Allixon

READING.

BUILDING SHIPS.


The building of a ship follows a well-ordered sequence of events. After the vessel has been ordered, the plans are completed in the drawing-office. Next, thefinal plans must be approved by a classification society such as Lloyds Register of Sipping. This is necessary if the owner wants his ship to be classed. While the ship is being built, constantchecks are made to make sure she is being built to the standards of the society. Classification will show that the ship is seaworthy and able to carry the cargo she has been designed to carry.Nowadays a shipyard is organized so that each stage in the building of a ship is done in a continuous chain of shops. Each shop is linked by conveyor rollers and moving cranes on rails. First ofall, steels plates and bars are taken from the stock-yard to the preparation shop. Here they are cleaned by shot blasting. Then, they are coated with a primer paint to prevent corrosion. Later, theyare cut and shaped automatically by machines. Cutting is done by gas torches and shaping by giant presses. After that, the pieces are welded together in prefabrication sheds to form sections.Welding is now used instead of riveting for joining pieces of metal together.
Riveting uses more steel than welding and was therefore more expensive. It also increases the weight of the shipwithout increasing the strength. The prefabricated sections are then transferred to the building berth. Eventually, they are lifted into position by giant cranes.

When a ship is ready, she islaunched. Some ships are built on a slipway and slide into the water. Others are built in a dry dock. The dock is then flooded with water and the ship is floated out. After being launched, she istowed to the fitting out basin by tugs and completed.
A completed ship goes for sea trials before she is handed over to her new owners. During these the ship and her equipment are thoroughly tested.