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WELCOME

Welcome to Marchwood Lake Manned Model Shiphandling Facility. This

opention is run by the Simulation Section of the Wa¡sash Maritimc Centre-
pá.t ofth" Southampton Institute. We hope you have a pleasant sta]' here with
us and flnd lhe course both intbrmative and enjoyabie

Throughout the week the emphasis of the course will be on the practrcal
aspecls oi' shiphandling. Wc cove¡ sltflicient theory to give you a clear
undentanding of how and rlhy ships bchave in certain wa,vs. without going
into the theory of hydrodynamics.

You will spend about one quarter ofyou¡ tilne in classroom insfuction with lhe
¡ernaincle¡ of the pcriod canJi¡g out pmctical exercises on the lake fwo
otlcers a¡c aliocated to each model ship. Onc instmctor supen'ises each sl.tip'
On completion of each exercjse you rvill have the oppofiunity to discuss the
success (or otherwisc!) of the manoeuvres u¡dertaken To get the maxilnuln
benefit from the cou¡se. piease nake full use of this debrieltng period Your
instluctors will be happy to discuss an,v practical shiphandJing problems -vou
may have anti give you the opportunity to try them oul during the second half
of the course. HoweYer, the contents of these Notes, the lectures and any
advice given is for guidance only, as every manoeuvre must be treated on
its own merits, taking full ¿ccount of all the prevailing circumstances and
conditions. Therefore the Warsash Maritinre Centre accepts no liability
for any claims or consequential loss as a result.

The fleet consists ofsix modei ships. ranging f¡om 40.000dwt to 300.000d\\4.'
plus ¿ twin screw super fcrry mr:dcl of30,000t. We $'il1 strivc to make the bcst
use of these models to meet your lraining requirements. Please do no¡ hesitate
to make any suggestions on how the course can be improved to meet your
needs more closel)-.

On completion of the cotr¡se succcssful participanis will be arvarded the

"ManneJ Model Shiphandling Coursc" certiflcate of attendance. If there is
anything that rve can do to nake your visit with mrlre enjoyable. please ask the
Course futor.

\e\ro$ Road. \\i¡rsarh. So!rh¿mp¡.n. SO3t lZL

'I¡t +:1.1i0)1.1S9 i76l6l !d: rl.l l0) l']il!r 5i:1988 [-nujl: w¡r@tolc¡r'¡. ul
SOUTHAMPTON
]NSTITUTE $$'w.solent.ac,uk /wlnc
NOTES ON SHIPHANDLING

These notes are prov¡ded as reference materialfor pilots and officers attending the
Marchwood Manned Model Sh¡phandling course

The notes are for your gu¡danc€ only. Every care had been taken to ensure the
validity of the ¡nformation provided but, as in all pract¡cal shiphandling situations,
care must be exercised and a thorough assessment made of the situation prior to
undertak¡ng any manoeuvre.

Every effort has been made to prov¡de a balance between essential theoret¡cal
content and practical applicat¡on: the notes are intended to supplement the manned
model exercises which put into practice much of their content.

The notes are provided to give suff¡cient work¡ng knowledge of the subject to
enhance the instruct¡ons given on the lake.

The notes will also provide much food for thought for the future, should officers wish
to invest¡gate the theoretical aspects of shiphandling more closely.

@ 2006 Southampton Institute, (Warsash Mariüme centre).

Notes on shiphandl¡ng lnlrcduction

l
Gontents
Chapter Pages

lntrod uctio n

1. THE PIVOT POINT '1.1

- 1.6

2. SLOW SPEED CONTROL 2.1 -2.15

3. TURNING 3.1 - 3.12

4. THE EFFECT OF WIND 4.1 - 4.'18

5. ANCHORWORK 5.1 - 5.21

6. INTERACTION 6.1 - 6.15

7. THE USE OF TUGS 7 .1 - 7.44

8. THE USE OF BOW THRUSTERS 8.1 - 6.23

9. SPECIAL PROPELLERS AND RUDDERS 9.1 - 9.16

IO. TWIN SCREW WORK 10.1 - 10.15

11- SHIP TO SHIP OPERATIONS 1't .1 - 11.10

12 SBM OPEMTIONS 12.1 - 1?.6

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Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng Contents

 CHAPTER ONE

THE PIVOT POINT

Notes on sh¡phañdling 1'1 Pivot Point

Revised Jd 2003
The Pivot Point

Unless stated otherwise each example assumes a ship on even keel in calm
cond¡tions and still water. In this s¡fuation no forces are involved and the sh¡P has
¡ts
centre of grav¡ty approximately amidsh¡ps.

Stopped Even Keel

Figure l-l Pivot Point- stopped

ilaking Headway

Two forces now come into play, firsüy the foMard momentum of the sh¡p and
secondly, long¡tudinal resistanceio forwatd momentum' created by the waler ahead
of ttre slip. T:hese two forces must uliimately strike a balan^ce and the p¡vot point
rou." iá'GtO As a rough gu¡de it can be aasumed tha! 25o/o- 9lthe thlps forward
momentum. at constant épeed, is spent in overcom¡ng longitudinal resistanc€ and
the p¡vot oo¡nt wi¡l be approx¡mately % L from foMard

Making Headway

I
t{
I
%t4
Figure l-2 Pivot point - making headway

Notes on sh¡phandling 1-2

Revised Ja¡ 2003
Making Stemway

The situation is now totally reversed, the momentum of stemway must balance
long¡tudinal resistance, this üme created by the water astern of the ship. The p¡vot
point moves afi and establishes itself approx¡mately 7aL ftom the stem.

Although not intended, some publications may give the ¡mPression that the p¡vot
point moves right aft with stemway- Th¡s is clearly not correct and can sometimes be
misleading. lt should also be saessed that other bctors such as acceleraüon, shape
of hull and speed may all afbct the pos¡üon of the pivot po¡nt. The arb¡trary figures
quoted here however, are perfectly adequate for a simple and practjcal working
knowledge of the subject.

Making Stemway

l+. zL +]
Figure 1-3 P¡vot po¡nt - making stemway

Notes on shiphandl¡ng Pivot Poiñt

Tuming Levers and Moments

More important perhaps, than lhe posiüon of the pivot point. ¡s the effect its sh¡fiing
tum¡ng forces that can ¡nfluence a sh¡p' These are rudder
nature h;s upon the many'bow
force, tansvbrse thrust, thrust, tug force' interactive fo¡ces and the forces of
wind and tide.

Vessel Stopped

lf we look at $e ship used in our example, we can see that it has a length overall of
160 metres. lt is stopped in the water and two tugs are secure fore and aft, on long
lines, through centre leads.

lf the tugs apply the same botlard pull of say 15 tonnes each, it is to a position 80m
fore and aft ofthe p¡vot po¡nt.

Thus two equal tuming levers and moments of 80m x 15t (1200tm) are created
resulting ¡n even lateral motion and no rate of tum.

15 Tonne 15 Tonne
Tug Tug

Figure 14 Tuming levers - vesselstopped

Notes oñ sh¡phandl¡ng 14 Pivot Point

Revised Jan 2003
llaking Headway
Vvith the sh¡p making steady headway, however, the p¡vot
point has shifted to a
poor tumlng
Dosition 4Om from the bow. The forward tug is now working on a very
good
iever of 40m x 15t (600tm), wh¡lst the after tug is working on an extremely
tuming lever of 120m x l5t (1800tm).

This resultrs in a swing of the bow to starboard'

aP 1,

Figure 1-5 Tum¡ng Levers: Making Headway'

Making SternwaY

The effciency of the tugs will change totally when.lhe :!¡p Py contrest makes
stemwav. Now the pivot point has moved aft to a position 40m from the stern The
i"*"iJi"s is working on an excellent tuming lever of 120m x l5i(1E0-0tm) Yrh¡lst the
aftertuo hás lost its efficiency to a reduced turning lever of 40m x 15t(600tm)'
This no; results in a swing of the bow to porl

F .P

F¡gure 1'6 Tuming Levers : Mak¡ng Stemway

This s¡mDle method can also be used to obtain a basic knowledge of rudder'
pos¡tion¡ng.
oráóurrár'"no thruster effic¡ency, effect of wind, ¡.im, intefaclion and tug
i"-!álÁ i"..¡on that discusses those particular subject areas and in pracbcal
exercises in the manned models, ¡t is the basis of all analys¡s!

Pivot Po¡nt
Notes on sh¡Phandling
 CHAPTER TWO

SLOW SPEED CONTROL

Notes on shiphandltng 2-1 Slow Speed Control

sLowsPEED CONTROL -l
General

The estimation of speed and knowing when to reduce speed when.approaching

a
Uertfr e not always easy and confidénce can only come with experience'
On very
Lroe sfrips, such'as VLÓCs, some gu¡dance may be available fom reliable doppler
ióoi, Uui on many ships a doppler log is not ava¡lable' In any case total jump¡ngrel¡ance
uoin ¡nstrumentaiion ¡s not wise and is no subsütute for experience. A p¡lot
period' has to develop
tr'om one sh¡p to anoüler, someümes several during one duty
á "feet" for ttre type of ship he boards and con "by the seat
of h¡s Pants "

Speed

Manv casualües are proven to occur as a d¡rect result of excessive

speed' lts effect
ü]i l"in.io¡ou" and a Master may find that he cannot keep up with events which
ái" fr'+p"n¡"S too quickly. Efiecüvé control of the ship ¡s slowly but inexorably lost'
Áoa¡ü'tn¡s áre pressures, on Masters and Pilots al¡ke, for exPed¡ent
"otterci"l
oiia"o"a and tum-round times. Whilst there are arguments either way' they are
lfearfinot compatiule and experience has shown that a fast pilot ¡s not necessarily a
good-p¡lot - just lucky!

It is thefefore desirable to balance a safe and efiecüve speed

of approach, aga¡nst a
run-in' at
rlálisüc time scale. It would be unw¡se for example, to conduct a three mile
a soeed of one knot- Three hours would stetch anyone's patience!

fgures, the requirement is dictated to a large

It is, of course, imposs¡ble to give exact
horse-power'
Jegree uy variablé factors such as type of ship, tonnage-^drafi,. shaft
40,000.dwt are inclined to run
ü,ü *á't¡¿u. Generally speaking' sñips of less tban
i¡"¡i *áv i"f"t"uly óu¡á.ry wnln engine sp-eed ¡s reduced' whereas larger ships
oi.v tnár"rway for much lárger distañces. Speed must be brought firmly under
control at greater distances from the berth

It is usually obvious when the speed of a ship -¡s too slow and can be eas¡ly
ovelcomewithasma|l¡ncreaseinfevo|uüons;¡t¡snota|waysobviouswhenthe
.pá"J ¡" t"" h¡gh. The speed of a large ship, during an approach toinvariably a berth'
oarticularlv without tugs, can increase in an insidious manner and
¡t is
átmiuitio i"ouce tt at ;peed in a short distance and keep control of the ship'

Slow Speed Cont¡ol

Notes on Shiphand¡ing
Los-s of Control

lf we look at Figure 2-1 we may itlustrate some important po¡nts. In this example we
have a med¡um s¡ze ship of60,000 dwt, which we will assume is d¡esel powered with
a single, right handed, fixed p¡tch propeller and s¡ngle convenüonal rudder.

At one mile from the berth and running at an approach speed of 6 knots, ¡t is well in
excess of a dead slow speed of 3 knols. As ihe ship approaches lhe 2 m¡le mark,
speed is süll over 3 knots, despite a rap¡d reduction in rpm. lt ¡s now necessary to
stop the eng¡ne and thence sustain a prolonged period of increas¡ng stem power ¡n
order to stop the sh¡p in time.

During this substantial time intervalthe sh¡p is at$e whim of tansverse thrust, wind,
tjde, bank effect or shallow water effect. lt is effectively'but of control" in so much
that we can only stand back and hope that it will do what we want. Th¡s is literally h¡t
or miss stufi and the more we can reduce th¡s prolonged period of increas¡ng stem
oov¿er and thus retain control, so much the better!

Notes on Shiphandling Slow Speed Control

Revised Jan 2003
 FIJLL ASTERN I

Control lost for a

2 very long pe¡iod
Speed over 0.3 Half Astern
Knot

Siow Ast€rÁ

Speecl stjll over 3 knots

Stop E¡€lr¡e

Dead Slot A¡ead

4 hots

1Mile from berth and

speed over 3 knots !!
10 cables

Figute 2-1 Loss of SIow Speed control

Example Only: Panamax 60,000 dwt loaded

S¡ow Speed Control

Notes on Shiphandling
Slow Speed Control

ln the F¡gure 2-2 we see the same sh¡P, aga¡n one mile from a berth but this iime at
its dead slow speed of 3 knots or less. Before it apProaches the 2 míle mark it may
also be necessary to stop the engine to further reduce excess¡ve headway and allow
plenty of tjme to adjust the sh¡p's approach and positjon¡ng for the berth

Now the biggest worry is the loss of rudder effectiveness at very slow speeds,
particularly without any tug ass¡stance and the fear that we cannot keep control of
the ship's head. For a variety of reasons such as poor steering, wind, shallow water
or direcüonal instabil¡ty, the bow may well begin to develop an unwanted sheer,
altemalively ¡t may be desirable to ad.¡ust the attitude of approach. Confol is best
achieved by applying full rudder and utilis¡ng a short but substrnüal burst of engine
Dower. Th¡s is the "Kick Ahead" technique.

There are however. several pitfalls to avoid, wtr¡ch can all lead to an excessive
increase ¡n speed, thus ru¡ning allthe previous efiorts to conÍol ¡t.

Kick Ahead. Rudder Angle.

lf a kick ahead is to be utilised, it is essenüal ihat the rudder ¡s seen to be'Hard

Oved before the power is appl¡ed. Whilst this ensures a maximum rudder tum¡ng
force. it also "puts the brake on" some of the residual speed, directly resultjng fTom
¡ncreased power. W¡th the helm at anwhing less, such as 15o or 20o, less rudder
force is applied at the cost of ¡ncreasing forward speed. lt ¡s also essenüal that the
power ¡s laken off before the rudder is returned to amidsh¡ps or angles of less than
35o. Failure to do this will result in a briel but ¡mportant ¡nterval, during which üme
most or all of the power appl¡ed is again being used to ¡ncrease speed.

Kick Ahead - Durat¡on

The duraton of a kick ahead should be as short as possible. Prolonged use of the
power, after the ¡nitial steering effect has ceased, will only result in a violent sheer
and an unwanted build uD of speed. This will result in the need for yet another kick
ahead to rect¡fy the situation- Due to the scaling factor this ¡s particularly ¡mportant
with scale models, as the effect ¡s several seconds faster than a real ship As soon
as the revoluüons reach a maximum, the power must be taken off.

Kick Ahead - Power.

It ¡s diffcult to quaniify the amount of power to apply for a kick ahead' as ¡t very
much depends on the size of ship and the needs of the ship handler at the time. lt is
important, however, to apprec¡ate the ratio of Shaft Horse Powe(shp) to
Tonnage(dwt) that exists irom ship to sh¡p.

Notes on Shiphandling Slow Speed Control

 Stern poFcr as ¡cquüed

Klck Ahead
Period of rro
control is small
Speed O.3 knot
or less /i
r3

Klck Ahead

Dcad Slos Ahead o¡ StoP

Shoñ lücks Abead

.+_.

Dead Slow Ahead (Tr.rfbi.eej

Imile from berttr StoP engr¡e (Diesel)

Speed 3 Imots or less 10 cabics

F¡gure 2-2 Slow Speed Control

Example Only: Panamax 60,000 dwt loaded

Slow Speed Control

Notes on Shiphandling
lf we look at a table of new tonnages Jrom a Japanese shipyard, (F¡gure 2-3) there
are enormous d¡fferences with ¡ncreas¡ng ship s¡ze. The cargo sh¡p of 20,000 dwt'
has a substantial 17,000 shp; the tanker of 60,000 dwt, by contrast, has only 15,000
sho, The VLCC of 250,000 d!vt, wh¡ch is four times larger than the tanker' has only
haice ihe engine power at 31,000 shp.

ln practical terms ¡t ¡s notjceable that a k¡ck of slow ahead may be very effective on a
smaller ship, but extremely ¡nadequate for a VLCC, when half or even full power may
be needed to achieve any result. Th¡s, of course' does not encompass that pecul¡af
breed of sh¡p that for some reason is built with speeds of 6 or 8 knots at dead slow
ahead!

