UG21T5105- General Ship Knowledge

Unit no.2 - TypesOf Ships:

Note: These notes are taken from various sites from net. Only for reference to students of
IMU Navimumbai and not for any other purpose.

Do not copy.

Q: What is ship ?

A: A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other
sufficiently deep waterways, carrying passengers or goods, or in support of
specialized missions, such as defense, research and fishing.

Types of Ships in Merchant Navy:

Types of modern merchant ship are container ships, bulk carrier, cruise liners,
chemical carrier, oil or gas tankers, cable layers, ro-ro ferries, car carriers, oil rig
supply vessels and general-purpose cargo ships.

Stowage requirement:-Basic rules

Familiarity with IMO code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing is
very important also to be familiar with subsequent amendments.

Be familiar with the ship's own Cargo Securing Manual.

Calculate the weight of the cargo and the position of the COG.

Decide the types of lashing material that are to be used to secure item and
determine the maximum securing load of the lashing.

Maximum securing load of lashing on each side of a unit of cargo should equal to
or exceed the weight of the item.

determine the condition of cargo suitable for tranportation for the voyage and
properly secured

Bulk Carrier:

A bulk carrier is a merchant ships specially designed to transport unpackaged

The compartment should be swept clean, and all traces of the previous cargo
removed. The amount of cleaning is dependent on the nature of the previous
cargo

Bilge areas should be cleaned and all ‘bilge suctions’ seen to be working
satisfactorily.

Containers

A Container ship is a non-bulk cargo ship designed to carry dry cargo in the form
of shipping containers.

principles of stowage

During loading, containers should be inspected for damage and, if damaged,

twist locks limit vertical and transverse movement. Diagonally crossed lashing
rods, placed at the ends of a container, can withstand large tensile loads

containers exposed to wind loading need additional or stronger lashings. When

twist locks should always be locked, even when the ship is at anchor, except
during container loading and unloading. Lashing rods should be kept taut and,
where possible, have even tension. Lashing rods should never be loose, nor
should they be overtightened. Turnbuckle locking nuts should be fully tightened

Checks and tests during discharge and loading

regularly examine lashing components that look for wear and tear, as well as
damage or distortion.

observe the loading of containers to determine if stowage is in accordance with

observe the application of lashings to make sure that they are correctly applied
in accordance with the requirements set out in the Cargo Securing Manual

Checks and tests at sea

After sailing for twenty four hours on departure port, examine, check and
tighten turnbuckles. Check that lashings are applied in accordance with the
Cargo Securing Manual and that twistlocks have been locked

examine lashings daily. Check that they have not become loose and tighten
turnbuckles as necessary
re-check lashings after passing through bad weather

check that refrigerated boxes remain connected to the ship’s power supply

Livestock carrier

Ships that are used for the purpose of transferring cattle across the seas are
known as livestock carriers or cattle ships.
the animals that are used in such livestock carriers include sheep, goats, cows
and other forms of cattle.

Gas carriers

A gas carrier, gas tanker, LPG carrier or LPG tanker is a ship designed to
transport LPG, LNG, CNG, or liquefied chemical gases in bulk.
LPG vessels are divided into: Fully pressurised ships, Semi-refrigerated ships
and Fully refrigerated LPG.

Oil Tanker/Crude oil/product carrier:

An Oil Tanker is designed to carry Petroleum products in bulk. These vessels

Seismic vessels:
Seismic vessels are ships that are solely used for the purpose of seismic survey
in the high seas and oceans. A seismic vessel is used as a survey vessel for the
purpose of pinpointing and locating the best possible area for oil drilling in the
middle of the oceans.

Hydrographic vessels:
A vessel equipped with hydrographic survey equipment to determine underwater
topography in order to produce high-precision charts.

Oceanographic vessels
These are Research vessels fulfil an important need of carrying out research at
the sea.

These ships are built in a manner to face the tough environment of

Polar vessels

ships operating in the harsh, remote and vulnerable polar areas.:

Passenger ships:
A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to
carry passengers on the sea.

Ferries:
These are a special type of vessel used to cross a body of water. As a rule, a
regular service is established, i.e. ferries operate between defined ports . These
are also used to transport vehicle with paasengers and fright.

Offshore Ships:

Offshore vessels are ships that specifically serve operational purposes such as
oil exploration and construction work at the high seas
A platform supply vessels (PSV) is a ship specially designed to supply offshore oil
and gas platforms. These ships range from 50 to 100 metres

Offshore Support Vessels, also known as Offshore Supply Vessels, are specialty
ships designed for operating on the ocean, serving multiple purposes. They can
serve as platform support, anchor handling, construction, maintenance, and
more.
OSVs provide support offshore - anything from bringing equipment to rigs to
repairing offshore wind turbines. They are integral to getting supplies and
materials where they need to go, as well as building and repairing offshore
equipment

RORO ships

RoRo or Roll on Roll off ship is a special type of vessel which is used for the
transportation of automobile vehicles. Also known as car carriers, these vessels
have special inclines (ramps) constructed so as to make the loading and the
unlading of vehicles and cargo easier and more convenient.

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