As "Made in China 2025" puts forward the strategic goal of the manufacturing power with the comprehensive strength to enter the forefront of the manufacturing power in the world, the intelligent manufacturing engineering based on the new generation of information technology industry is rapidly promoted in the various industries. However, the smart factory which is the basis of a manufacturing power cannot be limited to the intelligent manufacturing, but should also include the intelligent design, the full range of intelligent logistics and the intelligent control. Among them, intelligent design is the key to shortening the product development cycle. The optimized data and the high accuracy data generated by the intelligent design are critical for the reduction of the manufacturing cycle and cost. It briefly analyzes the application of the intelligent design in the shipbuilding industry, prospects the development of the intelligent design based on the current situation, as well as analyzes the data system that is necessary for the development of the intelligent design.