Commercial ship design and construction is a long, complicated process. Fleet owners and fisherman alike want a stable, unsinkable vessel. How do you load balance large cargo and what happens if you’re carrying heavy or valuable materials? We offer a wide range of ship construction for our customers and will also give you a short introduction of commercial ship design process.
The Basics of Commercial Ship Construction
Unlike cars and planes, boats usually need a curve. Construction usually starts with the keel—the part of the boat that will eventually go underwater. The middle of the boat “The Midship” is also important; it is used as a reference point when designing any sort of vessel.
Ideally, you want your boat to be both perfectly symmetrical and balanced in terms of weight. This is because all boats have a specific centre of gravity and centre of buoyancy. The centre of gravity is what allows a boat to balance; the centre of buoyancy has to do with the shape of the water that gets pushed out when the boat goes in. Ideally, the centres of gravity and buoyancy are on top of each other when a boat goes into the water. That is why so many boats have fancy keels; that extra point beneath the water matters. DiscoverBoating.com describes the keel as “a wing, flying under your boat.”
Boats as Stable as our Construction
When the centres of buoyancy and gravity aren’t in perfect alignment, the ship can start tipping over. As per this Lake Superior State University lecture, gravity pushes down while buoyancy pushes up. When this process starts, it does not want to stop, making the boat capsize. Balanced weight and perfect symmetry are key to making sure this doesn’t happen. That’s why good design is essential before your boat ever hits the waves.
From there, you can use many different materials, depending on what you are carrying and other aspects of vessel design. According to this article on Yachting-Pages.com, there are pros and cons to using different types of metals, for example. Steel is sturdier, but aluminum is lighter, so which one is “better” depends on what you want your boat to do.
If this sounds taxing, both mentally and physically, it is! That’s why we recommend turning to our professional naval engineers here at Hike Metal Products to make sure the ship you need is up to modern-day performance standards. Leave the structural design and selection of materials to us, and we will produce a commercial ship of sea-worthy standards.
Our Ships
We advertise ourselves as top-notch fire boat manufacturers, but we do so much more. Search and rescue (SAR) boats aside, we also make ferries, hovercrafts, and tour boats like the Niagara Thunder and Wonder for viewing the Beautiful Niagara Falls in Ontario Canada. We also started doing Commercial fishing boats and continue to grow our craftsmanship. For typical examples of our work, please see our gallery and project pages. We have done everything from tugboats to marine vessels.
Deciding what kind of ship you want is the first step to getting it made. Ships that need to sail in Arctic waters will have different design requirements from fishing vessels and aircraft carriers. We have many professionals ready to work for you!
Hike Metal’s History of Quality
Hike Metal has been in the shipbuilding industry since 1958. We started making fishing boats on the Great Lakes in Canada. In the 70s and 80s, we began thinking bigger. Our specialty, the design of ships, extended to different types of vessels. We now have many top-of-the-line purchase options for all your commercial shipping needs.
Our Fabrication Facility
When you buy a ship from us, your order will be processed immediately. Our factory allows us to produce both fishing boats and 10-meter behemoths simultaneously. We also specialize in retrofitting and other custom ship building services.
Our Ship Design Process
Once you have an idea for your ship a million problems will surface: will the ship need to go through ice-covered waters? How many persons on board will we need? Do we need advanced computer technology on the boat? What about the flow of water around the ship? People who build vessels for commercial shipping need to consider all of these functional requirements. Let our “Master Boat Builders” do the hard work for you; we are particularly experienced in the safety of fishing vessels and search and rescue vehicles.
Our designers will make a ship to your exact specifications and value your input throughout the ship design process. From the initial meeting to receiving your approval for the final price, we will work with you to make sure your custom vessel meets your requirements. You will be alerted to any issues as soon as possible!
Trust Hike Metal Products with your Ship Build
Hike Metal has been working on the construction of ships for over a century. If you want a ship that won’t go down, contact HikeMetal.com’s professional ship-builders here.
We are trusted by fleet owners worldwide for our commercial ship design and construction. Our professional marine engineers and vessel designers have high-performance standards and make the level of safety a priority.
