Vessel Types Explained

Modern seagoing commercial vessels come in all shapes and sizes and are designed to carry a
wide variety of cargoes. This article will attempt to provide a brief overview of the main types that are
plying the oceans today and give some history as to how each design has evolved.

To begin, the main cargo types should be defined. For the purposes of this article, cargoes shall be
divided into dry, liquid and specialised, with each of these divided further into sub categories. Dry
cargoes include bulk, general and breakbulk, containers, reefer and Ro-Ro. Liquid cargoes are
predominantly oil based but may also include chemicals and liquefied gasses. Specialised cargoes
include passengers, livestock and heavy-lift/project.

Dry Cargo Ships:

Historically, dry cargo vessels were the mainstay of the world's merchant fleet. Known as general
cargo vessels, they would be "geared", that is equipped with their own cargo loading equipment,
usually in the form of derricks. The cargo would be stowed in different holds and the speed and
effectiveness of the loading/unloading process would depend on the skill of the ship's crew and the
port workers or "Stevedores". Such ships would sometimes operate a regular service between two or
more ports as "liners", but could also operate in the "tramp trade" where vessels would go wherever
they were required.