Inside the hull, tank tops will be fitted and any welding that could be not be carried out while the vessel was upside-down will be completed. Often sole bearers will be aluminium, as will beds for various machinery items. It is preferable that the detail of such items are contained within the design so that their true function may be assured. The designers are often the only people with an entire overall concept of the completed vessel and they need to ensure that this concept is passed on from trade to trade during the construction of the boat.

It is entirely preferable that the designs for aluminium are specific for the material rather than adapted from designs in other materials on an equivalent strength basis. In this way, proper advantage can be taken of the properties of the material, including the large number of extrusions available

4. Conclusion

The nature of the construction of an aluminium alloy vessel makes it difficult to produce large numbers cheaply. There is however no great initial investment in tooling moulds and changes to the vessel can be relatively easily accomplished during construction.

The marine aluminium alloys are durable and tough; they do not corrode or rot in a marine environment; they are resistant to damage and abrasion and their internal structure is not affected by external damage; they are relatively easily formed to meet the 3-dimensional geometry of both sail and power boats; their good weight-to-strength ratio results in a moderately lightweight structures with commensurate savings in power required, be it sails or mechanical.

These qualities combine to make this material ideal for the construction of high quality sail and power boats, where either the size of the vessel, or the fact that it is custom built, means that only small numbers will be required.

REFERENCES

Read to Superyacht Symposium 1991

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© George Whisstock. This article is for information only and may not be comercially reproduced in any form or used in any way without permission.