Marine Structures Research Recommendations: Recommendations for the Interagency Ship Structure Committee's FY 1995 and Later-Years Research Program (1995)

Background

The annual fall meeting of the Ship Structure Committee (SSC) was held on 16 October 1991. During the meeting, the results from the Subcommittee Strategy Meeting held in July 1991 were presented to the SSC. The Strategy Meeting was convened to review the SSC Charter and redefine the SSC's purpose and scope. The committee has approved the revised Purpose and Scope Statements and concurred with the subcommittee 's plans for implementation contained in “Taking Action Now.” This plan outlines how best to meet these newly approved statements.

Purpose

The purpose of the Ship Structure Committee is to promote safety, economy, marine environmental protection, and education in the North American maritime industry through the advancement of marine structures technology.

Scope

The Ship Structure Committee shall carry out the following activities:

1. Sponsor, manage, and coordinate research that will, in the light of changing technology in marine transportation, improve the design, material, construction, inspection, and maintenance and repair of the hull structure of ships, boats, and other marine structures by an extension of knowledge in these fields.

2. Sponsor, manage, and coordinate the collection and dissemination of information on or related to marine structures technology to government and industry and facilitate the transfer of technology.

3. Serve as a coordinating body for ship structures technology, providing leadership to U.S. and Canadian industries to foster their development.

4. Serve as a coordinating body for international ship structures issues, promoting Canadian and U.S. industries and communications with the global maritime industry.

5. Cooperate with other committees and societies for any purpose for which the Ship Structure Committee is responsible and become a member of such organizations.

Goal for the 1990s

Critical Trends and Factors

The following trends and factors define the present reality and future expectations of the U.S. and Canadian maritime industry. The SSC must be cognizant of these when formulating its policies:

1. The North American merchant marine industry has been contracting for some time and will not be restored without a significant national commitment. Some shipyards are closed or idle, and others have reduced workloads. Major merchant ship construction is at an all-time low. It can be expected that professional education in naval architecture will decline as a result of the downturn in the North American shipbuilding industry. The decline in our shipbuilding can be traced to long delivery times, high engineering and materials costs, and inefficient use of labor in the global shipbuilding market.

2. There could be a continued reduction in the number of our flag vessels in foreign trade. The U.S. government may need to assist in the acquisition of additional sealift vessels to augment a declining operational fleet. In addition, the changes in world politics are leading to a reduction in overall naval forces.

3. On the global scale, more emphasis will be placed on life extensions for existing ships than on construction of new ships. There will be a large market for repair work.

4. Maritime industry liability for environmental pollution, and government laws and regulations, are causing marine environmental protection to become a key consideration in the design and maintenance of structures.

National Goals

The Ship Structure Committee recognizes the following national goals relating to the maritime industry. It will support research and development that focuses on these goals.

1. improve the safety and integrity of marine structures,

2. reduce marine environmental risks, and

3. support the U.S. and Canadian maritime industry in shipbuilding, maintenance, and repair.

Assumptions

1. The safety and integrity of marine structures, which are the SSC 's historical priorities, are not the only pressing needs of the Canadian and U.S. maritime industry at present. However, the SSC will focus on structural issues.

2. Marine environmental protection is one of the highest national priorities of the Canadian and U.S. government and peoples. It must receive high priority from the SSC.

3. The Ship Structure Committee alone cannot restore the North American maritime industry. However, the SSC can and must work to this end. The ship design and construction sector of the industry is the primary vehicle for implementing new and advanced structures technology. Without this sector, the committee cannot be as effective in developing or transferring new technology.

Implementation of the SSC Goals: Strategies for the 1990s

In light of the critical factors and trends, national goals, and the assumptions noted above, the Ship Structure Committee will, through sponsorship of research projects, address the following topics:

1. development of better design tools and information systems, such as computer-aided design systems, design information systems, and artificial intelligence;

2. metrification for commonality with world maritime industry;

3. development of structures-related producibility technology, such as faster welding techniques, robotics, laser alignment, and automated material storage and handling equipment;

4. development of reliability design techniques to optimize material use;

5. development of principles of design for production;

6. research of double-hull vessel technology;

7. prevention research including damage-tolerant structures, structural monitoring, and human factors;

8. structural reliability engineering;

9. improved structural inspection techniques;

10. structural monitoring of vessels in service;

11. improved efficiency for repair technology;

12. improved engineering analysis and evaluation; and

13. sponsoring university research in areas such as design tools development, producibility, production processes, reliability design, and damage-tolerant structures.

Taking Action Now: Implementation by the SSC

What actions should the SSC take to implement the new Strategic Plan? Each of these actions needs further definition and planning prior to implementation, but each will serve to make better use of resources through more innovative processes.

The following should be accomplished within the next three years:

1. Revise SSC procedures for more timely and efficient—in terms of labor and cost—accomplishment of committee work.

2. Work with CMS to ensure that the composition of the working groups reflects the needs of the SSC member agencies by including, for example, representatives from design agents, schools of naval architecture, and ship operators.

3. Improve the SSC's customer orientation. Customers are the end users of structures technology and include students, designers, insurers, owners, operators, regulators and class societies, and shipbuilding and repair yards.

4. Provide more information about the SSC activities and SSC reports to more end users. Develop an extensive mailing list for announcements, brochures, and biographies.

5. Increase the number of joint industry projects to better leverage SSC funds and to develop a closer working relationship with the maritime industry.

6. Study and define the SSC's relationship with the OPA-90 Interagency Oil Pollution Research Committee.

7. Investigate and expand SSC involvement in the international standards development arena.

8. Develop a process for selecting among contracting alternatives.

9. Study, define, and implement methods to improve the structural engineering departments in schools of naval architecture.

10. Investigate the practicality of holding symposiums more often than every three years and consider inviting other organizations to assist as cosponsors. Investigate whether the SSC could participate in other organizations' symposiums as a cosponsor.

11. Authorize the SSC Executive Director to become a member of F25.04, Ship Structural Standards Committee, of the American Society for Testing and Materials.

12. Invite the Ship Production Committee and National Shipbuilding Research Program to send liaisons to the SSC.

13. Reemphasize the key roles that the SSC should play in the marine industry.

The SSSC chairman will appoint subcommittee members to husband the implementation of the items listed above. The SSSC chairman will report the subcommittee's progress to the SSC at the biannual SSC meetings.