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A EUROPEAN ASSOCIATION
OF UNIVERSITIES IN
MARINE TECHNOLOGY

TWENTIETH GRADUATE SCHOOL

FISHING VESSEL TECHNOLOGY

ESCUELA TECNICA SUPERIOR

DE
INGENIEROS NAVALES
MADRID - SPAIN

18th - 27th, April, 1994

Vol.1

POLYTECHNICAL UNIVERSITY
OF MADRID

ESCUELA TECNICA SUPERIOR

DE

INGENIEROS NAVALES
20th WEGEMT Graduate School

Fishing Vessel Technology

Module 1. Ship Design

WEGEMT 20th GRADUATE SCHOOL
FISHING VESSEL TECHNOLOGY

PRELIMINARY DESIGN

by

J. F. Nufiez

Prof.of FishingSystem

Potytechnical University of Madrid

E.T.S.LN. - SPAIN

Madrid, April 1994

 FISHING VESSEL TECHNOLOGY- 20th GRADUATE SCHOOL
MODULE 1.- SHIP DESIGN

Preliminary Design
Prof.J. F. Nufiez
Polytechnkal Univerity of Madrid

1.INTRODUCTION

When undertaking the task to design any type of vessel, the

designer enters in contact with the outfitter and, gathering his
wishes, he proceeds to determine its fundamental characteristics
using his own experience, coefficients and formulas. This task,
is complex for any kind of vessel and even more in the case of
fishing vessels as the number of variables is normally higher and
the demands of the outfitter are not clearly defined. It has also
to be added its limitations which have nothing to do with the
development of a vessel but which have to be known and many times
are needed to design a vessel which is far away from the
suitable technique. This task has the purpouse of defining those
parametres that a designer must meet before proceeding to
determine the main characteristics of a vessel.

2. SPECIFIC CHARACTERISTICS OF FISHING VESSELS

The dimensions of any type of vessel is a task which carries

multiple difficulties derived from the necessity to harmonize
different interests of technical, economic, administrative and
even historical type. It leads to an interactive process,
together with the own experience of the designer, and ends at the
definition of the main characteristics of a vessel. It has to be
added to this difficulty, in the case of fihing vessel, some
other characteristics that belong to them:

a) The fishing vessel fulfils a triple function as it has

to be designed for cautching sea fishes, the preservation
of the catch and its transport. It involves to embrace
solutions of commitment in order to develop this triple
activity.
 b) Except for the case of a trawler vessel, the available
space on board of a fishing board is least. It leads us to
make correctly use of the ship space, specially the engine
room, working area and lodging area.

c)Due to the triple activity developed by the vessel,

already mentioned, any mistake produced on the fishing
equipment (preservation and navigation), may lead the
outfitter to economic problems. This aspect, together with
the fact that the fishing activity is more oftenly
performed in undeveloped economic areas, leads us to the
necessity to supply the vessel with equipment of high
fidelity and easy maintenance and reparation. This is the
main reason of the conservatism of the majority of the
fishing outfitters.

d) The marine resources and its price on the market suffer

from sensitive alterations which leads us oftenly to the
necessity of changing the activity of a fishing vessel. It
implies that the design has to be flexible enought to let
the fishing of different species or the using of different
systems.

e) Finally, it is important to point out that, in the

majority of the case, the outfitter enterprise is of the
familiar type or with low experience from a technical point
of view, though his fishing experience may be high. It
leads us to the fact that, when defining the necessities to
build a new vessel, their requirements become ambiguous and
even contradictory. It is very important the designer knows
how to understand correctly these necessities of the
outfitter in order to design the most suitable vessel.

3. TECHNO-ECONOMIC PARAMETERS

First of all, the parametres defined as "exploitation" will

be quoted, though those mentioned later,evidently will also
influence on it.

It has been mentioned the great difficulty of defining a

fishing vessel with respect to other kind of vessels. Efectively,
the function to fulfil and the working system are better defined:
a tug, a merchantship, etc... as well as, it is possible to
determine traffics and working areas, in a short period of time,
by means of the market investigation and the own experience of
the outfitter.

Nevertheless, the horizon of the outfitter of a fhising

vessel is less defined. The working conditions as fhising
grounds, type of specie to be caught, fishing processing, average
catches etc. . may affect, in an important way, the suitability
of a vessel. All this added to the fact that fishery is, except
a few cases, formed by people of great business intuition but
with a null structure which allows them to define and plan the
investments, it makes the requirements planned by the designer,
at the time he decides to build a new vessel, to be oftenly
undefined and contradictory.

Below will be quoted, from the author judgment, those

technical and/or economic parametres that a designer, in
agreement with the outfitter, must meet before starting to design
a vessel. It will also be mentioned to what characteristics of
the vessel affect:

3.1. Types of fishing

It is understood as type of fishing

a) Specie to be caught.

b) Fishing system: trawling, seining, long-liner, etc.

c) A vessel specialized in the two previous conditions

or, versatil if one of these conditions change.

Normally, the knowledge of the specie to be caught

determines the fishing system although sometimes it may
be used differents systems for the same specie.

