CAD modeler builds a better boat

Aug. 18, 2005
Fuel tanks, instrument gages, and a wiring harness came off the drawing board two weeks after engineers at Tigè Boats got a new solid modeler.

The fuel pump model generated in Alibre software lets Tigè designers efficiently place components out of sight but readily accessible for maintenance.


The 20 to 24-ft inboard boats from Tigè Boats, such as the Switch V, are high-performance models for skiing and wakeboarding. A few can hit 50 mph.


Fuel tanks, instrument gages, and a wiring harness came off the drawing board two weeks after engineers at Tigè Boats got a new solid modeler. The CAD system, Alibre Design and Alibre Design Professional, also let designers there make sure a control handle devised with the company's previous software could be imported and kinematically tested in the new modeler. "We hit a positive ROI after designing just one of the new fuel tanks," says Tigè manufacturing engineer Curt Conway.

The software easily handles what few moving parts there are. "We're able to draw the pivot of a hinge in 3D, see how it works, and easily perform stress analysis. Doing things virtually with the modeler minimizes mistakes in the real world," Conway says.

MAKE CONTACT:
Alibre Inc.,
(972) 671-8492, alibre.com
Tigè Boats,
(325) 676-7777, tige.com

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