Engineering the Future of High-Speed Ferries with 3DEXPERIENCE CATIA | Sea Technology x PLM Group

For companies operating in the marine industry, innovation is often driven by necessity and limitations caused by natural phenomena. Stricter environmental requirements, increasing energy costs and rising expectations around passenger comfort are pushing engineers in the maritime sector to rethink traditional vessel concepts.

For the Norwegian engineering company Sea Technology, these challenges became the foundation for one of their most ambitious projects to date: developing a next-generation high-speed ferry, designed to reduce energy consumption while maintaining performance, reliability and passenger comfort.

“Every design choice is ultimately driven by reducing resistance and improving efficiency. But at the same time, stability, regulations and passenger comfort cannot be compromised.” – Vebjørn Eikeland Oftedal, former Technical Lead at Sea Technology.

A New Generation of High-Speed Ferries

Sea Technology has been part of the development project Fremtidens Hurtigbåt since 2025. This government funded project focusses on creating a new type of high-speed passenger ferry with significantly lower energy consumption compared to conventional vessels.

Their goal is of the ambitious kind: achieve approximately 30% lower power consumption compared to a reference vessel, while still maintaining schedule reliability in real-world operating conditions.

To accomplish this, Sea Technology has developed a foil-supported trimaran with electric propulsion, optimized for predefined ferry routes.

The vessel is designed with several demanding performance targets in mind, including a top speed at over 40 knots, operational capability in significant wave heights up to Hs 2.5 metres, reliable performance across varying sea states, and reduced environmental footprint through lower energy usage without compromising passenger comfort.

However, achieving these targets requires more than traditional engineering approaches.

Simulation-Driven Engineering Reduces Project Risk

Turns out, developing an advanced foil-supported vessel introduces an entirely new set of engineering challenges.

One of the most significant discoveries during the early development phase was related to stability.

Initial assumptions regarding foil placement and vessel dynamics had to be revised following early-stage CFD analyses and manoeuvring simulations.

The company performed extensive testing and validation activities including:

• Instrumented turning circle analyses
• 10/10 zig zag manoeuvring tests
• Ballast shift simulations
• CFD analyses
• Dynamic stability evaluations

These simulations provided valuable insight into how the vessel would behave under real operational conditions.

According to Sea Technology, this simulation-driven workflow helped reduce development risk early in the project.

“The most surprising challenge during the initial testing phase was stability. Early CFD analyses forced us to rethink both foil placement and several initial design assumptions.” – Vebjørn Eikeland Oftedal

3DEXPERIENCE CATIA as the Backbone of the Design Process

“3DEXPERIENCE CATIA is the backbone of our design process. It allows us to continuously develop and refine a complete 3D model containing everything from geometry and simulations to supplier information and manufacturing data.” – Vebjørn Eikeland Oftedal

Managing such a complex marine development project requires a connected engineering environment where geometry, simulation data and supplier information can evolve together.

For Sea Technology, 3DEXPERIENCE CATIA plays a central role throughout the entire product development process.

The platform is used to:

• Manage all CAD data
• Prepare models for CFD analyses
• Support manoeuvring simulations
• Generate CNC-ready models for towing tank testing
• Coordinate supplier and system integration data
• Maintain a continuously evolving 3D master model

This integrated workflow allows engineering teams to work faster while maintaining full control over project data and revisions.

Sea Technology has worked with CATIA for approximately 20 years, making the platform deeply integrated into the company’s engineering processes.

A Partnership Focussed on Engineering Efficiency

While Sea Technology focusses on solving advanced marine engineering challenges, PLM Group supports the company with software expertise, platform guidance and technical support.

According to Sea Technology, this partnership helps the engineering team stay focused on innovation instead of troubleshooting software environments.

PLM Group has also helped Sea Technology better understand the possibilities within the 3DEXPERIENCE platform and identify additional applications that improve workflows.

One example involved enabling rendering and export functionality for interactive 3D models used on the company’s website.

“The partnership with PLM Group allows us to focus on what we do best – designing boats – without spending unnecessary time on troubleshooting or software-related issues.” – Vebjørn Eikeland Oftedal

Building the Future of Sustainable Marine Transportation

For Sea Technology, the project represents more than a single vessel.

It demonstrates how advanced engineering, simulation-driven design and integrated digital development platforms can help accelerate the transition toward more sustainable marine transportation.

By combining lightweight composite structures, electric propulsion and simulation-based optimization, Sea Technology is helping define what the next generation of high-speed ferries may look like.

With support from 3DEXPERIENCE CATIA and PLM Group, the company continues to push the boundaries of marine innovation while balancing efficiency, stability and passenger experience.