Shipyard

Construction of the chemical tank Bow Sagain 2007 in Poland.

In a port of La Luz and Las Palmas, cleaning the hull of a fishing vessel.

The shipyard or shipyard is an industrial facility where ships are built and repaired. They can be yachts, military ships, commercial ships, or other types of ships for the transport of merchandise or passengers.

Shipyards are built near the sea or navigable rivers to allow access for vessels.

Etymology

Shipyard comes from splinter, which is a small piece that breaks away from the wood. Wood was the material from which all boats were made before the use of metal for that work.

The word shipyard comes from the Arabic word ad-dar as-sina'a, which means "the house of industry" or "the manufacturing house". By that term the Arabs referred to both the shipyards and any other manufacturing center, such as a weapons factory (indeed, the word "arsenal" comes from the same root, the same as dock). In its nautical meaning, the term also alluded to centers where, although ships were not built, their parts or accessories were stored or manufactured. shipyard.

History

MetalShips & Docks Shipyard Facilities in Vigo, Spain.

All the nations that maintain a maritime trade of any importance have been concerned with creating shipyards to manufacture merchant ships and warships.

In the Middle Ages, the shipyards of Venice, Genoa and Pisa were especially notable, to which the Shipyards of Seville were soon added in 1252, one of the largest industrial facilities of the Late Middle Ages in Europe, with an extension comparable to the one that the Arsenal of Venice had at that time. The kingdom of Aragon were also particularly important ^{[citation needed]}: Arenys, Blanes, Barcelona, Mataró, Villanueva and Geltrú, Sitges and Tortosa.

Cities with navigable rivers have also been the headquarters of important shipyards. For example, in the United Kingdom, King Henry VIII of England founded shipyards at Woolwich and Deptford in 1512 and 1513, respectively, on the banks of the Thames and, in Spain, the aforementioned shipyards on the Guadalquivir River.

With the discovery of America and the military expeditions to Flanders, the navy in the Spanish Levant declined greatly, but even so ships continued to be built in its shipyards throughout the century XVII, until under the reign of Carlos III they gained new activity, standing out that of Masnou.

The Guayaquil Shipyard, in Ecuador, was founded in 1547 and became the largest in South America.

Description

In addition to the slipways, in which the construction of the hull is carried out, the shipyard includes many other dependencies, such as the technical office, the workshops, the commercial and administrative offices, etc. The office projects the vessel, provides the necessary data for the construction of its parts and the calculations regarding its displacement, tonnage, propulsion power, stability, etc. are made.

In the workshops, the mechanics are in charge of welding, cutting and polishing plates, as well as building machines and mechanical, hydraulic and electrical devices, with their wiring and pipes. For their part, the commercial and administrative offices are in charge of supplying materials, payments, insurance, etc.

For some elements, such as certain propulsion machinery or weapons (in the case of warships), the shipyard uses other third-party companies.

In the so-called "galibos room" The pieces are drawn on a pavement in real size, taking into account the shape of the plates, profiles, coamings, some parts of the beams and frames, etc. Subsequently, they are carried out in a workshop. To move and place the pieces, the shipyards have large self-propelled, tower or bridge cranes.

Shipyards today

Shipyard in Poland (Szczecin).

Since the 1980s, European shipyards have lost strength compared to those of Japan and South Korea. Currently (2015) the shipyards with the highest workload are in China, South Korea and Japan.

In 2012, the ten shipyards in the world with the highest production of ships by tonnage were:

In Europe, Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Norway, the Netherlands and, to a lesser extent, Greece have a naval industry with a certain international presence. Close to the European Union, Türkiye has a competitive shipbuilding industry.

In North America, Talleres Navales del Golfo stands out for being the oldest shipyard in Mexico, established in 1935 in the Port of Veracruz, which in addition to building and repairing vessels, has diversified its services by venturing into the manufacture of structures metal-mechanics. The United States has also been and is a benchmark ship producer.

In Peru, South America, the state company SIMA operates, building vessels for both military and commercial use.

In Chile, there is ASMAR, a state company with facilities in Valparaíso, Talcahuano and Punta Arenas.

In Colombia, Cotecmar develops projects for the construction of ships for the national navy and repairs ships.

In Argentina there are several shipyards such as Astillero Río Santiago and Tandanor.