Notilus Scantling released for Rhino 8

Summary

Notilus Software has released Notilus Scantling. This structural rule-checking tool reads hull geometry directly from Rhino 8 objects for ship architects. It validates plates, stiffeners, beams, and columns against DNV, RINA, and ISO scantling rules. The tool is available both as a Rhino plugin and as a standalone Windows desktop application.

Why it matters

Traditionally, ship structural validation required exporting geometry to specialized FEA or rule-checking packages, disrupting the design cycle. Notilus Scantling pulls dimensions, deadrise values, and plate thicknesses directly from the Rhino model. It writes utilization ratios back to the geometry as colors. This allows engineers to remain within the parametric environment where the hull is shaped. For small and medium-sized shipyards and ship architects using Rhino instead of CATIA or NAPA, this eliminates a significant workflow friction point.

Highlights

• Elements are not entered manually but selected from existing Rhino geometry. This means that after hull modifications, re-validation occurs as a single re-reading process.
• Supported rules include DNV-RU-HSLC Pt.3, RINA RES31, ISO 12215-5 (steel, aluminum, FRP), and ISO 11812. A traceable report is generated that cites the specific rule clause behind each requirement.
• Local integration with Notilus Composite allows laminates and stiffeners to be pulled from the same library without re-entry. However, the tool is only available for Windows via Rhino 8.

Critical take

This article is a simple product announcement from McNeel's own blog. There is no independent benchmarking, pricing information, or user feedback. Therefore, claims about workflow savings remain unverified. While the promise of 'change hulls, re-read model' sounds seamless, the tool requires manually selecting each structural element one by one. This could lead to scalability issues in large hulls containing hundreds of stiffeners and beams.