Digital Keel for Russia’s New Fleet
Russia is launching a fully domestic digital shipbuilding platform designed to eliminate foreign software dependencies and accelerate the modernization of its maritime industry.
Digital Shipbuilding Without Foreign CAD Systems
ASCON, a leading Russian developer of engineering software, together with major industrial partners, is launching the Digital Shipbuilding Platform—a comprehensive solution aimed at replacing foreign CAD systems and driving the digital transformation of the sector.
The initiative addresses systemic challenges faced by Russia’s shipbuilding industry: dependence on foreign CAD, DBMS, and operating systems; outdated IT infrastructure; and fragmented storage of decades’ worth of design data. Given sanctions and the 50‑year lifecycle of vessels, digital continuity—consistent data transfer from design to decommissioning—is critical. In practice, however, drawings and specifications are often exchanged manually, on paper, or in incompatible formats, breaking the digital chain and slowing modernization.
The platform is built entirely on Russian technologies, centered around the C3D geometric kernel—one of only four in the world—and other ASCON developments certified by Russian security agencies. This foundation ensures the trust and compliance necessary for work on strategically important infrastructure.
The architecture supports end‑to‑end design, from hulls and pipelines to electrical systems and engineering analyses, including strength calculations and CFD hydrodynamics. The platform’s modular approach allows enterprises to expand functionality according to their needs, while maintaining a unified information environment where all ship data is stored in a consistent lifecycle model, simplifying maintenance, repairs, and modernization.
A Comprehensive Domestic Solution for Industry Digitization
During development, ASCON incorporated detailed requirements from United Shipbuilding Corporation enterprises as part of a major national project focused on deploying a heavy‑class, fully domestic shipbuilding CAD system.
In September 2025, at the NEVA maritime exhibition, ASCON presented a working version of the sectoral solution. Using a self‑propelled dredging vessel as an example, engineers demonstrated a complete digital workflow for hull structure design. The Hull module currently offers the most extensive functionality and continues to evolve in alignment with real-world design and documentation processes.
Other modules showcased included Early Design and prototypes of Schematic and Pipes. The Schematic module enables engineers to create system diagrams according to GOST/OST standards with automatic 3D object generation, ensuring data integrity. The Pipes module focuses on the design of shipboard piping systems.
At the same time, PetroBalt Design Bureau completed an advanced training program for its engineers and staff of SPbGMTU’s Digital Transformation Factory, centered on the use of the COMPAS‑3D design system.
A Complete Transition to Russian Software
In 2023, ASCON began implementing its PLM suite at the Zelenodolsk Design Bureau, part of the Ak Bars Shipbuilding Corporation. The deployment includes COMPAS‑3D, the LOTSMAN:PLM product lifecycle management system, and the POLINOM:MDM reference data management system. The goal is to fully replace foreign CAD and PLM/PDM systems, enabling the entire design process—including digital models and construction documentation—to be carried out on a domestic platform.
Today, the PLM complex is fully deployed, and designers are already working in COMPAS‑3D, actively using the hull structure modeling tools—one of the priority modules within the emerging import‑independent lifecycle management platform.
From Universities to Shipyards
ASCON supports engineering education across all levels: more than 500 universities use COMPAS under academic licenses. Thousands of students, educators, and specialists gain hands‑on experience with advanced design tools, forming a skilled talent pool for the digital transformation of Russian industry.
A Digital Core for Technological Sovereignty
Russia continues to implement policies aimed at replacing foreign software and modernizing IT infrastructure across industry. The introduction of the Digital Shipbuilding Platform will accelerate transformation at shipyards and design bureaus, reduce design time, and lower lifecycle maintenance costs.
Equally important is the reduction of reliance on foreign suppliers, increased flexibility of production workflows, and slower obsolescence of critical IT infrastructure.
By 2027–2029, widespread adoption of the platform across Russian shipyards is expected. By 2030, with appropriate localization and compliance, the first international pilot deployments may appear in CIS nations and the Global South.
