About this Event
Marine propeller design traditionally begins late in the vessel design process, after the hull, engine, gearbox and propeller clearance have largely been determined. This leaves limited room for optimisation and can result in suboptimal matching between the hull, propeller, engine and gearbox. With computational optimisation and AI, designers can now explore much larger design spaces, allowing propeller designers to get involved earlier and optimise propulsion performance at the system level.
This presentation shares Mencast Marine's experience combining established methods such as systematic series, lifting-line and lifting-surface methods, CFD and optimisation with AI and surrogate modelling. Parametric solvers can evaluate thousands of designs rapidly for thrust, power, and efficiency, but cavitation, vibration, and unsteady propeller-hull interaction require more intensive computations, with transient, higher-fidelity methods taking days rather than minutes. Mencast's current surrogate models draw on approximately 30,000 parametric simulations, while a growing CFD data factory is being developed for future physics-aware AI and higher-fidelity surrogate models.
The presentation then follows the propeller into manufacturing, sharing Mencast's journey from conventional foundry and casting towards robotic metal additive manufacturing, digital inspection and Edge AI process monitoring. Together, these developments form Mencast's seven-year journey "From Carbon to Silicon", connecting intelligent design with intelligent manufacturing.
About the Speaker
Dr Chia Boon Tat is Chief Technology Officer of Mencast Marine Pte Ltd, where he leads the company's research, engineering innovation and technology development. His work focuses on AI-assisted engineering, computational modelling and advanced manufacturing. Together with Mencast's CEO, he initiated and has led the company's seven-year "From Carbon to Silicon" transformation, building new capabilities in digital engineering and intelligent manufacturing on the foundations of a traditional marine propeller business.
Dr Chia has more than 35 years of experience in technology development and commercialisation, with appointments at Mencast, Keppel and DSO. He has built his career around translating technology from research into practical industrial and commercial applications. Dr Chia received his doctorate from Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble, France.
Technical Talk @ Singapore Maritime Academy
Organised by:
Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers Singapore (SNAMES)
Singapore Maritime Academy (SMA)
In partnership with:
The Joint Branch of the RINA and IMarEST (Singapore)
Singapore Nautical Institute (SNI)
Association of Singapore Marine & Offshore Energy Industries (ASMI)
Singapore Shipping Association (SSA)
Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Employees’ Union (SMEEU)
Agenda
🕑: 06:15 PM - 07:00 PM
Registration, refreshment and networking
🕑: 07:00 PM - 07:10 PM
Introduction of SNAMES, event contents, and about the speaker
🕑: 07:10 PM - 07:55 PM
Presentation and talk
🕑: 07:55 PM - 08:15 PM
Q&A
🕑: 08:15 PM - 08:20 PM
Delivery of a token of appreciation (plaque), group photos, and feedback
🕑: 08:20 PM - 09:00 PM
End of the Program and Networking
Event venue & nearby stays
Singapore Polytechnic, 500 Dover Road, Clementi, Singapore
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