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Octo × Ship design PT Request an assessment

Octo for ship design

The hull in the 3D model, read and checked. Approval stays human.

Shipyards and design offices draw the ship in suites such as AVEVA, NAPA, CADMATIC, ShipConstructor, 3DEXPERIENCE and NX, and the hull form in Rhino with Orca3D or in Maxsurf. With a copy of the model or a read-only account, Octo can inventory layers and plates, check the OCX file (open format for exchanging the 3D model with the classification society) and propose scripts, all for human review. The ones who approve the design are the engineer in charge, the classification society and the maritime authority.

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Profile of a ship hull with frames and plates; from the center, Octo sends flows that become a plate list in CSV, validation of the OCX file against the schema and a comparison between two model revisions .3DM · OCX MODEL READ WATERLINE LENGTH · FRAMES · PLATES CSV chapas.csv XSD Valid OCX? REV. A × REV. B python3 ocx_resumo_chapas.py modelo.ocx > chapas.csv OCTO × NAVAL READ ONLY N-01
Tools surveyed8naval suites and hull form tools
Exchange with classOCXschema 2.8.6 in the public repository
NAPA2026.1announced on Jun 26, 2026
Sources17listed at the end of the page
01

What Octo does in ship design.

Six possible deliverables, drawn from the research. All of them start from a copy of the model or a read-only account, on a machine authorized by the client; none changes the design model, and all of them go to review by a person.

Hull inventory on Linux

It can read a Rhino model (.3dm) with the open-source rhino3dm library, without Rhino, and list the layer, type and bounding box of each object. Hydrostatics and mass stay with Orca3D or another naval architecture tool.

Deliverable: .py script + inventario.csv

Plates and thicknesses in the model

It can read an OCX file exported from NAPA, CADMATIC Hull or another tool and list panels and plates with their thickness. A plate without a thickness becomes an open issue for the designer, not a conclusion.

Deliverable: chapas.csv + count of open issues

OCX checked before class

It can validate the OCX file against the published XSD schema, with xmllint, before sending it to the classification society. It validates the shape of the file, not the ship's structure.

Deliverable: file validation report

Two revisions, side by side

It can compare two extractions of the same model (inventory or plate list) and point out what was added, removed or changed thickness between one revision and the next.

Deliverable: line-by-line differences report

Digital twin reports

With a license for the CADMATIC eShare Public REST API and a read-only account, it can list projects and documents; with the CADMATIC Web API, it can read catalog, objects and changes into a spreadsheet.

Deliverable: script + spreadsheet of projects and documents

Documented local automation

It can record existing AVEVA PML macros, NAPA scripts, NX journals and Grasshopper definitions, and propose new drafts for the designer to review and test on the installed version.

Deliverable: inventory of automations + drafts
02

Eight arms, one hull.

The same Octo cycle, applied to ship design. Each arm has a narrow role; the ones who approve the design and grant access are people in your company.

  1. Discovery

    Identifies the tools

    Which suite, which version, which modules are licensed, which formats come out of it (OCX, DWG, .3dm) and which automation already exists in the team.

  2. Data

    Understands the model

    How the shipyard names panels, plates and layers, which unit the model is in and which OCX schema version the export uses.

  3. Security

    Sorts out access first

    A copy of the model or a read-only account, on a machine the client authorized. In a defense project, nothing leaves before approval from the compliance team.

  4. Architecture

    Chooses the path

    rhino3dm for .3dm on Linux; XML reading for OCX; REST for CADMATIC eShare and Web API; PML, the .NET API, NX Open or COM when the work has to happen inside the tool, on Windows.

  5. Development

    Writes the reading script

    Prepares Python scripts that read the model and write CSV, without changing the source file, with the criterion of each extraction noted.

  6. Review

    Checks against a known block

    Compares the extraction with what the tool shows for the same panel or block: number of plates, thicknesses, layers. It checks by content, not by the success message.

  7. Release

    Runs in the authorized environment

    Only with your OK, it runs on the cleared machine and leaves the spreadsheet or the report right there for the designer's review.

  8. Documentation

    Records what applies to your shipyard

    Versions, formats, naming conventions and what was confirmed on your installation. The script for one shipyard is not taken as ready for another.

Octo does not approve designs, scantlings or stability: that belongs to the engineer in charge, the classification society and the maritime authority. Sending controlled data (ITAR/EAR, U.S. export control rules) to any external service, including AI, must first be assessed by the client's compliance team.