After the knowledge of these two premises a) and b), the

designer knows the type of vessel he is going to design:
trawler, pole-and-line vessel, seine vessel,long-liner etc;
as well as its general arrangements, the main fishing
equipments etc. But with the knowledge of the specie, he
can also know the depth where he will work (there might be
big variations in some species),the percentage of not
useful products(by cath) that goes together with the fish
to be found, etc...

Finally, if the outfitter decides to build a specialized

vessel (tuna vessel, shrimp boat, seiner), it will simplify
the working of the designer.. On the contrary, if he
chooses to built a versatile vessel, he must define whether
the versatility refers only to the specie to be caught but
not to the fishing system (for instance trawlers in
general), or to the fishing procedures (trawler-purse-
seiner) etc... because it would make the working of the
designer more difficult.

3.2. Fishing Area

Unfortunately, this parametre is oftenly unknown at midle

and long dated, bt it is very important to know which are
the fishing grounds and even more, their distance to the
unloading port. The vessel, after its fishing operations,
does it return to the home port or, otherwise, unload in a
portclose to the fishing ground ?. According to this, it
would be determined the fuel capacity (fuel, freshwater,
oil, etc..), the fishing operation period and even the
speed (and consequently the power installation). Above all
in those vessels like the trawlers in which the speed is
not too high while fishing operation and necessarely in
return trips. Likewise, in the case that the port is closed
to the fishing ground or far from the home port, it will be
suitable to know how often the vessel goes there.

3.3 Catching efficiency

Evidently, it is an unknown variable. However, it is

fundamental to know the average foreseen catches as well as
the maximun because it influences on fish-hold, fish
factory, fishing equipments, etc..and on the general size
of the vessel.
3.4. Fishing Processing

Normally, it is a parameter that may be known better,

though with an actual tendency to a bigger elaboration of
the products on board, there are more variables. One must
take into account the preservation of the catch (by storing
in ice or by refrigeration etc..), the elaboration range (a
complete- fish, filleted, evisceraded, packed, boiled
etc... ). All this, toguether with the other parametres
already quoted, gives the knowledge of the size of a fish
pond, cold-storage capacity (thus, electric), equipment
processing of installing, crew etc...

3.5. Level of automation

This section do not only refer to the automation of the

engine room and of the facilities of the vessel, but, above
all, to the level of automation of the fishing operations
and procedures because it will influence decisively on
mounting equipment dimensions of the engine room, number of
fishing winches etc.. as well as on the number and skills
of the crew.

3.6. Provisions and unloading system

This section is linked to 2.2. The vessel must receive,

before tidal, all the consumptions (fuel, f reshwater,
provisions, ice, etc... ), as well as to replace fishing
tackles, fish boxes etc... Likewise, at the end of the
fishing operation, the catches have to be unload: Does the
unloading port have to take into consideration to have
competent means in order to realize both operations?, or
Does it have to take into consideration its own
loading/unloading means?. Bearing in mind that the quoted
port may be located in undeveloped countries. Even, the
fishing vessel can not stop port and give/recieve the
captures to/from a factory ship in charge of the transport.
Effectively, the knowledge of these factors affect the
design of a vessel.
 There are other parametres that also influence on the
definition of a vessel to be design. as 'for instance the
knowledge wether the vessel works alone or with an active fishing
fleet, from where the vessel gets fuel etc...

4. LIMITING PARAMETERS

These are those which limit the definition of some

characteristics of a vessel. Not only by reasons merely of
exploitation but by reasons which are beside itself as,
forinstance rules and regulation, infrastructure, permissions
etc...

Lets divide those parametres accoding to how these affect

the vessel dimensions, its tonnage (thus the volume) and its
power plant.

a) Size limitations

Normally these limitations affect the length and they may

can from rules and regulations or subsidies.

In the first case, it can be quoted, for example, the

necessity to arrange lifeboats just from a length,
shipingbuilding system of fitting for vessels with more
than 55 m length, fore peak distance, etc... In the second
case, it is worth mentioning the subsidies the CEE gives to
fishing vessels from 9 or 12 m to 33 m length at the
present. These subsidies are different to those given to
vessels of more than 33 m.

Another dimension that may be affected by reasons beside

the exploitation itself is the draught, normally because a
reason of infrastructure of ports.

b) TonnaQe limitations.

Certainly, from an administrative point of view, it is the

most important.
 All the rules and regulations, permissions and subsidies
make the tonnage to be a fundamental characteristic of the
vessel. Even, at the present, it is essential to unpack a
tonnage alike in order to be able to build a new vessel.

Everybody that knows the relationship between the tonnage

and the dimensions of a vessel, with its variety of
extensions, tricks and means of changing them, also knows
the importance given to this characteristic at the present.

At the present, there is a standing rule which demands to

build vessels with powers not superior to those given as
drainage. Thus, the knowledge of the power of a vessel is
known before the knowledge of its dimensions and
characteristics.

Thus, all these limitations which are nothing to do with

the fishing system, a reasonable exploitation, fishing
ground etc..., affect the definition of a fishing vessel in
an important and normally negative way.

5. SUMMARY

Once the designer knows all the previous parameters, he is

able to determine the characteristics of a vessel as habitually:
determination of dead weigth and displacement, choice of main
dimensions, power calculation, design of hull forms, etc...