If vulnerability is not considered, in the construction and layout of a vessel, the consequences can be catastrophic. There is the potential of loss of life, loss of structure, as well as the loss of capability.
For Naval vessels there is the possibility that the mission could be compromised. There is also the political embarrassment in which a vessel could, with minimal effort, be rendered inoperative by a vastly inferior and/or less expensive opponent. It is not difficult to imagine the effect such an incident would have on the future deployment of vessels of the same class.
At QinetiQ our experts have developed a vulnerability assessment tools SURVIVETM and SURVIVETM Lite which are computer based vulnerability assessment tool for determining the probability of a platform or building surviving an attack.
SURVIVETM Lite is available for use by non experts to quickly examine the vulnerability of ships. It is of most use when assessing ship concepts and is a useful precursor to more detailed SURVIVETM analysis.
SURVIVETM requires expert user knowledge to extract most benefit; hence QinetiQ generally operates the code on a consultancy basis. We provide advice at all stages of the design process on all aspects of vulnerability. The capability can also be applied to existing platforms to identify shortfalls which can be remedied at re-fit. In this way the customer can ensure that an attack or accidental event causes the least damage possible, given constraints of technology, size and costs.
SURVIVETM process
Whether SURVIVETM is utilised to determine the vulnerability of a building or maritime platform, from the early concept stage through to in-service, the assessment process follows the same steps:
- Rapidly build accurate representations of a given structure and its constituent systems and environment ;
- Simulate a wide range of scenarios and locations using our powerful attack and weapon graphical editing tools. The user has a choice of new or predefined weapons, attack grids and damage mechanisms;
- Measure the vulnerability in a design, identify weak points and assess possible improvements to mitigate the threat ;
- Give an indication of the ability to recover from specific attacks.
Comprehensive visualization allows results to be quickly interrogated to highlight vulnerable features.
Development
SURVIVETM can be effectively applied, to both maritime platforms and buildings, to help mitigate the potential damage from a terrorist attack or accident.
SURVIVETM is currently being extended to include simulation of the recoverability phase, where attempts are made to control the damage and restore capability. The types of recoverability action considered include people movement and evacuation, fire fighting efforts and in the case of marine incidents the control of flooding and equipment repair to regain the ship’s functionality following damage.
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