Ship Type DWT Length Beam Draft Engine SHP

Tonnes

Tankers 3E0,000 355 64 23 Turbine 45,000

250,000 324 52 21 Turbine 31,000

Tankers 120,000 ¿12 38 17 Diesel 23,000

100,000 zJi 38 15 D¡esel 21,000
80,000 237 36 12 Diesel 20,000
60,000 32 12 Diesel 15,000

Bulk cargo 190,000 285 50 18 Diesel 24,000

120,000 248 38 18 Diesel 23,000
36 12 Diesel '17,000
80.000 237
60,000 218 32 12 Diesel 15,000
30,000 163 24 11 13,000
20,000 146 22 9 Diesel 9,000

Cargo 20,000 157 26 10 Diesel 17,000

12,000 146 22 10 Diesel 1 1,000

Car Carr¡er 12,500 180 32 Diesel 10,400

Conta¡ner (23 Knots)

TEU I94O 29,000 196 32 11 26,000
TEU 839 23,000 213 30 I Diesel 30,000

Figure 2-3 Shaft Horse Power

Nctes on ShiPhandljng 2-7 Slow SpeeC Conkol

Type of Propulsion un¡t

The type of propulsion unit is also an important factor to cons¡der when uiilising the
kick ahead. D¡esel powered ships are generally very good' with the power com¡ng in
quickly and effectjvely. The number of engine air starts, however' varies
cons¡derab¡y from ship to ship. Some may be good and have an unlim¡ted start-up
capacity, otñers may have only two a¡r bottles which at very best m¡ght g¡ve 10 to l2
starts each. Far worse cases are frequently exper¡enced, with the infamous words
"only one shrt left p¡lof' ru¡ning what was otherw¡se a good day!

Working with a Turbine ship is very different, in so much as the turb¡ne is slow to
come on line and build up power, This is not particularly useful for k¡cks ahead.
When s¡owing down, but still wish¡ng to keep confol of heading, it ¡s better' if
conditions al¡ow, to leave the turbine on dead slow foÍ as long as poss¡ble raiher
than stop the engine. Some turbines can be run at min¡mum RPM ahead which is
even more effective. The turbine is thus on line and instantly ava¡lable for use

Summary

Without the assis¡ance of tugs to conirol both heading and speed, the correct use of
the kick ahead is the s¡ngle most effective means of keeping control of heading and
speed particularly with directionally unstable sh'ps. Clearly the ship must be stopped
sometime and indeed several kicks ahead, no matter how carefully appljed' wiii
fesult in a slow build up of speed. This can be carefully balanced with short periods
of modest stern power thereby just eas¡ng the speed báck' or even siopping the ship
entirely if so desired. The Master or Pilot is thus able to enjoy far longer periods of
total control wh¡ch would not be possible wiih the ship running at higher speeds

Notes on Shiphandling 2-8 Slow Speed Control

TRANSVERSE THRUST

Ahead Movement of the Propeller

The effect of tansverse thrust whilst making an ahead movement ¡s arguably less
worrying than that of an astem movement, perhaps because the result is less
noticeable. For pracücal purposes at present ¡t will be sufficient to summarise the
main factors wh¡ch are ev¡dent with an ahead movement of a r¡ght handed propeller.

(a) The helical discharge from the prope¡ler creates a larger pressure on
ihe port s¡de ofthe rudder.

(b) A slight upward fiow from the hull into the propeller area puts slightly
more pressure onto the down sweep¡ng propeller blades.

(c) It was ev¡dent during the tests that the speed or flow of water inlo the
pÍopeller area ¡s uneven in velocity.

The net result is a tendency for a righi handed propeller to g¡ve a small swing to port
when runn¡ng ahead. Wh¡lst th¡s may be not¡ceable in calm and near perfect
cond¡t¡ons it is eas¡ly influenced by other l¡kely factors such as wind, current, shal¡ow
water, tugs, rudder errors and so on.

Astem Movement of the ProDeller

The importance of Aansverse thrust when using an astem movement is of much

greater significance to the ship handler. The helical discharge, or flow, from a right
handed propeller work¡ng astern splits and passes forward towards either side of the
hull. In do¡ng so it behaves qu¡le differently. On the port quarter it ¡s incl¡ned down
and away the hull wh¡lst on the starboard quarter ¡l is directed up and on to the
'rom of water striking the starboard quarter can be a subsbnüa¡ force in
hull. Th¡s flow
tonnes that ¡s capable of swinging the stern to port giving the class¡c'K¡ck Round' or
'Cut' of the bow to starboard.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 2-9 Slow Speed Control

Fo¡ce in Tonnes -,
Ma¡nly a funclion of water flow, the transverse thrust can
be ¡ncreased or decreased
Ur propeller rpm. Th¡s in tum varies the magn¡tude-of th-e force in tonnes
"ii"i.q
áÉpi¡"i io"tt,u i"",rer ind it can be v¡ewed ctinicaüy as one of the fofces
available to
forces' It
ile itr¡p ¡anarér ¡n much the same manner as rudder, tug or bowthruster
ü, h;J"";r, á weak force and can be roughly calculated if the shp of a particular
ship is known.

For example let us take a ship of 80,000 dwt with a tull 4-e9! of 20'000
shp lf tull
astem is ón[ 50% of this then it only has a maximum of 10'000 shp astern'

For practical purposes it can be taken as a rough gu¡de that transverse

thrust is only
s to' l0% of i¡e appl¡ed stem power therefore in this case at best a force of 1'000
shp or 1O tonnes. (100 shP = 1 tonne)

Wh¡lst shaft horsepower is an important factor ¡n determ¡ning the magnitude. of

transverse thrust and how much a ship will cut when go¡ng astem a further
cons¡deration must be the posiüon of the pivot po¡nt'

Slow Speed Coñtrol

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng
Pivot Point and Transverse Thrust
Vessel Mak¡ng Headway

Looking at another ship, this time of 26,000 dwt with a maximum of 6,000 shp astem,
it can be seen that shp relates to approximately 6 tonnes of force on the stiarboard
quarter. When the sh¡p is mak¡ng slow enough headway for the propeller wash to
reach the hull, ¡t is acting upon a pivot point that ¡s forward and thus a turning lever of
110 metres. This creates a substanüal tum¡nq moment of 660 tonne.metres.

Example 26,000 óM
Ma¡n Engine
FullAsem
10,000 SHP
6,000 SHP (60 Tonne)
+
Tr-anwerse Thrusl 10olo = 6 Tonnes

Transverse thrust
6 Tonne x 1 '10m = 660 Tm

F¡gure 24 Transverse thrust - vessel making headway

The foMard speed of the ship must be considered because at higher speeds the full
force of propeller wash will not be sÍiking the quarter. As the ship progressively
comes down to lower speeds and with the pivot po¡nt siill forward, the magn¡tude of
transverse thrust will slowly increase reach¡ng its peak just prior to the ship being
completely stopped. lt is an unfortunate fact of life that at the slower speeds
approaching a berth, ¡f stern power is applied, transverse thrust is l¡kely to be at its
maímuml

Notes oñ Shiphandling Slow Speed Control

Vessel Making Stemway
pos¡tion
W¡th the same sh¡p mak¡ng siemway the pivot point will now move to a new
somewhere aft of amidshi¡s. With the propeller work¡ng astern the flow of water on
to the starboard quarter is still ma¡ntaining iis magn¡tude as a force of 6 tonnes but ¡s
now applied to a reduced tum¡ng lever of 40 metres. lnlike the situation with
treadwiy we now have a redl¡ced tum¡ng moment of 240 tonne-meaes with
sternway. In the irst instance this may not seem str¡kingly ,¡mportant lt must be
remembLred, however, that transverse thrust may be a poor force in comparison to
other forces such as w¡nd and tide. W¡th the example of stemway, a wind acbng
foMard of the pivot force may be strong enough to overcome that of transverse
thrust. This will be invest¡gated more thoroughly ¡n a later secüon concerning effect
ofwind.

Transverse thrust
6 Tonne x 40m = 240 Tm
t'

Figure 2-5 Transverse thrust - vessel making stemway

Notes on Shiphandling 2-12 Slo\ / Speed Control

Wedge Effect
It ¡s someiimes apparenithat a ship when us¡ng stern power in the close proximity oi
.oñJl"tt"., banij or shatlow water will "cuf'the wrong way There.are two possible
c¿usés for this occurrence and only a p¡lots local knolvledge ¡s likely to
p¡npoint
them.

The first is a phenomenon known as 'Wedge Efiect". This occurs when the ship with
a fixed pitch right handed pfopeller has a solid
jetty or other verlical obstfuction close
to its sürboari side. lf excess¡ve stem power is used, the wash created ¡s forced
iá*"ro u"t*""n the ship and the obstruction. lf we aga¡n look at the figure 2-5, it
canbeseenthatiitheflowofwaterisfesfictedthenaforce¡sexertedonthesh¡p
torwar¿ ot ttre p¡vot po¡nt. This is particulariy apparent when the ship is stopped or
makingstemway'Theforcemaybeofsufic¡entstfengthtokillnormaltransverse
t¡rustáno generate á swing of the bow to port' lt w¡ll be worse if the ship
"omeiit"s -or
has a bow-in aspect is land locked forward of the berth, thus increasing the
be turned to
entrapment of waier iow- Wh¡lst a d¡sadvantage ¡n some respects it can
¡Ju"it.g" ¡n some parts of the world. Using the 'Vedge effect',. a sh¡p can be lifted
Uo¿¡ty oÉ sol¡d jetty when backing out avoiding dragging the bow along the
dock
side. "
Thesecondpossib|ecauseofa.'cut''thewlongwaymaybeattributedtotheVicinity
of shallow *at"t. Th" fow of water from the fixed piich right handed propeller
*o*i"ó t.t"tt as we have seen, is up and onto the staóoard quarter' but down and
possib¡e
clearance it is
away ¡iom ttle port quarter. lf the ship has a small under ke-el
propeller, the
ahai, in addiüon to such factors as cavitaüon and restricted ffow into the
flow'of water on the port side is being deflected off the bottom and. back on to the
nuiL. itris ctearly gives some pr¡or in¿¡cation that the response of the
sh¡p may be
unpredictable in shallow water and, once again, the bow may swing the wrong way'

Altemative Design Features

Throughout these examples we have, for practical purposes, adopted a simplistic

approácn by onty considering a fixed pitch right handed propeller' There are of
-propellers,
witn ixe¿ piich left hánded propeller tunnels and
"áir"" "rtió.
controllable pitch propellers, the latter becoming increasingly more common'

Left Handed ProPeller

of
W¡th a left handed propeller it is simply a case of remembering that the results
transverse thrust are the opposite in'so much that the ffow of water from the
port quarter and not the starboard
fropetLer worfing astern is up and on to the
iuJtt* rn basic-terms the "cut' of the bow ¡s therefore to port when work¡ng the
oroDeller astem.

Notes on Shiphandling
Slow Speed Control
Controllable Pitch ProPeller

The controllable pitch propeller rotates constanüy ¡n the same. d¡rection no matter
*tlat movement ¡i aemánded of it. Viewed ftom astem, a clockwise rotating pfopeller
is ittt rotating clockwise with stem power' only the pitch. angle of..the blades has
chanqed. This gives the same effect as a conventional fxed p¡tch left handed
going astem so the bow will swing to
órope"tler, wtr¡ctr'ís also rotaüng clockwise when
tori. S¡ritr¡v if a variable pitch propeller constanüy rotates counter clockwise when
lüwed from'astem, this will be the same as a fixed pitch right handed propeller
w¡¡ctr ¡s a¡so roiaüng counter clockwise during an astem movement, the bow will
ttrus swinq to staooJrd. (See chapter 9 - SPecial propellers and rudders)'

Shrouds

For emnomical purposes, propellers ¡n shrouds or tunnels are growing ¡n number'

even on large ü-iCs. fitis ulümately has some bearing upon. transverse thrust
because the! alter significandy the iow of water exiting the propeller area lt may
be
,nore con"enttated añd ¡s l¡tely to ¡mpose an equal thrust upon both sides of be hull
thus resulting ¡n littte oÍ no transverse thrust

Hull Design
slmplisüc
Finally, hull design features may also play a sign¡ficant part in altering tiris
of a
and tiadiiional cóncept of transverse *ruit. lt ¡s possible' for example, because
to
JifG¡ent irutt shape or length to breadth ratio, for thé point of impact of water flow
¡e'muc¡ ctoser io the poJition of the p¡vot po¡nt lvhen going astem' ln such a case'
transverse thrust, although relatively pronoúnced with headway. may be surprisingly
weak with sternway, to the exteni that the bow may literally fall off e¡ther way'
particulady if iniuenced by wind or shallow water.

Slow Speed Control

Notes on Shiphandling
Wedge Effect
proximity of
It is sometimes apparent that a ship v'/hen using stern power in.the close
possible
sotiA;ettles, banks or shallow water w¡ll "cut" the wrong way There.are two
causés for this occurrence and only a pilots local knowledge is likely to p¡npo¡nt
them.

The first is a phenomenon known as 'Wedge Effecf'. This occurs when the ship w¡th
a fixed p¡tch right handed propeller has a sol¡d jetty of olhef vertical obstruct¡on close
to its sürboari side. lf excessive stem power is used, the.wash creaied is forced
forward between the sh¡p and the obsfucüon. lf we again look at the fgure 2-5' it
can be seen that ¡f the flow of water is resticted then a force is exerted on the ship
fórward of the pivot point, This is particularly apparent when the ship is stopped or
makingstemway.Theforcemaybeofsufñcientstrengthtok¡l|norma|transverse
thrustánd sometimes generate a swing of the bow to port- lt will be worse ¡f the sh¡p
-or
ñá. a ¡o*-¡n aspeci is land tockéd foruard of the berth, thus ¡ncreasing the
entrapment of waier ñow- Wh¡lst a disadvantage in some respects it can be turned to
;;";áS" in some parts of the world. Using the'Vedge effecf',. a ship can be lifted
uáoi¡V of sol¡d ieiby when backing out avoid¡ng dr¿gg¡ng the bow along üre
dock
side. "
The second poss¡ble cause of a "cu{'the wrong way may be attributed to ihe vic¡nity
of shaltow ürater. The flow of watef from the fixed pitch right handed propellef
working astem as we have seen, is up and onto the starboard quarter, but down and
it ¡s possible
away fám the port quarter. lf the ship has a small un99r \e-el clearance
ihaí¡n addit¡o; to such factors as cavitat on and restricted ffow into the propeller' the
iio* ol *"tut on the port side is be¡ng deflecied off the bottom and back on to the
hull. This clearly g¡ves some prior indication that the response of the ship may be
unoredictable in shallow water and, once again, the bow may swing the wrong
way'

Altemaüve Des¡gn Features

Throughout these examples we have, for practical purposes, adopted a s¡mplisüc

approách by only considering a fixed p¡tch right handed propeller' Thefe are of
tr'tió. w¡tn nxed piich left handed propellers propeller tunnels and
"áii."
conÍollable p¡tch propellers, the latter becom¡ng ¡ncreasingly more common'

Left Handed Propeller

of
With a left handed propeller it is s¡mply a case of remembering that the results
the flow of water
i;;";r;" tnrust aie ihe opposite in-so muchportthatquafter from the
propeller working astern is up and on to the and not the starboard
lráJ"i. l" uáiiJt the "cut" of the bow is therefore to port when working the
propeller astem.
-.

2-13 Slow Speed Coñtroi

Notes o¡ Shiphandling
 CHAPTER THREE

TURNING

Notes on Sh¡phandling fuming

Turning

General

It is quite clear irom the results of numerous Ésualty investigaüons that a failure to
tum a ship ¡n the available sea room ranks h¡gh amongst the causes of many
acc¡dents, some literally term¡nal. This can be for a number of reasons such as
mechan¡cal hilure. human error or adverse weather conditions. In the category of
human enor, excess¡ve speed wh¡lst attempting to tum ¡s once agaln a malor source
of tailure.

Rudder Force and Pivot Po¡nt

We will start with a ship of 67,O0Ot displacement, stopped dead ¡n the water
assuming even keel, calm cond¡t¡ons and no tide. With the rudder hard to starboard,
an aheaó movement is now applied and for the moment it is academic whether it ¡s
dead slou slow, half or full. Th¡s we can refer to simply as The Rudder Force' Th¡s
will be attempt¡ng to both tum the ship and drive it forward.

