction and behaviour of ships and marine structures: hull form, stability, structure, resistance, propulsion and seakeeping. It is the core subject area of the SNAME Maritime Convention.

2

Hydrostatics and stability

Calculation of buoyancy, displacement, centre of gravity and righting arms, checked in intact and damage conditions against class rules and statutory criteria such as SOLAS damage stability.

3

Resistance and propulsion

The study of how much power is needed to drive a hull at a given speed, split into frictional, wave-making and appendage resistance, and matched to propeller or waterjet performance.

4

Seakeeping

How a vessel responds to waves - heave, pitch, roll, slamming and added resistance - usually assessed through strip theory, potential-flow codes or model tests in a seakeeping basin.

5

Model testing / towing tank

Physical testing of a scaled model in a towing tank or basin to measure resistance, propulsion coefficients, seakeeping or manoeuvring, and to validate numerical predictions.

6

CFD (computational fluid dynamics)

Numerical simulation of flow around a hull or appendage. At the convention, CFD papers typically address validation against model test data, mesh sensitivity and full-scale correlation.

7

Classification society

A technical organisation such as ABS, DNV, Lloyd's Register or Bureau Veritas that sets and verifies rules for hull structure, machinery and safety, and issues class certificates.

8

Flag state and port state control

The flag state certifies a vessel under its registry; port state control inspectors check compliance in port. Both rely on the IMO instruments and class rule sets discussed in convention sessions.

9

IMO instruments (SOLAS, MARPOL)

SOLAS covers safety of life at sea and MARPOL covers marine pollution. Amendments to both drive much of the technical programme, from fire safety to sulphur and nitrogen oxide limits.

10

EEDI, EEXI and CII

IMO measures for ship efficiency: the Energy Efficiency Design Index for newbuilds, its existing-ship counterpart EEXI, and the Carbon Intensity Indicator rating used for operational emissions reporting.

11

Alternative fuels

Methanol, ammonia, LNG and hydrogen-based options that require new tank, piping, venting and safety arrangements. Convention papers usually focus on machinery room layout, rule gaps and bunkering.

12

Dynamic positioning (DP)

Computer-controlled thruster systems that hold a vessel on station for drilling, construction or diving. DP assurance, redundancy notation and IMCA guidance appear in offshore sessions.

13

FPSO

Floating production, storage and offloading vessel used in offshore oil and gas. Mooring, riser interface, turret design and hull fatigue are recurring topics.

14

Fatigue and ultimate strength

Structural checks that a hull will survive cyclic wave loading over its design life and extreme load cases. Spectral fatigue, hot-spot stress and weld detail classification are common paper subjects.

15

Digital twin

A calibrated numerical model of a vessel fed with operational data to predict performance, fouling, fuel use or structural life. It sits at the intersection of hydrodynamics, sensing and data science.

16

MASS (maritime autonomous surface ships)

The IMO regulatory workstream for autonomous and remotely controlled vessels, used at the convention as the frame for papers on assurance, collision avoidance and human element.

17

SNAME technical committees and panels

Volunteer groups within the society that write technical guidance and organise sessions in areas such as hydrodynamics, structures, ship production and offshore. Many meet around the annual convention.