The flagship £28m national museum for boats and maritime history will open in the county of Cornwall in the UK this autumn. As a contributor to a permanent exhibition, CD-adapco has been asked to demonstrate the use of cutting edge technology in the design of boats and in particular to illustrate how CFD has become essential technology in this industry.

The National Maritime Museum in Falmouth is the latest in a series of major attractions to open in the South West of England. The director of the project, Peter Cowling, is hoping that the museum will rival the huge success of the Eden Project and Tate St Ives art gallery in drawing large numbers of visitors to help the commercial and cultural regeneration of the area. The project is ambitious in its vision: far from being just a static collection of boats, or even an impressive new resource of public spaces for the local community, the museum is attempting to be both a rallying point for the modern marine industry and a celebration of past maritime achievements.

CD-adapco’s contribution is to represent the face of modern marine engineering through examples of CFD technology. Dr Michael Dickens, Business Development Manager for CD-adapco, explains how illustrations.”

of this complex computer technology can enhance the museum: “The good thing about CFD technology is that, despite its mathematical complexity, it can produce truly arresting visual images. These can be understood by anyone and show how the technology predicts water movement and pressure providing intuitive guidance to improved boat design.

Clever design is integral to the new museum. Galleries of various sizes have been conceived, including spaces in which a changing selection of boats will be dramatically sus-pended above and around the visitors. At the base of the tower within the museum grounds, an 18cm thick wall of glass, tapered to cope with the pressure of the sea water, offers a unique ‘fish-eye’ view under the sea and is the only natural tidal gallery in Europe. Indoor and outdoor pools will give younger visitors a chance to test their understanding of sailing with remote controlled models, tacking and gybing authentically in an artificial breeze.

CD-adapco’s design images will form part of the interactive construction gallery, where visitors can gain hands-on experience of boat design and building.

Twenty-eight million pounds has been spent on the project, with the UK’s Heritage Lottery Fund and the South West of England Regional Development Agency providing most of the funding. Not only has the project regenerated a derelict dock area into a vibrant new centre of commercial activity, but the collaborators are also hoping to give a boost to the maritime industry nationally. Local jobs have been created restoring and maintaining the museum’s collection and it is hoped that aspects like CD-adapco’s contribution will enthuse new generations into the increasingly high-tech maritime industry.