Notilus Piping introduced as a piping and HVAC design plugin for Rhino

Summary

McNeel's official Rhino blog announced Notilus Piping, a solution for marine and ship design workflows. Developed for Rhino 7/8, this 3D piping and HVAC add-on offers pipe drawing, connection part libraries, automatic hole punching, live material lists, and spool drawings within a single model.

Why it matters

For shipyards and naval architects, integrating piping and HVAC systems into the same Rhino model as the hull and structure eliminates data transfer between general layout and system CAD tools. Live material lists and automatic spool drawings can shorten repetitive cycles in fuel, ballast, bilge, and HVAC systems across all vessel sizes, from mega-yachts to workboats.

Highlights

• Converts existing lines and polylines into parametric pipes. Elbows, valves, and fittings are automatically aligned according to standards.
• Automatic hole punching against the surrounding structure; provides a live material list including fluid weight and center of gravity information.
• Covers all marine systems, including fuel, ballast, bilge, sewage, seawater, and HVAC. Generates spool drawings along with component lists.

Critical take

This is a vendor feature list dressed up as a blog post. There is no information on pricing, user reviews, comparisons with specialized marine CAD packages like AVEVA or Intergraph, limitations, or the learning curve. Consequently, it reads like marketing copy rather than an independent evaluation.