FoMard movement ¡s in¡tially resisted because of the ¡nertia of the ship wh¡le the
turn, which ¡s working at the end of the ship on a good lever, sets in slightly earl¡er'
This results in a pivoi point, which ¡s initially well forward and approximately 1/8L (P)
from the bow. The ¡mportance of th¡s is absolutely vital because at th¡s stage, with
the ship just beginn¡ng to make headway and the p¡vot point well forward, we have
the optimum rudder force. lt wil¡ never be betterl

When the ship thereafter begins to bu¡ld up speed' the water resistance ahead of the
sh¡p balances forward powér and pushes the pivot point back a further ll4 L (see
session 1). At a steady speed, whiist tuming, the fnal posiüon of the pivot point will
now be approximately'1/3 L (PP) from the bow W¡lh üe turning lever thus reduced
the rudder force has now become progressively less efijcient.

Notes on Sh¡phandling
Tum¡n9
Lateral Res¡stance

As a ship commences to turn and thereafter for the duration of a turn, the ship is
sliding sideways through the water. This results in a large build up of water
res¡stance which continually opposes the rudder force and we can refer to as'Lateral
Resistance '. The balance between the rudder force and the lateral resistance plays
a crucial part in shap¡ng all turning circles. (Figure 3-1).

a+ *
+/
P = lolüal Ptvot Polnt

PP = Final Plwt Poi¡t

D = Dlift A¡€le od
Bridge

2. Lateral
Resistance

I. Rudder
Force

F¡gure 3-l Standing turn, lateral resistance

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 3.3 Turning

b6
Normal Tums

lf for examgle our sh¡p of 67,000 t displacement enters and cont¡nues a turn at a
constant rp; for slow ahead, both forces balance to g¡ve a tuming circle as shown ¡n
figure 32. The advance and transfer can be measured from the scale for both 20
35 turn.. By comparison, Iooking at the same ship conducting a tum at a
"id
ionstant rpm ior tutt a¡eaO, igure 3-3, it may be surpris¡ng to note that the tum¡ng
c¡rcles are broadly s¡milar to the slow ahead turn.

r66E talker
l,oaded lr¡ decp ¡¡-ater
Approach sPeed 5.4 roots

20" Wheei \'.-

90"

t
35" Wbeei

270'

Transfer LD cables

Figure 3-2 Slow Ahead turns to starboard

Notes on Shiphandling v Tuming

Revɀd Ja.' 2003
¿V-

<f'
 166m tanker
Advance Loaded ¡n deep water
ln Approach speed '1 1.6 knots
cables

35" Wheel

360'

Transfer
ln
cables

Figure 3-3 FullAhead turns to starboard

The reasons for th¡s are due to the fact that although we have entered the tum with a
much larger rudder force, it is also with a higher speed and therefore h¡gher lateral
res¡stance. ln any turn at constant rpm, rudder force and lateral res¡stance are
always ach¡ev¡ng the same balance, thereby assuring that each tuming c¡rcle ¡s
approximately the same ¡n tems of advance and transfer. The only th¡ng ihat is
saved by entering a tum at higher speeds is time. lt is the rate of tum which varies.
Whilst this can be critical in cases, when time ¡s of paramount ¡mportance, such as
conduct¡ng a large turn across a strong tide or tak¡ng the ship through a Williamson
Turn, it does not ¡mprove turn¡ng ab¡l¡ty.

Notes on Shiphandling Tuming

Revised Jan 2003
 L66m tanker
Loaded tn deeP water Ad!'ance
ln
90" cables
.-: ,
b

',(

35'Wheel 90"

-.. 180"

Trar¡sfer iD cables

270"

F¡gure 34 Standing tum from stopped

)'*^.'l*?L
45L
'
.l,"Y*

3-6 T¡Jm¡ng
Notes on ShiPhandling
R۟1sed Jan 2000
Standing Tums and K¡cks Ahead

Stand¡ng Turns and K¡cks Ahead can only be achieved by altering the balance
between lateral resistance and rudder force, reduc¡ng the former to a minimum and
then exploit¡ng the laüer to ¡ts full potent¡al. To do this to best effect it is first
necessary to take the shiP's speed dght down to the equivalent of dead slow or less.
Wth the speed thus reduced, the flow of water along the ships s¡de and therefore
lateral resistance is minimal allowing us to use the rudder force to greatest effect.
This is best ¡llustrated w¡th the example of a Stand¡ng Turn in figure 3-4. ln this case
the same ship of 67,000t displacement ¡s siopped in the water w¡th the rudder at port
35'. With slow ahead the ship commences the turn and has completed 90'of that
turn w¡th an advance of only 1% cables ot 1y2 ship lengths. Th¡s is considerably
tighter than the normal turn at constant slow ahead rpm, which is included for
comparison in figure 34 by the pecked ¡¡ne.

After 90", however, care should exercised as the speed is now build¡ng up. As ¡t
does so, the laieral resistance and rudder forces are return¡ng to normal and the ship
¡s revert¡ng to ¡ts normal tuming circle. The degree of speed reductjon prior to the
turn ¡s of critical importance to tighien¡ng the turn. Dead slow or less is ihe optimum
and anything faster will incur a loss of turn¡ng ability.

speed during a Turn

The speed of a ship during a normal tum is interesting in so much that it suffers a
marked reduction. As the sh¡p is sliding sideways and ahead, the exposed side
exper¡ences a subsbntial increase ¡n water res¡stance, which ¡n turn acts as a brake.
The ship may experience a 30 to 50% speed loss and ¡t is a useful feaiure in many
areas of ship handling where a sharp speed reduction ¡s required. The sh¡p ¡n figure
3-3, for example, entered the turn at a full speed of 11 6 knots. Once it has settled
into the turn, the speed w¡ll be reduced to about 8 knots. Th¡s is useful ¡n a
Will¡amson Turn, allow¡ng ¡t to be conducted at full speed in the interests of time, yet
knowing that the turn alone w¡ll take a great deal of the speed off. Sim¡lariy many
oilots w¡|l come up to an SBlvl with one and sometimes two 90o turns in the
approach, to ensure that the speed is brought down. In short, it is a useful and very
effective method of speed reduct¡on to fall back on, provided there is suffcient sea
room.

Notes on Shiphand¡ing Tuming

Shallow Water

So far we have only considered a sh¡p manoeuvring in deep water. lf, however, the
sh¡p is operating in shallow water it is likely to have considerable effect upon
handling, ¡n particular its turn¡ng ab¡l¡ty. As a rough gu¡de it can be assumed that a
sh¡p may experience shallow water effect when the depth of water is less than tw¡ce
the draft, i.e. the under keel clearance is less than the draft ¡tself- Serious cases of
shallow water problems have however been experienced with larger under water
clearances, especially at high speeds, sometimes w¡th dire consequences!

To look more closely at the problem we will retum to the example ship' wh¡ch is fully
loaded and on even keel with a draft of 11.6 mettes. This vessel is commenclng a
ful¡ starboard rudder tum, with a three metre under keel clearance. Looking at the
ship from astern (figure $6), it can be seen, as the stern of the ship commences to
sweep to port, that water pressure is building up along the port side, abafi of the
oivot Doint due to the restriction under the keel.

38 metre Beam

-'+
-

NOTE
I
Y
I
l,ov,7 Pressure a¡ea

F¡gure 3-6 Shallow water (water pressure)

Notes on Shiphanclling 3€ Tuming

It we now look at this ¡n plan v¡ew (figure 3-7), it can be seen that this will seriously
upset the previous balance between lateral resistance and rudder force and the
posit¡on of the pivot po¡nt-

D = R.ducid D.lft A¡€le

Reductd TrEAI¡g LE
A build uP of
Latera¡ Resista[ce +

)-
Rudde¡ Force
less effective

Figure 3-7 Shallow Water (p¡vot point)

ln the frst instance the rudder force now has to overcome a much larger lateral
resistance and ¡s therefore considerably less effcient. A similar thing ¡s happening at
the bow, because of the reduced under keel clearance, water which would normally
pass under the sh¡p is now reslricted and there is a bui¡d up of pressure, both ahead
of the ship and on the port bow. This now upsets the balance between the ships
fofward momentum and long¡tudinal resistance (see chapter 1) and pushes the pivot
go¡nt back from P to PP. Wiih the steering, or rudder lever, also reduced the sh¡p ¡s
rapidly los¡ng the rudder effic¡ency enioyed in deep water.

Notes on Shipha¡dling 3-9 Tum¡ng

lnfigure3.Sthedeepandsha|lowwaterturnsareover|aidandclear|yi||uslratethe
u""t-d¡tf"t"n""" thai exist between the two. lf this is encountered without wam¡ng'
peir,aps Au¡ng a criiical turn, ¡t is an elPerience never forgotten!

f¡sdcd at sto* á¡¡€d

F¡gure 3-8 Effect of shallowwater (turning c¡rcle)

Draft in a Tum

should be noted that a ship manoeuvring. through. a farge turn

a-nd
Finally it to l¡st'
innu.ic.O by shallow water may also Lxperience an ¡ncrease in draft due ¡s poor the
ii"t"^¡"1tá'¡ért" 3€ it can ué seen thát if the under keel clearancefow of water
inirá"""á presiure along the port side witl also result ¡n an increased it ¡s
,"áái t¡é'.¡lp. To avoid geiüng bogged down ¡n theoretical complications
to siy that it resutis in á low pressure under the ship and thetefore some
;;¿;;; ;i .i"Ég", This mav be more ev¡denr with a large high-sided ferry or a
"umá.nt
310 Tuming
Notes on Sh¡Phandling
Revised Ján 2003
container ship, particularly if the ship is proceeding at high speed and already
elperiencing a small list due to the tum. The amount of sinkage, in this case 1 metre'
can be surpris¡ng and should not be forgotten when turn¡ng at speed in shallow
water.

These efiects are further cons¡dered in Chapter 6 Interact¡on.

Notes on Sh¡phandling Tum¡ng

ReüsedJa'2cr03----
 CHAPTER FOUR

THE EFFECT OF WIND

Notes on Sh¡phandling +1 Thé Effect ofvv¡nd

The Effect of Wind

General

Theshiohand|erfacesmanyprob|emsbutthereisnonemorefrequent|y
slow¡ng
understood tñan the effect of wind' All too often when
"tLr."LJá"Jl"ss
áoi* aft"t a river passage, wh¡lst entering locks and during berih¡ng' ¡t can create a

maioÍ d¡ff¡cu¡tv. wlttr or w¡ttrout tugs, if ihe problem has not been thought out
in
i. not understood hów the ship will behave in the wind the opera¡on
"oriá"*, "i¡tit
can oei out of control otremely quickly- Neediess to say' with no t¡rg assistance'
¡t is

;Ji;;;iÑ;; ot É"itotin! right first time and also appreciate what the
lim¡ts are. "nip

It ¡s frequenüy stated by many a Master that'the large funnel right an' acts
l¡ke a
huqesai|..Wh¡lstth|s|stosomeextenttrue,¡ts¡mp|ydoesnotep|a¡nevefything
satÍsfactorily. lt is important io look at the problem more closely'

Vessel Stopped
in the water- lthas
Lookino atfiqure4-1 we have a ship on even keel stopped dead
,ccommodation and we will assume. at thts stage. thar the wind
¡s
ir1" i"rn"¡ráI.
;;¿;it "ii"tt
it,"¡""t. wh¡lst the large. area. of superstructure ,and. funnel offer a
"; cross section to the wind, ¡t ¡s also necessary tq F-I"- ¡lto account the
con"s¡¿era¡le
ttóm forward of the bridge to the bow on a VLcc th¡s could be
an
áiáá
area "iii"áLiio
as long as 250 x 10 metres
of these two
The centre of effort of the wind (W) is thus acting upon the combination
position of the p¡vot
oe compareo with the under water profle of the.ship and the
",.'."n¿¡"muchfurtherfoMardthanissometimese)Qected.Thjsnowneedsto
pá¡nitpi o¡."u".ed previously With the sh¡p ¡n¡t¡ally -stopped in the water this was
p¡vot
5;;; i;';;Ñ"" !t amiosnips-rne centre of efiort of the w¡nd W) and the
oá¡nt ipl tfru. quite close together and therefore do not create a tuming ¡nfluence
"r" Átn]ün it witt váry stignttv rrom ship io ship' senerallv speak¡ns most
iiiii ii'áin¡p'.
ülilay stopped with the wind just forward or
just abaft the beam'

+2 The Efiect of Wñd

Notes on Shiphañdlang
Revbed Jal 2003
 I

PtW

Negligble Tr¡rljsg L€ve¡

Wi¡d o! t¡e Port Beaa

160m Product Tanker - Loeded and on even keel

F¡gure 4-1 Vessel Stopped

Notes on Shiphandling +3 The Effect of Vvind

Vessel Making Headway

When the same sh¡p is mak¡ng headway, the sh¡ft of the p¡vot po¡nt upsets the
previous balance attained whilst stopped, figure 4-2. With the wind on lhe beam, the
centre of effort of the wind rema¡ns where it is but the pivot point moves forward.
This creates a substantial tum¡ng lever between P and W and, depending on wind
strength, the sh¡p w¡tl develop a swing of the bow into the w¡nd.

+ iIll
r-\_/-

-_.-----.-----w-
IE¡TÉ
l"'- É

J 8t

|#l
Tur'riDgleve¡ /\
wlnd
1 l\

Figu¡e 4-2 Vessel mak¡ng headway

It is a regrettable fact of l¡fe that whén approach¡ng a berth w¡th the w¡nd upon or
abaft the beam that as sPeed ¡s reduced the effect of the wind gets Progress¡vely
greater and requ¡res cons¡derable conective action

When approach¡ng a berth or a buoy with the wind dead ahead and the ship on an
even keel such an approach should be eas¡ly controlled Even at very low speeds
the ship ¡s stable and w¡llw¡sh to stay with the wind ahead until stopped-

Notes on Shiphandling 44 The Efiec1 of Wind

Vessel fiilak¡ng Stemway

The effect of the w¡nd on a sh¡p making sternway ¡s generally more complex and less
predictable. In part th¡s is due to the add¡tional complication of transverse thrust
when associated with single screw ships. Rema¡ning with the same ship, igure 4-3,
we have already seen that with stemway the p¡vot po¡nt moves aft to a posiüon
approximately I /4 L from the steÍn. Assuming that the centre of effort (W) remains in
the same pos¡tion, with the wind still on the beam, the sh¡ft of p¡vot point (P) has now
created a totally different tuming lever WP)- This w¡ll now encourage the bow to fall
off the w¡nd when the sh¡p ¡s backing, or put another way, the stem seeks the w¡nd.

50 ao 100 I?A

w
.

tffi
-Lf

Figure ¿1-3 Vesse¡ Making Sternway

Some caut¡on is necessary, however, as the turn¡ng lever can be quile small and the
effect d¡sappoinüng, particularly on even keel. In such cases the stem may only
partially seek the w¡nd, w¡th the sh¡p mak¡ng sternway 'iopped' across the w¡nd. Th¡s
situation is not helped by the c€ntre of effort (W) moving aft as the wind comes round
onto the quarter. Th¡s in turn tends to reduce the magnitude of the turning lever WP.
fhe other complicating hctor is transverse thrusi. lf the wind is on the port beam,
there ¡s every likelihood that transverse thrust and effect of wind w¡ll comb¡ne and
indeed take the stem smartly into the wind. lf, however, the w¡nd is on the starboard
beam, ¡t can be seen that t¡ansverse thrust and effect of wind oppose each other.
Which force wins the day ¡s therefore very much dependent upon wind strength
versus stern power, unless you know the ship excepüonally well, there may be no
guarantee as to which way the siem will swing when backing.

