I will try to classify the softwares
Initial Design
- Aveva Marine Initial design (Previously Tribon)
- Lines ( Not used now a days)
- Stability Module
- Napa (For surface modelling and related calculations)
- Maxsurf modeler
- Rhino (Powerful surface modeller with tons of features)
- Autohydro (For stability)
- Maxsurf stability
- Freeship
- GHS
Production/ Detailed Design
- Aveva Marine ( Separate modules for structural modelling, piping, electrical, nesting, planning, outfitting and simulation…..)
- FORAN
- NAPA STEEL
- NUPAS CADMATIC
- Ship constructor (Works on top autocad)
- Maxsurf structure ( Generally used for small vessels)
Resistance Calculation (Hydrodynamics)
- Maxsurf resistance (Based on empirical methods)
- Shipflow (full scale cfd)
- Ansys fluent (full scale cfd)
- StarCCM (full scale cfd)
- OpenFOAM
- ν-Shallo
- FreSCo+
- Altair acusolve
SeaKeeping & Manoevouring
- StarCCM
- OpenFOAM
- Ansys Aqwa
- WAMIT
- Maxsurf seakeeping (Limited functionalities)
- OrcaFlex
- Octopus
Structural Analysis
- Staad Pro
- Poseidon
- Ansys
- Abaqus
- Code Aster
Above are some softwares which I could recall at the moment. Apart from the proprietory software, classification societies have their own softwares for different calculations. Some people use matlab, python etc for their custom requirements.
But most widely used software by the Naval architects is Excel. Can’t live without it.