03

Every task, its own path.

The criteria Octo uses to choose. Reading comes first; work inside the tool comes later, with the designer.

TaskPathNotes
Inventory a Rhino hullrhino3dm 8.35.0 on LinuxNo mass calculation; hydrostatics stays with Orca3D or similar
Summarize plates and thicknessesOCX file exported from NAPA, CADMATIC Hull or another toolThe schema may change between versions
Validate an OCX before sending it to classxmllint against the published XSDIt validates the shape of the file, not the ship's structure
List digital twin projects and documentsCADMATIC eShare Public REST APISeparate license; routes in the server's Swagger
Connect the design to the ERP or the PLMCADMATIC Web API; AVEVA .NET API (marAPI.dll); NX OpenRead-only at first
Run hull form calculation seriesMaxsurf COM automation; Grasshopper with Orca3DWindows; the result goes to the naval architect to decide
04

From extraction to monitoring.

Three steps. Each one only makes sense after the previous one has shown results at your shipyard.

A proposal, not a promise

1 Today

Reads on demand

With a copy of the model and an authorized machine, you ask in business language and Octo proposes the script and the spreadsheet.

  • “Plates in this block with their thickness” becomes a script + CSV
  • A check on a known block before trusting it
  • OCX schema version noted in each file
Gain: the list comes from the model, not copied from the screen
2 Next

Routine checks

OCX validation and the comparison between revisions can start running at each export, in the client's environment.

  • Validation against the XSD before each submission to class
  • List of differences between the new revision and the previous one
  • eShare document spreadsheet for planning
Gain: the team just reads the report and decides
3 Later

Documented automation

The macros and scripts the team already uses can become documentation, and new ones can be proposed as drafts for the designer to test.

  • Inventory of PML macros, NAPA scripts and NX journals
  • Drafts in Python, C# or Grasshopper for review
  • Record of what was confirmed on each installed version
Gain: automation no longer depends on a single person
05

Confirmed by a source.

Every point below has a source published by the vendor, by the project or by the responsible agency. The sources are in the next section.

4

points with a published source, each with its reference shown alongside.

ConfirmedOCX has a public schema
The OCX Consortium, founded in May/2021, maintains the format that takes the 3D structural model to the classification society. The public repository has schema 2.8.6, with elements such as Panel, Plate and Stiffener; 3.0 is in pre-release.Source: OCX Consortium site; OCX_Schema repository
ConfirmedRecent versions
NAPA Release 2026.1, announced on Jun 26, 2026; CADMATIC 2026H1, released on May 11, 2026; NX 2606 (Jun/2026); Orca3D Version 3 (Apr/2024), announced as compatible with Rhino 7 and 8; Rhino 9, presented as available on the McNeel page (checked on Oct 28, 2026).Source: NAPA and CADMATIC announcements; Siemens blog; announcement on the McNeel forum; Rhino 9 page (McNeel)
ConfirmedWho uses it, with a source
According to the NAPA announcement of Jun 26, 2026, geometry that accounts for plate thickness, new in 2026.1, is being piloted with Chantiers de l'Atlantique. An announcement says what was tested on that date, not what is in production.Source: NAPA, Release 2026.1 (Jun 26, 2026)
ConfirmedAPIs documented by the vendor
CADMATIC's eShare Public REST API requires its own license, authenticates with Basic and exposes Swagger at /swagger; AVEVA's marine .NET API is in marAPI.dll; the rhino3dm 8.35.0 library has Linux packages on PyPI.Source: CADMATIC and AVEVA documentation; PyPI (Sep 15, 2026)
06

What Octo does, and what stays with you.

Octo prepares everything, but it does not sign. The document of record stays with whoever is accountable for it.

Octo prepares

Surveys, calculates, organizes and produces the documents: spreadsheets, reports, lists and drafts.

Deliverable: material ready to check

Your team checks

The licensed professional checks what Octo delivered before signing. If something doesn't add up, it goes back to Octo with the correction.

Step: checked by the person who signs

Who signs

Octo does not sign. Designs, technical reports, ART/RRT, statements of account and any official document are still signed by the licensed professional at the company or agency: here, the naval engineer in charge and the classification society.

Signature: naval engineer and classification society
07

Sources.

Documentation and announcements from the vendors themselves and from the standard's body, used in the research.

Your model, read-only.

The assessment starts with a copy of the model or a read-only account, without changing anything. You get a proposal of what can be extracted and checked in your design, and you decide with that in hand.

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