Notes on Shiphandling +5 The Effecl of W¡nd

Revised Jar 2003
Trim and Headway

So far we have only considered a ship on even keel. A large tdm by the stem may
change tne snip's wind handling character¡stics quite substant¡ally' F¡gure 4-4 shows
ti," .ár" ship, but this üme in batlast and trimmed by the stern The ¡ncrease in
freeboard forward has moved W foMard and very close to P' With the turn¡ng lever
thus reduced the sh¡p is not so inclined to run up into the w¡nd. with headway'
Drefefrinq instead to fáll off, or lay ácross the wind. Because the ship is difficult to
i<eeo neáO to wind, some p¡lotage d¡sficts will not accept a sh¡p that has an
excessive trim by the stern, particulariy with regards SBM operattons'

m 50 ao 1@ t2a t4 160 E

l--iJ; WcálTt¡¡dDg L¿eE

0*"
Figure ¿L4 Stern trim and headway

Notes on Shiphandling 44 The Efiect of V\4nd

Trim and stemwey

The performance when going astern ¡s also seriously altered. With the wind on the
beam and W well forward, ihe tum¡ng lever WP ¡s consequently increased (fgure 4-
5). Once the ship is stopped and particularly when going astern, the bow will
immediately want to bl¡ off the wind, oñen with great rap¡dity wh¡le thé stem quickly
seeks the wind.

80 loo 140 160 E

\.
\r

SFolg Tt ¡!¡ag f,eelr

1\
1l WiDd

F¡gure ¿f-5 Stem trim and sternway

When berthing with strong cross w¡nds, or attempting to stop and hold in a narow
channel. it is best to plan well ahead as such a ship can prove very d¡fficult to hold in
position- However, as long as we have some prior knowledge as to how the sh¡p w¡ll
react to the influence of the wjnd it can be turned to advantage and readily employed
to a¡d rather than hinder sh¡p handling. Not for nothing is it often refered to as a
"poor mans tug!"

Notes on Shiphandling +7 The Etrect of \/Vind

Vessel Head to l¡V¡nd with Headway

The middle diagram in Figure 4€ shows a vessel mak¡ng headway through the
r"i"r, ft""áing directly-¡nto the wind. w is now well forward of amidshiPs' and ¡n
""¿
áafu"w to É; t¡e wino is exerting no turning moment, or sideways force' on
A comparatively small change ¡n relaüve w¡nd direction (eitherthe
"roa"
the veslet. by
iout.., or wind iluctuation¡, will place the wind on the vessel's bow; aft
il;|"; ";";;;
"ii"tátiánt the vessel will now be exposed to the wind, and w will move
as shown in the "?side diagrams of F¡gure 4-6 The following effects will now be
exper¡enced:-

a) The turn¡ng force w¡ll now develop a turn¡ng moment about P, tend¡ng to
tum the vessel into the wind again
from
b) The wind fo¡ce will also develop a sideways force on the vessel, away
the exPosed side.

I Wind

Figure 4-6 Vessel head to wind with headway

Head to wind therefore, the vessel is "course stable",

provided that she maintains
headwav throuqh the water.
iith; ;hí;hJ; large trim by the stern' w will be further forward, with a reductron' or
;;; ü;:. .t"oitiÁ7' This can someümes result in a rapid and v¡olent loss
of control. "f;;";;!'"

Notes oñ Shiphandl¡ng 4 The Effec1 of vv¡nd

vessel Head to W¡nd with Sternway.

Cons¡der the situation when our vessel remains head to wind, but now starts to make
stemway through the water. W rema¡ns forward, whilst P has moved aft, as sbown ¡n
the middle diagram of f¡gure 4-7: the wind is exerting no tuming moment, or
s¡deways force.

F¡gure 4-7 Vessel head to w¡nd with sternway

A comparatively small change in the relat¡ve direc{¡on of the wind will move W aft,
as shown in the s¡de d¡agrams of Figwe 4-7: however P rema¡ns aft of W. The
following effects w¡ll now be experienced:-

a) The wind force will develop a strong tuming moment about P, tending to turn the
vessel's bow further away from the wind.
b) The wind force w¡ll develop a sideways force on the vessel, away from the
exposed s¡de.

Head to wind, as soon as the vessel starts to make sternway through the water, she
loses "course stab¡lity" and the bow will pay off away from the wind, sometimes quite
rapidly.

lf the ship has a targe tr¡m by the stern W may move further foMard, perhaps
quickly, and the loss of'courses stability' is even more pronounced. This can
sometimes result in a rapid and v¡olent loss of contol.

Notes on Shiphandling +9 The Effect of Vv¡nd

vessel Stem to Wind with Headway

The m¡ddle diagram of figure 4€ shows a vessel making headway through the
water, and with the wind directly astem. P is forward, a long d¡stance from W, which
¡s well aft. A comparatively small change in relative wind direct¡on will move W
foMards as shown in the s¡de d¡agrams of Figure 4-8: however W ¡s süll some
distance abaft P. The following effects will now be experienced:-

a) The wind force will develop a strong turn¡ng moment about P, tend¡ng to turn the
vessel's stern further away from the wind.
b) The w¡nd force w¡ll develop a s¡deways force on the vessel, away from the
exposed s¡de.

F¡gure 4 Vessel stem to w¡nd with headway

Making headway with stern to wind, the vessel loses "course siability" and is difficult
to steer, this effect is greater when there is also a follow¡ng sea or swell

lf the ship has a large tr¡m by the stern, W may move further fon¡,/ard, and loss of
"course stabil¡ty" may be generally less pronounced, but stjll a potential danger'

Notes on Shiphandl¡ñg +14 The Effect of Vvind

Vessel Stem to W¡nd mak¡ng Stemway

The m¡ddle diagram of F¡gure 4-9 shows a vessel making sternway through the
water, and with the wind directly astem. P has moved aft, fa¡rly close to W, wh¡ch
remains even further aft. A change in relative wind d¡rect¡on will eventually move W
forward of P, as shown in the s¡de d¡agrams of Figure +9, w¡th the following effectsi

a) The w¡nd force w¡lldevelop a tum¡ng moment about P, tending to tum the vessel's
stern back into the W¡nd.
b) The w¡nd force will develop a sideways force on the vessel, away from the
exposed s¡de.

F¡gure +9 Vessel stern to wind making sternway

Making sternway through the water, with stern to w¡nd, the vessel is again "course
stable".

lf the sh¡p has a large trim by the stern W may move further forward, generally
improving 'couGe stab¡lity"; however w¡th such a trim there is always the poss¡bility
of unpred¡ctab¡e loss of control.

It must be noted that as the profile of accommodation blocks and deck cargo varies
from ship to ship it is not possible to be specif¡c about every case.

ln this case (stern to w¡nd making stemway) poini W and the p¡vot point are like¡y to
coincide with the wind at a substantia¡ angle on the quarter and the vessel w¡¡l be
course stable around this Doint,

Notes on Shiphandling 4-11 The Effec1 of Vvind

Calculations

It is very useful to have a quant¡tative understanding of the actual force that a ship
exper¡ences wh¡tst ¡nfluenced by the ünd. Th¡s may be of cons¡derable benefit to
pilots when endeavouring to esümate the wind limitations of a particular class of
ship, establish¡ng the size of tugs for a district and so forth. When confronted by the
harbour authorities it is perhaps better, in the interests of profess¡onalism, to be
armed w¡th concrete facts rather than simply say 'Ve do not think it can be done".
Worse ¡s to be forced to attempt a movement with unacceptable risks.

Wh¡tst complicated formulae do exist, for calculating the force of wind upon a sh¡p, il
would be more practical to have at hand a relaüvely simPle method of achieving a
working fgure. The irst requirement ¡s to obtain the besi ava¡lable estimation of the
area of the shiD Dresented to the wind in square metres This can be as s¡mple as:

Length overall(m) x max. freeboard(m) = windage area(m'?)

An approx¡mate wind force in tonnes per 1,000 m2 can then be calculated using:

F V = W¡nd Speed (metres / second) = w¡nd SPeed (knots ) + 2

then Force (tonnes) per l0o0m2 = V2+ l8

It should be noted that the wind force varies as the square of the w¡nd speed. Small
¡ncreases ¡n w¡nd speed can mean large ¡ncreases in wind strength, especially in
stronger winds, when gusting can place an enormous stra¡n on the sh¡p.

Us¡ng the above formulae th¡s is illusttated with the graphs of wind force (tonnes)
overi wide range of wind speeds (knob) for the ianker'Jane Maersk' and the large
car can¡er'Madame Buüerfly' in figure 4-10.

Notes on Shiphandling +12 The Effect of Wind

 Ton¡es
100

80

70

CARCARRIER TANKER
197 metres 60,000 dwt Loaded

45

35

25

20

to

Wind Speed ira KDots

Figure 4-10 fhe effect of wind quantified

Notes oñ Sh¡phandling +13 The Efiect of \/vind

Shios in the category of the Jane Maersk at 60.000 dwt may have
a main eng¡ne
ts.ooo p at sea speed. Th¡s ¡s equivalent to ab-out 150 tonnes'
üp'""¡tv
"t*"i
"r down to give a "trough approximation for dead slow to manoeuvr¡ng full in
rt ii ¡roi"n
f,gure +1'1.

K¡cks ahead with full ruddef will at best be somewhere in the region of 450/0 of these
f¡gures.

Sim¡larlv. if we assume stern power to be a l¡ttle over half that

of ahead power' we
can comoile an approx¡mate list of the range of stem Powers'

TransveFe lhrust w¡ll be no more than l0% of these figures'

+14 The Effeci of l/v¡nd

Notes on Shiphandling
 Ta¡ke¡ 6O,000 dwt

¡d.ab E¡ébc r5.0oo s¡p AD Esúñas.! of Rrdd6 Fdcc

!¡¡¡r ¡brzd l$ ttDlls bo¡l¡¡! Pt¡!

I\ll Ablad
¡l¡]fá¡.zd
RtG Abced apFq, 45% ol ehad PoF¡f 3l¡aa.s
Dr2d Slreábr2d 17 t@!s

Wiqd 30 tsots
26 toues

26 taa3€s

Example only, Allfgures are approximate

Figure 4-l I Tanker - forces at our d¡sposal

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng +15 The Effeci of vMnd

A similar exercise is ouüined ¡n figure 4-12 for the Madame Butterfly class of ship
which may be fitted wilh a bow thruster of 1,000 kW (1341 shp) or (13 tonnes).

Car Cafiier 197m

Mall E¡81üc r0,OOO shP An EsttDatlo¡ of Rudde¡ ForE€

Fllll Ah€ad l0O toDnes bola¡d PüI FullAbead 45 to¡ncs

HaffAhead 34 tonn€t
Kcks Ahrad app¡on- 45% of ahcad Po\t r slo¡I,?,hcaal 22to¡ú a
Desd SlowAh€d ll to¡rrca

tontres

0
55 toot¡es
Witrd 25 hnots

FüI Ast rE at 60 % oii Pqtü = 6000 SHP

Tra¡sveñe Tb¡¡st A app¡o! lo% of stc¡D pows
At FuIl AstcrD = ÚO SHP = 6 tonaes

I3 tollaes tonaes

ü c

ir
L]
cc toE[es
Wind 25 tnots
Figure +'12 Car Carr¡er - forces at our d¡sposal

Notes on Shiphand¡ing +16 The Effect of vviñd

By compar¡ng the wind force at its worse, ¡.e. on the beam, with the forces ava¡lable
to the ship handler, ¡ncluding tugs, several important po¡nts come to l¡ght.

a) Kicks ahead with full power a¡e very effect¡ve against a wide
range of w¡nd strengths.

b) Kicks ahead of dead slow and slow will be ineffecüve at certain

w¡nd strengths and more Power must be used'

c) fhe weakness of transverse thrust as a force.

d) The likely wind strength at wh¡ch the transverse thrust will be

overcome bY the wind.

e) The limits of the bow thruster in beam winds.

0 The size of tugs required for that class of ship, or its w¡nd lim¡ts
with the operaüonal tugs ¡n a spec¡fic port.

This information of course extremely bas¡c, referring in the main io a sh¡p wh¡ch is
¡s
stopped in the water, on even keel and with a beam w¡nd. lt is never-the-less
surprisingly accurate, as trials have shown and more than adequate for practical
purposes- The subject can however be taken much further and to great effect,
padicularty with regards to tug operations.

Notes on Sh¡phandling 4-17 The Efiect of WlnC

 CHAPTER FIVE

ANCHOR WORK

Notes on sh¡phandling g1 Anchorwoñ<

lntroduct¡on

These notes are ¡ntended to g¡ve the reader a basie understanding of the ordinary
standard stockless and high hold¡ng power anchot-s. The operaüonal aspects of
anchoring, includ¡ng the próblems aÁsociated wjth a large ship, are discussed and
some equ¡pment defects ¡n large sh¡ps are descr¡bed.

Des¡gnaGd Purpose of Anchors

On the basis of generally accepted ctiteria, a ship is expected to remain at anchor:

(a) In good hold¡ng grounds.

(b) ln sheltered and semi-sheitered waters.

(c) In w¡nds up to gale force 8

The master ¡s eloected to put to sea if severe storms are forecast'

The existing equ¡Pment is not ¡ntended by the classification soc¡eties to be

suitable as:

(a) A last means of defence in case of a mach¡nery breakdown off a lee

shore ¡n a storm.

(b) A means of bring¡ng a large moving ship to a stop.

Ord¡nary Standard Stockless (OSS) and High Holding Power (HHP) Anchors

The two anchor types in ordinary use today are the ord¡nary standard
stockless, of wh¡ch the most common types are Byers and Halls, and the high
holding power anchor, of which the most popular is the Adm¡ralty Cast anchor
type 14 (4C14).

Notes on sh¡phandling
Brief History of Both Anchoñs

The OSS anchor was introduced in 1E40 (figure $1)- lts greatest defect was its
inherent roll instab¡l¡ty, which was first noted by the Adm¡ralty in 1885. lf an anchor is
roll unstable. one of the flukes w¡ll penetrate further ¡nto the seabed than the other'
The shearing forces act¡ng on the more deeply buried fluke wi¡l cause ¡t to b¡te even
deeper and iotate under the shank of the anchor' This process can continue until the
fluke and the crown structure have rotated through 180 about the shank and the
flukes are po¡nting upwards. ln this position' the pull ¡s less than 50 per cent than
that obtained w¡th both flukes penetrating the seabed.

The iukes should then re-trip and recommence burying ¡nto the seabed, but this is
frequenfy prevented by the clogging of the articulation between shank and crown
t¡¡i Oefeci retar¿ed its introduction into the Royal Navy for a number of years, but
bv 1900. stockless anchors were ¡n common use in the Merchant Navy' although
tliei holding power was far ¡nferior to that ofthe older stocked anchor' Their ability to
self-stow ¡ü hawsep¡pe proved so useful that they becáme accepted equ¡pment for
the RN.

F¡gure 5-l The Ord¡nary Stockless Anchor (OSS)

Notes on shiphandling 5.3 Anchor !!ork

 officers of RN ships' tests were introduced in
After much criticism from commanding-was
¡óiá ¿""¡gn called the AC14 efiected (figure 5-2)' Th¡s has now been
"nJ"as tte *arship bower anchor and ¡s normal equiPment for some sh¡pping
ác"epiáo
The main des¡gn improvements ¡nclude a larger fuke area
w¡th
"orün"..
stabilis¡ng fins.

F¡gure 5-2 The AC 14 H¡gh Holding PowerAnchor

Holding Power
because the holding
Knowledge of the type of anchor on your ship is necess-ary ¡s normallv
;;;; ;i each typ! ¡s different. Thé holdinb power of an anchor
when the anchor
E-rá.."dl" to"iLs. The maximum holding power ¡s reached
starts to drag but without reduction in its stab¡lity'

Holding efficiency = Holdino power

Anchor deadweight

Fiqure5-3i||ustratestheholdingeffciencyandholding.p-owerofthe'oSSandHHP
ii'"iJ,J ¡. ;;;;l;";oir,áolng srounó. Note the HHP anch-or has been sranted
;)'ü;;';fi;;;Jt¡'on in rur" *eis-ht uv Llovds classification societv- ln all cases'
material is between two and
i¡Jiá¡oiü"m"¡"ncy of the HHP aict'oi ¡n tÉe seabed ship ¡s anchored on a seabed of
i;; ilJth"t;;hüuáa uv tit" osé-áncnor' lf the to that of the-we¡ght of the anchor' lt
rock, the hold¡ng power of the ancnor ¡s reduced
had a holdins
i;;;i";;;6üil";i" that Adm¡ral uáiJ¡¡et"on's anchor (HMS victory)
the oSS anchor'
tt""
oo*ái ot 2.6 ¡ts weight, which compares very favourably with

5.4 A¡chor t¡'rork

Notes on shiphañdling
Rs¡ised Jar' 2003
 Ho d¡ng Power
Weight Holding Efficiency
Anchor Tonnes)
Type Cfonnes) Sand Mud Clay Sand Mud Clay

Stockless
29.9 2 3 120 60 90
(oss)
AC14 3't0 180 '130
14 8 6
(HHP)

Figure 5-3 Hold¡ng Power

Note: Lloyds allow mass oJ HHP anchors to be 75 per cent of comparable OSS
anchors.

Cable Cons¡derations

The anchor is most efficient v'/hen subjected to a horizonial pull by the cable on tbe
seabed. The aim should be to ensure that enough cable is veered to ach¡eve th¡s
situat¡on.

lf insuficient cable is veered to exert a hor¡zontal pull ai the anchor, its holding
power will be reduced ¡n accordance with the follow¡ng scale:

Angle of inclination Percentage of maximum

of cable at anchor hold¡ng pull of anchor

80
'10.
15. 40

When the ship drags her anchor, more cable is veered and the anchor holds. This
act¡on ¡s correcl, but the belief that it is the res¡stance of the extra cable on the
seabed that leis the ship hold is a fallacy; the veering of the cable removed the
shank/cable angle and the anchor holds once more.

Notes oñ shiphandling 5-5

Revis€d Jar 2003
Amount of Cable to Use

in add¡lion, the amount of cable to veer depends upon a number of factors:

(a) Hold¡ng characteristics ofthe anchor'

(b) Length of stay.

(c) Strength ofwind, tidal stream or curent' and sea / swell'

(d) Swing¡ng room.

(e) Type of cable.

(f) Depth/draughtratio.

There are a number of guidel¡nes given for the amount of cable to veer' The
as
nJmiralty tttanuat of Seamánship quotes the amount of cable to veer in shackles
twice the square root of lhe depth of water in lathoms'

Depth 4 fathoms Veer 4 shackles

9 futhoms 6 shackles
lolathoms 8 shackles

Notes on shipha¡dling
Type of Cab¡e

The type of cable on the sh¡p is also an imPortant consideration. The three types are:

M¡ld steel grade 1

Special qual¡ty grade 2

Extra special quality grade 3

Grade 3 is the lightest; therefore, additional cable may have to be veered to ensure a
horizontal pull.

The Depth - Draft Rat¡o

The depth:draught rat¡o is also an important cons¡deration (igure +4). Bruce (Ref 2)
has shown that for a 2OO,00o dwt ianker in a sheltered anchorage free of waves, a
50 knot w¡nd and 5 knot cunent conven¡ently ac¡ng head on, the total force on the
ship, with a depth:draught raüo of 2.0, ¡s 89 tonnes. This rises to 158 tonnes for a
depth:draughl ratio of '1-1 .

Note that the OSS holding pull ¡n these conditions is 132 tonnes.

In contrast, the AC14 shows a reserve of hold¡ng power at a 1.1 depth:draught raiio
exceeding 50 per cent over the complete range of sh¡ps. Therefore, for those sh¡ps
equipped with an OSS anchor, ihe thrust on the ship increases cons¡derably with
decreasing depth wh¡ch, ¡n some conditions, ¡s greater than the hold¡ng power of the
anchor.

Notes on shiphandl¡ñg
Thrusts on tankers due to a 50 knot wind and 5 knot cunent in a sheltered
anchorage free of waves.

Tanker Depth All forces actlng

Dead- to head-on Anchor
Weight draught Hold¡ng
Wind Current Total Pull
Tonnes ratio Tonnes
tonnes tonnes Tonnes
3.0 18.79 3E.84
2.O 30.56 50.61
50,802 1.4 47 .54 67.59 60.9
1_2 /o.oJ
1.1 OJ.J / a3.42
22.96 27.00 49.96
2.0 43.92 66.88
,{. 90.3
'101,605 1.4 68-32 91.28
81.32 104.2E
1.1 91.07 '114.03
3.0 23.42 34.33 57 .75
2.0
157,407 1_4 86_87 110.29 112.7
1.2 103.44 126.86
1.1 115.E6 '139.28
3.0 39-90
z-o 64.90 a8.77
203,2Q9 1.4 100.95 124.82 131_6
120.18 144.05
1.1 134.60 158.47
3.0
?.o 74.10 98.43
254,O12 1.4 115.26 139.59 150.5
1.? 137.22 161.55
1.1 153.67 178.00
3.0 7A.U
2.0 87 .11 1 11_89
1.4 '135.51 160.29 171 .5
304,814
1.2 161.33 186.11
1.1 1E0.69 205.47

F¡gure 5¿ Thrusts on hnkers

Notes on shiphandl¡ng s Anchor t/',rork

Ope¡aüonal Aspects

When anchoring in an area where other sh¡ps are anchored, the approach course
opposed ü¡ the resultant of the wind and cunent can be visually appreciated. Th¡s is
more diff¡cult to ach¡eve when anchoring in an area devoid of other shipp¡ng,
especially at night. The larger the sh¡p, the smaller the limiting speed before
dropping anchor. h a VLCC, the speed over the ground must be less than 0.5 knot.
It ¡s d¡fficult to achieve a sitt-¡ation with the ship stopped over the ground. The
published üdal stream ¡nformation in UK waters only refers to the top 5 metres and
therefore for a large ship drawing l5 metres, the üdal stteam ¡nformat¡on may notbe
wholly val¡d. A difference in tidal ra1€ ol 2y. knots has been reported at lmm¡ngham
at a tidal range difference of only 5 metres-

A rule of thumb method often used is to reverse the engines unül the propeller wash
reaches the bridge or man¡foid (chosen by experience) and then let 90 the anchor.
However, even if the experience of the masier is such ihat he knows the ship ¡s
stopped through the water on these occas¡ons, the ship is not necessarily stopped
ovér the ground. ls a doppler log the answer? The wash from an astern movement
can give errors of y2 knot or more- The log can also have been poorly calibraied. A
Nautical Inst¡tute survey showed that only 35 per cent of VLCCS are ftted with
bottom lock doppler speed logs.

Pr¡or to anchoring, the set and drift of the current and wind should be established as
well as possible and the ship placed on a head¡ng opposed to the resultant of these
forces. The anchor positjon should be marked on the chart and the forecastle officer
br¡efed on the bridge.

tn large ships, in order to establish that the ship is on the correct head¡ng and the
ship is stopped over thé ground, the anchor should be lowered to $e seabed, the
brake applied and taken out of gear. The cable should then be pa¡d out s¡owly untjl
the forecastie officer can use the lay of the cab¡e to ascerta¡n the conect sh¡p's
heading. Provided that the length of the cable does not exceed !4i99 the depth of
water, the anchor will trip or drag, thus obviating undue stress on the tackle. Some
p¡lots and masters prefer to carry out this operation with the anchor süll in gear.
When the forecastle offcer is sat¡sfied that the sh¡p's heading and headway are
correct, then the rest of the cable should be paid out and finally brought up.
Excessive sternway, once the anchor has dug into the seabed, can cause part of the
anchor system to fa¡l or carry away. The ¡nertia of large ships is considerable. A
VLCC making one knot over the ground has the same kinetic energy as Concorde at
1000 knots.

When the ship is brought up, the posiiion of the bridge should be marked on the
cha¡'t and the swing¡ng circle annotated w¡th clear¡ng bearings.

Further informat¡on about anchoring ¡n a gale and the subsequent stresses from
yawing and p¡tching, can be found ¡n the Admiralty Manual of Seamansh¡p, vol. 3,
pages 368 - 371.

Noies on shiphandling
Revis€d J¿n 2003
Anchoring Equ¡pment Defects on Large ShiPs

In this context, large ships are those greater than 150,000 dwt. A paper from Lloyds
Register collated a summary of anchor, cable and windlass defects on sh¡ps lon9er
than 240 m (f¡gure 5-5).

Number Sh¡p Anchor Anchor Cable Windlass Windlass

of ships Years defects tosses defects Component pflme
at risk defects mover
defects

119 40 120

Figure 5-5 Summary ofAnchor, Cable and Windlass defects on large ships

All ships ¡ncluded in above aÍe:

(a) 240 m or more in length

(b) Bu¡lt 1965 - 1977 inc

(c) ln service 1969 - mid 1978 inc

The "anchor defects" column excludes the 119 "anchor ¡osses", but includes those
anchors condemned at survey. The 40 "cable defects" include times when the cable
has been cut for any reason, but excludes a loss due to brake fa¡lure. Both "anchor
losses" and "com;onent defects" include the w¡ndlass brake lailing to hold'
Calculation shows ihat each large ship has a major defect problem with anchoring
equipment every 6% years.

Notes on sh¡phandling 5-10

F¡gures 5-6 and $7 describe the anchor losses ¡n more detail. In figure 5-7, ¡f
"mtoring" is considered the same as "dropping anchoi', then 66 Per cent of all brake
failures óccurred during th¡s operation. lf "unexplained losses" are then added' the
inc¡dence of brake failure rises to 80 per cent.

Windlass brakes fa¡ling to hold 71

Broken cables 10

Failed anchor shackles or anchor pins 10

Fractured shanks

Abandoned due to loss of mot¡ve power 5

No cause stated

Abandoned for operational reasons

Head and crown p¡n lost

Abandoned after windlass clutch fa¡lure

Ship coll¡s¡ons 2

'l
Washed overboard wh¡lst be¡ng overhauled

Spare anchor left ashore 1

Abandoned after windlass broke away from ¡ts seatjng 1

TOTAL 119

F¡gure 5-6 Causes ofanchor losses

Notes on shiphandlang
 Losses reported as occuning wh¡le anchor 28
being dropPed

Losses aüributed to "mooring" 19

Losses unexplained in RePort 10

Heavy weather after shiP had been at anchor 7

Attributed to ground¡ng 3

lncorreclly secured v'/hilst sh¡p undeMay 4

TOTAL 71

F¡gure 5-7 C¡rcumstances of apparent and definiie windlass brake fa¡lures resulüng
in anchors be¡ng lost

Note: lf "mooring" ¡s considered the same as

"dropp¡ng ancho¡'', then 66 per cent of all
brake failures occurred during this
oPeratlon.

lf "unexplained losses" are added, then

inc¡dence of brake failure rises to 80 per
ceni.

The general ¡nc¡dence of defects over the LR leet as a whole has not varied much
overihe years, Anchoring equipment still ach¡eves a good compromise between cost
and rel¡aLil¡ty. Only in sñips of greater than 240 metres is th¡s adequacy open to
ouest¡on.

It ¡s worthwh¡le comparing the above figures with the results of the Nautical Instituie
questionna¡fe whictr askád mariners of ALL ships which wefe the envisaged areas
needing improvement. lt is interes¡ng io note that an ¡mproved brake contro¡ ¡s seen
by the majority to warrant act¡on-

Notes on shiphandling t1z Anchor wod<

DREDGING ANCHORS

General

In the coastal trades of Europe small ships frequently resort to dredg¡ng anchors
when berthing as an aid ¡n confned areas, often in difficult tidal and wind conditions.
On larger tonnage, w¡th the excepüon of a limited number of pilotage districts, or in
cases of emergency, it is an art, which over the last two or three decades has
decl¡ned in usage. Th¡s may be for fear of damaging the anchor equipment. Such
reservations are unnecessary if the equipment ¡s used correctly and w¡thin the
operaüonal l¡mitations of the anchor, cable and wjndlass. Few opportunities exist on
board ship to practice specific areas of ship handling and th¡s is also a d¡fi¡cult aspect
of ship handling to s¡mulate in electronic simulators. lt ¡s on the other hand, an area
in wh¡ch manned models excel, offering every opportun¡ty for experimentat¡on and
practrce.

Local Knowledge

It goes withoul say¡ng, that the type of seabed ¡s of paramount ¡mportance to

dredging, soft mud be¡ng the most obvious choice. The bottom must also be free of
obstructions such as power lines, pipelines and rock, and therefore good local
knowledge ¡s essenüal. As the anchors norma¡ly dredge.iust ¡nside the lines of the
ship, there must also be adequate under keel clearance to avoid damag¡ng the hull.
Th¡s is also very much a quest¡on of local knowledge and suitability var¡es
considerably from one distict to another. lt is never the less ¡nteresting to note' that
in one d¡strict, ships of up to 120,000 dlvt frequently dredge 2 anchors, sometimes
on flat rock, to assist control when berthing without tugs. The risk of serious damage
to sh¡p or quay far outweighs damaging an anchor or windlass.

The W¡ndlass

Research has shown that wh¡lst the anchors and the cable are relat¡vely reliable, the
w¡ndlass is not. This ¡s partly due to the dispropo.t¡onate size of a windlass on the
much larger ship of today. A 1000% ¡ncrease in tonnage has only been maiched with
a 250% increase in the size of anchor gear. There has been some ev¡dence to
suggest that th¡s weakness is likely to exist ¡n ships over 50,000 dwt. In add¡üon it
should be remembered that the kinetic energy created by a ship of greater than
50,000 dwt moving over the ground in any direction, at more than say 0-3 knot, ¡s
enormous. By comparison, windlasses may only be capable of lifting a m¡n¡mum
design we¡ght, which is spec¡fied by the Ctass¡fication Socieües. This is the weight of
the ánchoi and four shackles of cable, hang¡ng dead in the water and therefore
nothing ¡n compar¡son to the full weight of the sh¡p. lf all of this energy ¡s ¡mparted
¡nto th; anchor it has to go somewhere and ¡t ¡s usually to the windlass. The
diss¡paüon of such energy results ¡n brake or gear fa¡lure!

Notes on sh¡phandling
Safety Parameters

A l¡st ¡s included at the end of th¡s chapter for those who wish further reading on the
history and use of anchors. lt is ftom th¡s source mater¡al, wh¡ch is based upon
extens¡ve research by the Class¡ficatlon Soc¡eties, that we can establish some safety
parameters within which to operate when dredging anchors.

a) The amount of cable in the water should not exceed 1% io 2 ümes the
depth of water. lf th¡s fgure ¡s exceeded the anchor ¡s l¡kely to d¡9 in
and commence hold¡ng.

b) The design speed of a windlass gypsy in gear ¡s about 30 feeum¡nute

which ¡s approximately 3 m¡nutes a shackle, Th¡s is equal to a ship
sPeed of 0.3 knots over the ground.

c) The windlass is only des¡gned to l¡ft the dead we¡ght of the anchor and
four shackles.

lf therefore. the amount of cable in the water does not exceed 1yz to 2 times the
depih, we have a safety factor which guards against speeds in excess of 0.3 knot,
because the anchors w¡ll not d¡g in and hold, but w¡ll drag. (Some compan¡es use 0.5
knot).

When the amount of cable exceeds 1y2 to 2lJfies the depth, the speed must be
below 0.3 knot, espec¡ally if the windlass is ¡n gear or the brake is ssewed up. The
anchor wil¡ most certainly d¡g in and attempt to hold the full weight of the ship.

Letting Go

On smaller ships, when p¡lots are puttjng out anchors for dredging purposes, it ¡s
customary to'let the anchor go' on the brake. On large ships' however, with
unknown equipment and crews of mixed nationality and capab¡l¡ty' it may be
appropriate to walk out the anchors in gear rather than let them go on the brake. Th¡s
affords the Dilot much more control over lhe operation, guarding aga¡nst the crew
'screwing up' the brake w¡th the wrong amount of cable out' or worse süll, letting the
cable run away, leav¡ng the pilot with 12 shackles out on both anchors!

Each shipp¡ng company tends to have the¡r own specifc stand¡ng orders for
anchoring iarge sirips with the¡r individual methods \,vhich ¡nvariably work around
these recommendat¡ons and should be adhered to at all times.

Notes on shiphandling
Revɀd Jan 2003
Dredg¡ng Two Anchors

Dredging of anchors ¡s remarkably effect¡ve at elim¡nat¡ng the two major problems

that occur when berth¡ng without tugs, namely control of heading and speed. The
effect of dredg¡ng can be seen in igure S8. The sh¡p ¡s conducting a dredge with
two anchors, work¡ng into a port side berthing posit¡on. By dredging the two anchors
the p¡vot point is brought right forward between the two windlasses. This g¡ves the
ship a much improved and excellent steering lever. The small we¡ght of the two
anchors ¡s also surprisingly effecüve in controll¡ng the speed of the shiP. Even whilst
ma¡ntain¡ng dead slow revolutions, the ship may gradually slow down and stop.
Th¡s in turn ensures that the pivot point rema¡ns forward and that lateral res¡siance,
which would otherwise oppose tuming ab¡lity, is also kept low throughout.

The net result ¡s an ab¡l¡ty to keep the speed down, but at the same t¡me use main
power more effc¡endy when controlling heading with k¡cks ahead. The bow can
virtually be driven on the anchors, to the desired position and more to the point w¡ll
remain there. At the same t¡me, the old enemy, speed ¡s kept well under control!

Frequendy Masters express concem as to whether two anchors being dredged will
foul each other wh¡le the ship ¡s turn¡ng. The answer to th¡s is no because, if the ratio
of cable to depth of water ¡s conect, one anchor simply cannot reach the cable of the
other and they shou¡d therefore also be easy to recover once alongs¡de.

Notes on shiphandling 5- 15
 NOfE

a) Spccd MüST bc lov

b) ldAEldüM C€blc Dcpth x 2

c) godcrtee¡ clca¡a¡cc ¡!Es! b¿

at teas! 20% of B¿xb.Ea SpcÉd r@a¡Ls loe

s
Pleot Poiat bÉrreea
rro aEcbols tT)

Excdlcc¡l stcÉr¡lg lesc!

eit! k¡iks ¿lrad
tl l'-

Figure 5-8 Dredg¡ng two anchors

Notes on sh¡phandliñg
RevÉed Jan 2003
116 Anchor work I
Dredg¡ng One Anchor

Generally speak¡ng because p¡lots and masters have more exper¡ence of dredging
one anchor then two, the question ¡s frequently asked, 'Why dredge two anchors?".
The answer ¡s relatively simple: because dredg¡ng one anchor only achieves 50 % of
the effect wh¡ch could otherwise be ga¡ned by dredg¡ng two anchors. lt is, therefore,
not poss¡ble to use anything like the same amount of power for positioning ihe bow
and the speed ¡s nowhere near as easy to control.

By us¡ng one anchor, particulariy on large beam sh¡ps, ¡t should be remembered that
the pivol point is moved out to the s¡de, figure 5-9. Th¡s creates an effective turning
moment, in much the same manner as a back spring- Th¡s can qu¡te clearly be felt
and needs constant counier helm to correct, which can be initating ¡f a sÍaight l¡ne
aDDroach is desired. On the other hand, if a large tum in confined waters ¡s
necessary prior to berth¡ng then this tendency can obv¡ously be ut¡l¡sed and turned to
great advantage.

The single anchor can be viewed effectjvely as a back spring. The val¡dity of these
points sñould be considered tvhen deciding whether to deploy one/two anchors.

It should be Dointed out that there is a natural tendency to turn the ship too early
when approaching the berth which can lead to the embarrassing and poss¡bly
dangeroui s¡tuation of having the ship in a posiüon too far off the berth but with the
anchor down and restrict¡ng movement.

Notes on shiphandling +17 Anchor work

 P= PivotPoi¡t
Pr = ¡rac:¡ Sg'og
B¡cc¡

* Exc¿oeot tlrr¡¡gg
lcact

F¡gure 5-9 Dredg¡ng one ancnor

Anchor work
$18
Notes on sh¡Phandling
lmportant Points

There is a very fne l¡ne between the success or fa¡lure of a dredg¡ng operaüon The
following points are crucial in order to ach¡eve the desired results:-

a) Ma¡ntain the normal s¡ow speed of approach prior to letting go, or

walking out, the anchors. lf the ship is stopped the anchors will d¡9 in and it
is ihen difficult to get underway again. The sh¡p may also dr¡ft badly out of
pos¡t¡on.

b) Watk the anchors out as early as possible' This g¡ves sufficient time to get
the feel ofthe ship before the berth ¡s reached.

c) Do not let the sh¡p stop too early. Th¡s lets the anchor flukes drop and d¡g
¡n and it ihen takes substanüal power to get the ship underway again

d) Do not let the speed build up. This pushes the p¡vot po¡nt back to its normal
positon. Consequentiy the anchors cease to be effective and are of no use.

e) Do not exceed 1y2 to zlimes the depth. lt is possible however, espec¡ally

on small ships, to 'feel' the anchors ancj adjust the amount of cable
accordingly.

f) Keep the we¡ght on the anchors. Go¡ng astern the sh¡p w¡ll iake the we¡ght
off the cables and they become ineffective.

g) Avoid rush¡ng the opention, particularly swinging, on large ships. There

should only be a gende and steady strain on the cable(s); the manoeuvre
being slow but very eñective.

h) Once ¡n position on the berth, slack back the cables as the tension ¡n them ¡s
sufiicient to pull the ship ofi the berth.

Notes on shiphandling 1.19

 BIBLIOGRAPHY

1 Buckle, A K, of Defects and Fa¡lures in Large Sh¡ps'

'"|-en Year Review
Anchoring and Mooring Equ¡pment", IME Conference on Mooring Large
Sh¡ps over 150,000 dwt. December'1979.

2 Bruce, P, "lnadequacy ofAnchors ¡n Large Ships". Same conference as 1.

3 Danton, G L, "The Theory and Pract¡ce of Seamansh¡p".

4 Van den Hoak, R, "Des¡gn of Anchors, Cables and Mooring Wires". Same
conference as 'l .

5 Admiralty Manual of Seamansh¡p, vol 3, pages 288; 290.

6 Ono,AO, "Survey ofAnchoring Systems", Seaways. September 1983.

7 Berry, F, "Operat¡onal Requirements for Anchors and Assoc¡ated Equipment

with Special Reference to Large Ships to cons¡der a Standard Procedure ¡n
bringíng Large Vessels to Anchor ¡n Remote Off-Shore Anchorages".

Notes on shiphándling 5-20

 CHAPTER SIX

INTERACTION

lñteract¡on
Notes on shiphandling 6-1
lnteraction
This is anolher area where manned models excel g¡ving offcers every opportunity to
take their sh¡p ¡n c¡ose to a bank or ship at var¡ous speeds and experience the
efiects of ¡nteraction for real.

Bank Effect

The oroblem ¡n its most simplistic form is the boundary layer of water that surrounds
a ship when ¡t is mak¡ng headway- Forward of the pivot point a positlve pressure
area bu¡lds up wh¡lst aft of the pivot point the flow of water down the sh¡ps side'
creates a low pressure area, see fgure 6-1. This area extends out from the sh¡p and
¡n deep open water clear of other traffc is not a problem.

l¡¡F Fes*sute a¡ea

Los prÉsflI¡e ars¿

Figure 6-1 Pressure d¡stribution w¡th headway (simpl¡fied)

Notes on sh¡Phandl¡ng lnterac'bon

RevÉed Jan 2003
lf, however, the ship commences to close a vertical obstruction, such as a shoal or
canal bank, the area experiences some degree of resfiction and the sh¡p will be
iniuenced by the resuttant forces wh¡ch build up. lt ¡s often thought that the pos¡t¡ve
pressure at the bow is the main problem, probably because of the tendency to relate
most channel work to the bow and heading. Looking at figure &2 it can be seen that
whilst pressure at the bow is important it is only working on a short turning lever
forward of the p¡vot po¡nt. The Iow pressure or sucüon area ¡s, on the other hand,
working well aft of the pivot po¡nt and consequently ¡s a very strong force.

Iligh Pressu¡e a.-ea

Figure 6-2 Bank effect

As a result of the two forces wh¡ch have deve¡oped, the stem of the ship ¡s likely to
be sucked inio the bank. lt can be very d¡fficult to break out of its hold, the ship
requ¡ring constant coÍrective rudder and power, sometimes hard over, in order to
control heading. Excessive speed, yet again, ¡s a crucial factor ¡n creating a'Bank
Effecf problem, because the magnitude of the forces vary with the square of the
shiDs sDeed or water fow.

Notes on shiphandl¡ñg lnteracfon

Souat

So far we have only considered a vert¡cal obstruction in the vic¡n¡ty of the sh¡p'
é¡oJO ¡t be running ¡n sha¡low water' depth less than tw¡ce the draft' an
"l.o
aOJ¡tion"t ou"trrction exisis which can seriously compound ihe problem ln fgure
6-3 the ship is running on even keel with a small under keel clearance and'
t¡"r"f.". *át", *itich wiuld normally pass under the ship is now severely restricted'

ñorE ílrft¡g l€rlf

Figure 63 Shallow water

Th¡s resutts in two th¡ngs, firstly due to the bu¡ld up of water ahead of the ship'
longitudinal resistance plsnes ttre pivot point back from..P t9 PP ?ry the steer¡ng
iávár ¡s reOuceo. Secondly the *"tet u"ing forced under the bow, at.a
higher speed
will now
than normal, creates a low pressure and lóss underkeel clearance- The ship
cases have
Squat ¡V né Bo!y' wh¡ch in tum makes the problem even worse'.Several
Uein t"óott"O of large ships runn¡ng in shallow water and eperienc¡ng bow sinkage
of up to 2 metres!

Rc.!uc'd stccrilg t€v€t

F¡gure 64 The effect of squat (water pressure)

Notes on shiphandling u lnteÉct¡on

In add¡üon to the poss¡bil¡ty of grounding foMard there also exists the poss¡bility of
losing control and sheering violentiy out of a channel. lf the helmsman allows a small
swing to develop, longitudinal resistance ahead of the ship will be brought round
onto the exposed bow (as ¡n figure 6-5) which in tum will encourage a violent swing
¡n the same direction as the helm. Counter helm to correct the swing may be
sluggish because as we have seen, the steering lever is reduced Once the sh¡p
does respond, it may now sheer v¡olenüy the other way. A chain reaction then sets
in, w¡th the sh¡p sheering badly from one s¡de to the other and fail¡ng to respond
corecüy to the helm. The effect can be extremely rap¡d, with the sh¡p out of the
channel and aground ¡n just a few minutes. Excessive speed ¡s the main contribuüng
factor under such circumstances: reduced speeds are essential to avoid such violent
forces bu¡ld¡ng up.

Ragid sbÉcr
Eay dcrdaF

J-
-l- -l-

F¡gure 6-5 The effect of squat (helm response)

Trim ¡s also important and in some districts the pilotage authority may refuse to
handle certa¡n ships ¡f they are trimmed by the head and may even request a small
üim by the stem. The latter does, in any case, improve the steering lever and
therefore the handl¡ng of a ship, it may also be intended as an allowance fo¡ squat by
the bow and very much a decis¡on based upon local knowledge and experience.

Notes on shiphandling G5 lrteracbon

Shallow Water
the doma¡n of
It would be wrong to ¡mply that bank effect ¡s only eperienced with¡n
canals and nverl with steep s¡ded banks, as ¡llustrated in figure 6-6 To a sh¡P
iunning in st'attow water, with adjacent but gently shelving mud or sand banks' such
insid¡ous and
ai lorailying estuarial areas, as ¡; figure 6-7, the efiect can be far more
violent-

There are many cases, in the archives of casualty investigation'-where groundings

aná collisions hive occuned ¡n such areas, due to drast¡c loss of control' whilst the
ship was under the combined ¡nfluence of shallow water and bank effect'

onenoticeablefeatureinsomeofthesecasuatt¡esiSthetendencytoimmediate|y
reduce revoluüons or even stop the eng¡ne, when faced with the sh¡p sheering the
*onluriy áno apparently failing to respond to progressively larger angles of helm'
fneré may be circumstances when it is of paramount ¡mportance.lo reduce speed'
Ouiiñ ó"t"f tems hard over rudder and a healthy'kick ahead' are essential to
regaining control.

These are of course generaliües and every event ¡s d¡ctated by a set of un¡que
circumstances.
problems what so
It is clear that many ships work daily ¡n shallow water without any
ever, just occasionally however, ált the ¡ngred¡ents, shallow water' bank effect'
speed and poor trim, come together and combine ¡n an ¡nsidious
manner
"rcesÁiu"
to create another casualty.

Sh¡p to Ship lnteract¡on

|tisclearthusfarthatagreatdealofcautionneedstobeshownwhenoperaüngin
nairo* an¿ shallow watérs' lt almost goes without say¡ng' thát extreme care is
getttng
ná"J"6 ii li i. now ¡ntended to bring anóther ship into the same s¡tuation by
involved ¡n an overtaking or pass¡ng s¡tuation as well'

lntea¿ct¡on
Notes on shiphandliñg
)

steeo sided ba¡ks

uow C 9A
-L
--L

.-__*...---.-....-..
1--'-'

F¡gure 64 Bank configurat¡on - steep s¡ded

Figure 6-7 Bank confguration - shallow shelvinq

Notes on shiphandl¡ng 6-7 lnter¿ction

Passing

In the ¡nterests of both simplicity and clarjty the sequence of events during a 'meeting
end on'manoeuvre are contained in figures S8, Gg and 6-10

2- &tb shrp's bows EaY

be pushed aPart

Maintaining a centre of channel approach pos¡üon

Figure 6-8 Passing - Phase 1

Notes on sh¡phandl¡ng H lnteraction

Ressed Jan 2003
 Asstsrs botn sbips

i
l-

Ass¡srs bor!. s43

to ¡cgajD .¡-ñc1 c!!lt!

F¡gure 6-9 Pass¡ng - Phase 2

G9 lnteracfuon
Notes on shiphandling
 .SssÉts boü! sh¡ps
to stcady b' c¡alacl cqd¡¡E

Figure 6-10 Passing - Phase 3

Notes on sttiphandl¡ng
G10
,"f;' lnteract¡on
The overtak¡ng opetation is shown ¡n figures 6-11, &12 and 6-13.

r-r
-Li

S¡dg B ri¡l .q'.¡¡cEc.

a¡ bc!€ásc b. sÉ

F¡gure 6-ll Overtaking Phase 1

Notes on sh¡phandling lnteraclion

 J-i
-r
I :'

-+-

StoDg h¡ÉtDg fo¡c.

=>

F¡gure 6-12 Overtak¡ng - Phase 2

q^12 lnteraction
Notes on shiphandling
RevÉed Jañ 2@3
 Stroq€i tur¡i!€i fo¡c€

€ *,*
r-l-

<
---"t/
NB. L-_./'
Ship B eiü iDcrease qteed

Figure 6-13 Overtaking - Phase 3

Notes on shiphandling &13 lnterac{on
RevÉ€d J¿n 2003
The following general po¡nts should be noted..-

a) Prior to the manoeuvre each sh¡p remains ¡n the centre of the channel
for a long as possible. Fa¡lure to do so, could expose e¡ther sh¡p to
bank effect, lead¡ng to a sheer across the path of the oncom¡ng sh¡p or
grounding-

b) Soeed should be low to reduce the interactive forces- There is then'

plenty of reserve power for correcüve 'kicks ahead'.

c) lf the sh¡ps pass f¡om deep to shallow water, at any üme during the
manoeuvre, the forces will increase drastically and extreme caut¡on
should be exercised-

d) The smaller of two ships and tugs, are likely to be the most seriously
affected. Large ships should be aware of th¡s and adjust their sPeed
accordingly.

e) Figures &8 to G13 illustrate the anüc¡pated sheers that may develop
throughout each manoeuvre and the max¡mum corective helm that
may be required, ¡n this case 35.

f) The engines should be brought to dead slow ahead for the manoeuvre,
particularly turbine or fixed pitch propeller ships, so that power ¡s
instantly available to control the ship with'kicks ahead'.

S) On completion of the manoeuvre each ship should regain the c€ntre of

the channel as qu¡ckly as poss¡ble to avoid any furtherance of bank
effect.

It should be stressed that ¡n these notes and throughout all the other'Notes on
Ship Handling' every efiott has been made to strike a balance between what is
considered essent¡al theoret¡cal content and practica¡ appl¡cat¡on. They a¡e
intended to be supplementary to manned model exerc¡ses, which put into
pracüce much of the¡r content and by giv¡ng ind¡v¡duals suff¡cient work¡ng
knowledge, and food for thought for the future, should they wish to investigate
more thoroughly some pract¡cal aspect of ship handling.

Notes on sh¡phandl¡ng 614 ln{eraclion

Rsis€d Ja¡ 2003
 CHAPTER SEVEN

THE USE OF TUGS

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 7-1 The Use ot Tugs

R4isd Ja¡ 2003
Tugs

There are throughout the harbours, offshore installat¡ons and waterways of the world
a d¡verse rangtof maitime operations, each of which has ¡t own working practrces
concem¡ng tñe use of tugs. These will have developed as a result of spec¡fic
operationál demands within an ind¡v¡dua¡ p¡lofs d¡strict which may have been
infuenced by some or all ofthe following '

. TYPe of ships being serv¡ced.

. Number of ships being tumed around.
. Environmenlal cond¡üons.
. Navigational constraints.
. S¡ze and type oftugs ava¡lable.
. Economicconside¡aüons.
. lnherent historic or fadiüonal practices.
. Experience levels of personnel involved.

Given such a wide sphere of operations across the world, it is obviously d¡fficult to
develop general ¡nstructional mater¡al for tug operaüons. Not surprisingly' in some
cases, ¡t;lay come into conflict with more spec¡fic individual working methods which
naturally take priority and this ¡s fully appreciated and understood.

A p¡tots' initial expertíse with the use of tugs ¡s frequently lestricteg to what can be
gleaned fiom the advice of sen¡or p¡lots and colleagues during tra¡nlng' some¡mes a
brief period as an observer on a fug, and thereafter personal elpenence

With these po¡nts ¡n mind th¡s chapter ¡s intended solely as a basis from wh¡ch to
start and to assist officers and pilots ¡n develop¡ng or re¡nforcing their own ideas and
exper¡ence when using tugs.

To gain a broad insight into the use of tugs, it is frst important to be aware of the
typis of tug commonly ava¡lable and in part¡cular the¡r strengths or weaknesses To
dó tnl" it is helpful tb group the many d¡fferent types of tugs according to the¡r
working methods and this prov¡des the following broad categories '

. Conventional fugs.
. Tractor tugs.
. Az¡muth stern drive tugs (ASD).

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng The Use of Tugs

convenüonal Tugs

The conven¡onal or traditional tug, for years the work horse of the mar¡tjme ¡ndustry
and still widely employed, has two ¡nhe¡ent design features which can, by modem
standards, Iimit its effciency. These are .....

. The trad¡t¡onal DroDuls¡on un¡t-

. The tow¡ng hook position.

The propulsion un¡t ¡s usually a s¡ngle right or left handed proPeller of e¡ther fixed or
controllable p¡tch des¡gn, with a siandard rudder configuration, not unl¡ke many small
vessels world w¡de. To increase bollard pull, from the power un¡t, some have the
propeller placed in a fixed shroud and may be twin screwed. Wh¡lst they are
economical, relatively powerful, have good sea keeping qual¡ties and well proven
over the years, they are, neveriheless, by modem standards, fa¡riy restricted by
bas¡c manoeuvrabil¡ty.

Th¡s means lhat the convenuonal tug, if required to do so by the p¡lot, might be slow
and sometimes ¡¡m¡ted ¡n its ab¡l¡ty to repos¡tion qu¡ckly. The tug's master must also
be very careful to avo¡d d¡ffcult s¡tuat¡ons whereby the tug may become trapped and
unable to manoeuvre teely to a safer pos¡tion, if it is beyond its handl¡ng caPab¡l¡t¡es.

L¡ke most trad¡tional vessels, propulsion is at the stern, and this d¡ctates the design
posiüon of the towing hook. When a tug is mak¡ng way as an ordinary vesse¡, with no
tow connected, or when mak¡ng way and toÚng, but the with the tow l¡ne slack, the
pivot po¡nt will be approximately a % of the length of the tug from forward and the tug
may be expected to handle ¡ike any other conventional vessel.

Once however, a tow ¡s connected (see figure 7-1) and the tug takes the weight' ¡t ¡s
l¡kely that the pivot point (P) will move aft towards the position of the towing po¡nt or
hook, wh¡ch w¡ll usua¡ly be as far Jorward as des¡gn perm¡ts and as near am¡dships
as poss¡ble. AJthough the d¡stance of (P) ftom the propeller and therefore thrust (T) ¡s
now reduced, ¡t is at¡ll substantial and the tug reta¡ns a good turning moment (PT)
and a fa¡r degree of manoeuvrab¡¡¡ty under the tow-

Notes on Shiphandling The Us€ of Tugs

 <-
TP
F¡gu¡e 7-l Convenüona¡ tug - without gob rope

lf, however, any attempt ¡s made to rig¡dly fix the tow, at or closer to the stem (see
figure 7-2) it results in a large or total reducüon of (PT), which will result ¡n a serious
loss of manoeuvrab¡l¡ty. The towing hook therefore needs to be pos¡üoned as far
foMard of the propulsion un¡t as possible, thus allowing the tug freedom of
movement under the tow l¡ne.

_.-----><-_
T

F¡gure 7-2 Convenüonal tug - w¡th gob rope

Notes on Sh¡phandlang 74 The Use of Tugs

Th¡s combination of towing hook am¡dsh¡ps and lim¡ted manoeuvrabil¡ty, has a
tendency to place the convenüonal tug at particular risk to e¡ther interact¡on or
girting.

lnteraction Fo¡ward

In 1950 a lead¡ng tug manufacturer conducted a research Programme into a large

number of tug acc¡dents all of which had resulted in the loss of l¡fe. The most
common cause of these acc¡dents was found to be "interact¡on". Since then the size
of ships using tugs has ¡ncreased enormously and the tug, st¡tl relat¡vely small and
often working alongside, must be very much more at risk from this invisible
pnenomenon.

In simple terms, a ship making headway through the water has zones of differing
water pressures surrounding it. This results ¡n a pos¡tive pressure forward of its pivot
point extend¡ng out from the ship, whilst a low pressure or sucüon area ex¡sts all the
way down the ship's s¡de fom the p¡vot po¡nt to the propeller. (see chapter 6 -
Inléraction). Near the stern this suction area is augmented by the flow of water ¡nto
the propeller aperture wh¡lst the engine ¡s tuming ahead and, it should be noted, at
any time whilst controllable pitch propellers are engaged.

It should be remembered that ihe strength of these ¡nteraction zones and the
distance they extend out from the sh¡P can increase dramatically, not only with a
small increase in ship speed but also ¡f the sh¡p passes into shallow water and the
Dressure zones are restricted.

When a tug ¡s working its way in towards the ship's forebody' with the intention of
passing a line forward, ¡t may pass through one or more of these important arees
(see fgure 7-3) and eperience adverse handling characterisücs.

/1

Figure 7-3 Tug interaction - forward

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng The Use of Tugs

In Figure 7-3, pos¡tjon 1 for example, and s¡m¡larly all the way down the s¡de of the
sh¡p, if the tug is allowed to get ¡n too close, ¡t might, despite all the efforts to prevent
it, be bodily and inexpl¡cably sucked ¡nto the sh¡p's side. Th¡s m¡ght occur
un¡ntentionally in strong w¡nds, when a tug ¡s in the lee of a large sh¡p which ¡s
dr¡ñjng down upon it. Once trapped alongside ¡t can be extremely d¡fficult to get off
aga¡n, unless the ship's speed is substant¡ally reduced thereby relax¡ng the strength
of the suction area. For the unfortunate tug master, this can be the start of a chain of
handling difficulües which can accumulate and end ¡n disaster.

ln pos¡tion 2 the tug is aga¡n work¡ng in close to the sh¡p's s¡de and pass¡ng through
an area where it ¡s half in and half out of the respective pressure and suction zones.
A positive force ¡s pushing the bow out ftom the ship, wh¡le another force is pull¡ng
the stem ¡nto the sh¡p- This comb¡ned tuming couple will ceate a strong shear away
from the ship which will require rapid and bold use of both helm and power to conect
IL

When work¡ng close ¡n under the bows, ¡n posiüon 3, the tug may have run sl¡ghtly
ahead of the ship's bow pressure zone and consequenüy ind a very strong posiüve
force being exerted on the stern and rudder- This will give a sim¡lar effect to that of
putting the helm hard over towards the bow of the sh¡p and the tug could sheer
rap¡dly across its path. Bold conect¡ve counter rudder with power will be needed
instantly, but even then may be ineffective against a force which can be very strong.

lf the ship's speed is too high and the ¡nteracüon forces conespondingly severe, or if
the tug master fa¡ls to keep conAol, the tug can find iisef ¡n pos¡tion 4 with alarm¡ng
and fatal rap¡dity. The consequences may be flooded decks and serious coll¡s¡on
damage, particularly from undenvater contact with the sh¡p's bulbous bow, with the
poss¡b¡l¡ty of capsize and loss of life

A sudden and catastrophic loss of stab¡lity is the most likely cause of a caps¡ze and
th¡s can occur even with a very sl¡ght collis¡on. Tugs, ¡t should be noted, roll over and
flood extremely quickly, thus affording little time for the crew to escaPel

lnteract¡on Aft
When a tug is approaching to pass a line aft ii is also likely to feel the effect of
interaction and may, similar to the forward tug, experience some handl¡ng difiiculües-
This will be particulariy evident ¡f the sh¡p's speed has not been suffic¡enfly reduced.
The resultiant ¡nteraction forces may be too strong, causing vigorous suction, or low
pressure area, around the after body of the ship (see fgure 7-4). This is
compounded by the more obvious and widely recognised risk that is associated with
work¡ng under the stem, in close proxim¡ty of the ship's propeller,

Notes on Shiphandling 74 Ihe Use of fugs

 !

Figure 7-4 Tug interaction - aft

When a tug makes ¡ts approach and is in, for example, Position l, it wi¡l be
¡niuenced by this suct¡on and may start to lake a sheer towards the sh¡p's stem- As
this maybe a low pressure area, the tug w¡ll have less water res¡stance ahead of ¡t
and may also experience an unexpected increase in speed. Unless qu¡ck acüon ¡s
taken, with counter rudder and appropr¡ate power, the tug w¡ll be drawn unw¡ttingly
into the stem of the ship and become stuck somewhere alongs¡de in the reg¡on of
position 2.

Extreme cases are possible, when the forces are so strong that the tug fails to
respond to full rudder or power and may ¡nadvertentjy ¡and heav¡ly alongs¡de. lf the
sh¡p ¡s in bal¡ast, partly loaded or has a large overhang¡ng stem the tug could be
drawn into pos¡üon 3, with the poss¡bility of serious structural damage to the tug's
superstructure and uppefworks.

The danger from the propeller is a more obvious threat and, naturally, care should be
exercised r,vñenever a tug ¡s working close under the stern. Wh¡lst it ¡s the safest
'best pracbce'for a conventional propeller to be stopped it ¡s not always pract¡cable,
particularly with controllable p¡tch propellers, and the tug's master should always be
kept fully informed as to the status of the Propulsion unit when com¡ng in close. This
is, in any case, a good policy to adopt during all tug operat¡ons.

Wh¡lst procedures vary from port to port, some tug masters may opt to make their
approach in relative safety from dead astem, on the centre line of the ship. When
close ¡n, bow to stern, the first l¡ne is passed down to the tug's bow and then the tug
eases out to a safer position, to complete mak¡ng fast and tak¡ng up stat¡on-

Notes on Sh¡phandliñg The Use ofTugs

G¡rt¡ng a Tug

There have, in the past, been serious accidents involv¡ng tugs capsizing that have
resulted ¡n a tragic loss of life, and which have been caused by a phenomenon
known variously as girth¡ng, gird¡ng or girting' in differing parts of the wodd W¡th
the¡r towing hook am¡dships conventional tugs have always been vulnerable to
girting and their basic manoeuvrability makes ¡t all the more difficult to extricate this
type óf tug, should it be caught in such an unenv¡able position. lt can be caused by
one, or both of the following

. The ship tuming independendy and too quickly away from the tug'
. Excessive stra¡ght line speed with a tug made fast.

Let us look, at an example of a common s¡tuation, with a convenüonal tug forward on

a long line as ¡n Figure 7-5.

F¡gu¡e 7-5 Girting a tug - secured forward

Position 1 - in lh¡s area the tug is relatively safe and regardless of whether the ship's
speed is too high it does not result ¡n any ¡mmed¡ate problem, Provided it rema¡ns
wiih a smatt ang-le on the bow. Wh¡lst it can remain in attendance such á small arc of
relatively safe e?ectiveness will naturally l¡mit its operat¡onal capabil¡ües'

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 7A The Use of Tugs

Posit¡on 2 - ¡f the tug is out ¡n th¡s position broad on the bow, the sh¡p could as a
result of too much starboard helm or excessive speed, or both, outrun the tug which
may have neither the time nor manoeuvrab¡lity to iurn and keep up with the rapidly
swinging or accelerat¡ng sh¡p.

Position 3 - this is the worst possible situaüon where the tug ¡s being pulled around
on the rad¡us of the tow l¡ne and because of the pos¡üon of its hook, is then dragged
along with the tow l¡ne out on ¡ts beam. Due to the nature of the forces involved, ¡t
will also be pulled over to a dangerous angle of heel and unless the tow line breaks,
or can be released immediately, the tug which is powerless to respond and already
l¡sting heaüly, may capsize!

A conventional tug working aft, is perhaps more at risk than the forward tug, as ¡ts
des¡gn characteristics frequently ob¡ige ¡t to lay with the tow ¡¡ne much more ¡ncl¡ned
towards ¡ts beam as ¡n F¡gure 7-6.

F¡gure 7-5 Girt¡ng a tug - secured aft

Position 1 - prov¡ded the sh¡p is either stopped or proceed¡ng at extremely low

speeds a conven¡onal tug can work quite effcientiy w¡th maximum bollard pull in all
d¡rections at this and any other pos¡t¡on around the stern.

Position 2 - if the sh¡p's speed now ¡ncreases, the tug will have to work around onto a
heading which is more in keep¡ng w¡th the sh¡p, not only to keep up with the
acceleraüng ship but also to ma¡nta¡n a safe lead with the tow line. Th¡s does,
however, have a tendency to encourage the tug master to work with the tow line

Notes on Shiphandling 7-9 The Use of Tugs

dangerously near the tug's beam and unfortunately also results in substantial loss of
bollárd pull over what was a prev¡ously large useful arc of operation.

Position 3 - should the ship's speed become excess¡ve, or ¡f the stern of the ship ¡s
swung rapidly away from the tug, ¡t may be unable to respond qu¡ckly enough and
could fa¡l to keep the safe station previously ¡llustrated. As a consequence' the tug
m¡ght be dragged around on the radius of the towline, to this dangerous pos¡tion and
capsize with shock¡ng rap¡dity.

It is also very important to note that a tug attending a sh¡p aft, but in the close
confines of a'lock, may fnd ¡tself in a similar situation, but with even less ab¡l¡ty to
manoeuvre. Should the iug get caught across the lock with a ship proceed¡ng at too
high a speed it wilt be exposed to a very serious risk of g¡rtjng.

For those unfortunate enough to have witnessed it, a tug being g¡rted and caPsized
¡s an awesome and frightening sight. lt frequently happens too quickly to activate
quick release gear and allows absolutely no time whatsoever for the evacuation of
the crew who may become traPped ¡n the submerged tug'

The Gob Rope

The convenüonal tug, ¡n comparison w¡th he more manoeuvrable tractor tug and
azimuth stern drive tug, may be at a d¡sadvantage as a result of ....-

.Inierac¡on.
. Girting.
. Excessive ship speed-
. Confned locks and dock areas.
. Tradiüonal manoeuvrabil¡tY.

In certain cases, some convent¡onal tug masters m¡ght be seen working a gob, or
qob rope in order to ¡mprove safety and performance (see ñgure 7-7) This is a rope
ót sultáute lengih and strength which a crewman w¡ll use on the towing deck, to
bowse down or'gob down' the main tow rope and which may subsequently be
adjusted in length when required by the master'

Notes on Shiphandling 7-10 The Use of Tugs

 Gob Rope
=--- ocngtb aéjr¡stablel

Figure 7-7 Conventional tug - working a gob rope

Its use brings the pivot poini of the tug (see figure 7-1) añ io the area of the gob rope
and this encoureges the tug to p¡vot around that po¡nt and keep ¡ts stem up to the
tow-

Limitations and safety

,..--7

F¡gure 7-8 Gob rope - lim¡taüons and safety

Notes on Shiphandl,ng The Use of Tugs

Revised Ja¡ 2003
Posit¡on 1 - once secured the gob rope cleariy lim¡ts the manoeuvrab¡l¡ty of the tug's
stem under the tow l¡ne to a relatively small arc. On the other hand it is a good
compromise as ¡i hetps to keep the tug's stem up to the ship. At su¡tably low speeds
the tug can be usefully employed to dig ¡n and ass¡st when needed. The tug master
may o¿casionally slacken the gob rope right off to regain tull manoeuvrability ¡f it is
necessary in order to reposition the tug before taking the weight aga¡n

Position 2 and 3 - these two positions show the tug w¡th its gob rope secured'
exposed to the risk of g¡rt¡ng due to excess¡ve ship speed and being swung around
on the radius of the tow line. In this ¡nstance, however, because the gob rope has
kept the pivot po¡nt aft it is be¡ng swung safely around by ¡ts stem thus g¡ving the tug
master valuable time during which lhe tow may be safely slipped.

Using the tug's weight

Tlie convenüonal tug ¡s clearly at ¡ts best when ¡t can ut¡lise its maximum power and
apply tull bollard pull to the tow ¡ine or shiP when so required Naiurally, there is a
tendency br th¡s to be at ¡ts best when the ship ¡s fairly staiic i.e. when swinging,
posit¡oning, breasting or lifting off etc. To the exPerienced mar¡ner these movements
are by and large straight forward and do not requ¡re elaborat¡ng upon.

An alternaüve. if the bollard pull cannot be applied directly, usually because the sh¡P
is making way, ¡s to'¡ay' on the tow line and use the tug's weight to do the job, v.¡hile
the power ¡s used primarily to maintain pos¡iion and headway.

The forward tug is ¡llustrated doing this ¡n figure 7-9. lt has eased out on the bow' a¡l
the üme continuing to make headway which is comparable with the ship and is laying
on the tow line using ¡!s own weight, rather than d¡rect bollard pull alone, to swing the
ship's bow to starboard. This unfortunately becomes ¡ncreas¡ngly Iess effective ¡f the
ship's speed ¡s pem¡tted to build up, because the tug's effort is then wasted on
keeping up with the ship and ma¡nta¡ning a safe pos¡tjon.

Notes on Shiphandling The Use ofTugs

RevÉed J¿r 2003
 Figure 7-9 Us¡ng the tug's we¡ght - secured foMard

In compar¡son to the forward tug, the after tug, if it is using its ma¡n towing hook' is
much more restricted in its arc of operaüon, and ¡f the ship's speed ¡s too h¡gh ¡s
usually reduced to following the ship on a slack line uniil required, this ¡s shown ¡n
posit¡on 1 figure 7-10. However ¡t can, if ¡t ¡s safe to do so, move out to pos¡tion 2 or
thereabouts and'lay'on the tow line w¡th ¡ts own we¡ght, but unfortunately ¡t must
keep the low line aft of the towing hook pos¡tion. Under the circumstances this
design feature seriously lim¡ts ihe tug's arc of operation.

Figure 7-10 Us¡ng the tug's we¡ght - secured aft

Notes on Shiphandling ?-13 The Use of Tugs

To overcome this lim¡taüon, a convenüonal tug deployed aft may occasionally be
seen working with the tow line secured forward but it must be bome ¡n m¡nd that th¡s
m¡ght then ñave to be let go and re'secured on the main towing hook in order to
wo-rk ¡n the conventional way. This ¡s generally cons¡dered ¡nconvenient and not
commonplace.

Two important things must be remembered ¡f tugs are being used ¡n th¡s way '

. The risk of girting is increased and the tug master must keep a close eye
on the ship's speed.

. The tugs may impart an ins¡d¡ous increase in speed to the sh¡p which
needs to be monitored

Whilst there are clearly limitations assoc¡ated with conventional tug design, it should
not be forgotten that ihey have been for many years the workhorse of the towng
industry a;d are st¡ll ecoñomical, well proven and invaluable in-the hands of a good
tug maiter. They can be very powerful, modest horse Power often bely¡ng excellent
uoilard pull, párticularly by placing the propellers ¡n shrouds or tunnels and the
master'can 'Aig ¡n' oit á tow t¡ne and put this power to enormous effect'
Manoeuvrabil¡ty can also be improved by using tw¡n propellers and bow thrusters'
Notwithstandin¡ this, however, manufacturers have developed totally different
concepts ¡n tu! oesign ¡n an effort to achieve outstanding tug performance and
manoeuvrability.

Tractor Tugs

The tractor tug represents a complete departure from the traditional design of the
conventional túg, but with compan¡es l¡ke Vo¡th Schneider and Schottel developing
tractor tugs between 1950 and 1960 ¡t is, perhaps surpris¡ngly' not a particularly new
concept.

Thekeytothetruetractortugt¡esintheuseoftwomulti-d¡rectionalproPu|sionunits'
of whici some are rather ¡¡ke large rotaüng outboard motors with others consisting of
rotating vert¡cal blades. They en;ble the thrust units of the tug to be placed side by
side móre or less under the úridge, thereby facilitating speclacular manoeuvrab¡lity in
the right hands (see figure 7-11). Interestjngly, these- units have also enioyed
consid'erable success foi many years ¡nstalled on some ferries operating ¡n ¡nshore
waters.

Notes on Shiphandling 7-14 The Use of Tugs

Rev6€d Jat 2003
 ble pttch
blades

cycloldal ProPellers

Figure 7-1'l Traclor tug

The Use of Tugs

Notes on Shiphandlang
On a tractor tug the towing point (P) can be placed much nearer the. stem because
-un¡ts,
tné proputs¡on and ?r'erefoie the thrust (T) is always 'outside' of the towing
po¡"íiriui cieaüng a good posiüve turning moment (PT)- lf this is compared w¡th the
iánventionaltug báck-in figure 7-2 ¡t can be seen thal this is comPletely the oppos¡te
to the traditional configuration.

¡n many cases versatility is furlher enhanced by work¡ng the tug's tow line
direcüy
from thé winch drum úth a remote control joy sück from the bridge The tug master
can thus alter the length of the tow line at will and with considerable ease'

The tractor tug can perhaps best be defined as one where, like a farm tractor towing
a tra¡¡er, the p-ower unit !s always ahead of and pulling on the towing po¡nt, unlike a
convenional tug where the propulsion is actually behind the towing point and
push¡ng ¡t"

It may be imagined, quite correcdy, when steaming at speed without.a tow, that
w¡th
tire propufs¡oñ unii thus sited this type of tug suffers f¡om a..lack of d¡rectional
staOitity. Witr the power driving the tug close to the pivot point, the steering lever ¡s
indeed poor, but tñ¡s is easily óvercom! by the versaülity of the thruster units When
nrii teaintng to drive such uiits this initaiy feets a titue quirky but.it does not take
long io getáccustomed to it. D¡rectional stab¡lity ¡s also improved .by füing a large
.tó on-ttt" centre line of the hull afr and th¡s also supports the tug ¡f it is dry docked
or grounded.

The argument for and against tractor tugs by comparison with conventional tugs'
remainé a maüer of ¡nd¡údual requirement being perhaps best summed up with a
brief resume. F¡rsfy he advantages, wh¡ch have to some extent already been
outlined.--..

Advantages of Tractor Tugs

. Effective thrust over 360 degrees.

. Rap¡d power-on response time.
. Outstand¡ng manoeuvrability.
. Able to re-posilion qu¡ckly if so required by the pilot.
. Very low risk ofg¡rting.
. Can more effectively overcome ¡nteraction forces close in to a ship
. lmproved operationál capab¡l¡ty in a testricted area such as a lock or an enclosed
dock.
. May decrease the 'tum round time' of port movements that normally use tug
assistance-

ideally
It is reasonable, therefore, to view these types of tugs as extremeiy versatile'
waters'
Juited !o the confnes of a busy harbour, river, cánal or sheltered. estuar¡al
There may of course be disadvantages and the following l¡st, which ¡s by no means
exhausüve, i¡lusfates a number of ¡mportant considerat¡ons'

Notes on Sh¡Phandl¡ng 7-16 The Use of Tugs

Revb€d Ja1 2oo3
Disadvantáges of Tractor Tugs

. High cap¡tal investment costs.

. Less bollard pull per kilowatt power.
. Reoair and maintenance of complex underwater units may be expens¡ve
. Handling in an open seaway ¡s poor due to the short distance between pivot point
and thrust, creaüng a short steering lever-
. Heel¡ng angle w¡th full s¡de thrust may be up to 21 degrees w¡th some tugs'
therefore, risk of damage can exisl when laying alongside a ship.
. Sophisticaied underwater units may be damaged if grounded and/or fai¡ ¡f choked
w¡th debris.
. Draft may be up to 5m, which is large in comparison to convent¡onal tugs.
. The re-training of conventional tug masters ¡s essential in order to fully max¡mise
a tfactor tug's potenüal.

Azimuth Stern D¡ive (ASD) Tugs

There are throughout the many pilotage districts of the world, but particularly so in
JaDan and Austr-alia, a substant¡al number of tugs known as azimuth stern or 'Z'
drive tugs (see figure 7-12)

Th¡s iug is not, stictly speak¡ng, a tractor tug ¡n the true sense of the word but more
of a compromise, utilis¡ng some of the benefits of both conventional and tractor tug
alike- lt cán employ two t¡wing pos¡t¡ons, one amidships and one forward, and main
propulsion is from two rotating az¡muth units wh¡ch although similar to those
imitoyeo ¡n tractor tugs, are placed aft, rather like a tradiüonal twin screw tug
The ASD tug can therefore be used ¡n the same manner as a convenüonal tug, using
the amidshiós towing Position but with cons¡derably improved handl¡ng. However' it
is when using the forward towing posiüon, usually direct from a bow towing winch'
that the ASD tug real¡ses ¡ts futl potential secured alongside a sh¡p ¡n the push-pull
mode. With virtually the tull length of ihe tug between the thrust un¡ts (T) and the
forward towing poi;t (P) the ASD tug can be used to great effect lt is perhaps best
compared to the pure tractor tug by tisting its relevant advantages and lim¡tations

Notes on Sh¡phandlang 7-17 The Use of Tugs

 Azirnutb Propeuers

F¡gure 7-'12 Azimuth stern drive tug

Notes on Shiphandling 7-'t8 The Use of Tugs

Advantages of an Azimuth Stern Drive Tug

. Better directional stability at speed-

. More suitable hull form for open waters and working in a seaway.
. lmproved bollard pull per kilowatt power.
. Azimuth un¡ts easy to withdraw for maintenance and repair.
. Maximum heel w¡th s¡de thrust iess at 15.
. Shallower avefttge draft of 3m.

Lim¡tat¡ons of an Azimuth Stern Dr¡ve Tug

. Side stepping abil¡ty not as good.

. Squat at the stem and flooding of the aft deck has been known to occur with
certain design types when backing with full power.
. St¡ll suscepüble to girting when us¡ng the after tow¡ng position.
. Sl¡ghtly more at risk from the effects of ¡nteraction.
. lt is not uncommon for 99 o/o of alt towing to be l¡mited to the forward posiüon.
. Complex control systems-
. More susceptible to rubb¡sh damage in propellers.

Combi tugs

Although not common there are some tugs ¡n use that should, nevertheless, be
ment¡o;ed, which fall ¡nto a category best described as'combinaton' or'comb¡' tugs
Generally speak¡ng, these are older convent¡onal tugs that have been retrofitted with
some tyóe of thruster system forward to supplement the¡r tradit¡onal propuls¡on
system. This may be anything from a s¡mple standard tunnel th¡-uster to a
sóphisticated retractable azimuth thruster unit and will improve handling
characteristics accordingly.

Mixed Fleets

Many pilots will find themselves work¡ng for port authorities that are served by tug
companies which are only operaüng substantial numbers of older' conventional tugs
with perhaps, at best, just one or two modern tractor tugs.

This is largely historic, as it ¡s an unfortunate fact of l¡fe that older tugs are only
replaced when their tife expectancy has been reached primarily due to the ¡ncteased
costs of more modern tonnage, or ¡n countries w¡th strong growth ¡ndustries build¡ng
new ports or terminals, will you see subsiantial numbers of modern, powerful tractor
tugs-

Elsewhere one can understand the dilemma of the tug operalors, because ¡t would
not be an easy matter financially to updaie a large fle€t of conventional tugs' which
may still represent a comparat¡vely recent capital ¡nvestment, with costly tractor tugs
thai may also require new tra¡ning programmes and higher maintenance budgeG'

Notes on Shiphandling The use ofTugs

It will therefore be essent¡al, for a long tlme to come for both pilot and sh¡p master
alike io have a broad understand¡ng of the work¡ng methods assoc¡ated with both the
tractor tug and the conventional tug, so that the best resulis can be achieved when a
sh¡p ¡s attended by both types or a m¡xed fieet of tugs.

Work¡ng a tractor tug forward

Figure 7-13, positjons 1 and 2, shows the tug using ¡is aft towing po¡nt and work¡ng
inl similar manner to a conventional tug. Provided the ship's speed is sens¡b¡y low it
can work around the radius of the tow line quickly and éffcienüy and thereby assist
the sh¡p with 'swing¡ng' or 'posiüoning'. lf, however, it is exposed to the risk of girting
¡t w¡ll, unl¡ke the convenüonal tug, be towed stern irst in relaüve safety'

Figure 7-13 Tractor tug foMard

lfrequired by the p¡loi, the tug can quickly move in and reposiüon alongs¡de,
shortening bút reiaining the tow l¡ne, part¡cularly if it is on a remote control winch
drum, to give good push-pull ass¡stance during 'breast¡ng' (posiüon 3)'

Figure 7-14, pos¡tion 1, shows an opt¡on whereby the tug is using a forward towing
wiich and is able to ad.iust the ¡engih of tow as required. lt may occasionally be
favoured as a quick method for'lift¡ng off from a berth dur¡ng departures, the tug
also being able to move in to push or check the ship- lt is, however, rare and not
commonly practised.

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng 7 -20 The Use of Tugs

 , /i\\\
/ t\\\
'1\'
I

Figure 7-14 Traclor tug forward - some altematrves

Pos¡t¡on 2 shows a fam¡l¡ar work¡ng mode ¡n some countr¡es' notably America and
Japan, and also elsewhere in some mult¡-tug operations ¡nvolv¡ng large ship
movemenG, ü1ere the tug is 'lashed up' alongs¡de.

As previousty d¡scussed, some caution is needed by the tug in this pos¡tion, as the
heeling angle on full side thrust can be potent¡ally damaging.

Furthemore 'backwash and turbulence' due to the c¡ose prox¡m¡ty of the sh¡p's hull
will almost certa¡nly combine to l¡mii the full effectiveness of the tug, most
predom¡nately when lifijng off with a lot of power.

Working a Tractor Tug aft"

The following figure, 7-15, ¡llustrates the use of the tractor tug secured at the stern

Position 1 shows an excellent towing posit¡on again much favoured in Japan and the
USA, and part¡cularly good when moving 'dead ship'where the tug, to some elfent'
acts as a ieplacemenirudder and propeller for the ship. To be reasonably effective
the tug needs to be as far aft as poss¡ble, but it should be noted that the lim¡tat¡ons
associated with a tug working alongs¡de, as mentioned in the prev¡ous example, may
st¡l¡ apply.

Notes on Sh¡phandling The Use of Tugs

Pos¡üon 2 demonstrates a work¡ng method most commonly associated w¡th channel
escort work, or any other occasion when a sh¡p is in irans¡t and requires tug
ass¡stance wh¡lst making way. ln this part¡cular task the tractor tug really comes ¡nto
its own and is vastly more effective than the convent¡onal tug. The iug ¡s secured at
its afr tow point, es¿orting the ship stern frst at reasonably modest speeds. (lt is iair
to say, thai most ASD tugs can do this as wel¡' using the¡r foMard towing po¡nt )

Pos¡tion 3 displays that with relatively liitle effort the tractor tug can ease out onto the
ship's quarterto the position ¡llustrated in this example By putting a l¡ttle tension on
the tow l¡ne and us¡ng a comb¡nation of the tugs weight and water pressure ¡i can
assist the ship very effectively ¡n swing¡ng and steady¡ng when it is necessary' Th¡s
useful technique is known as the indirect toüng mode or'paravane effecf and it has
Droven successful even when escortjng very large deep draft vessels'

ln the ¡ndirect towing mode, when engaged at the stem of a sh¡P, the pull on thé tow
l¡ne can be ¡ncreased by a lactor of l-5 to 2-0 timés ihe bollard pul¡ The large
underwater skeg of the tractor tug makes it particulaly efficient at ach¡ev¡ng th¡s
increased pulling power.

\Mth its excellent manoeuvrab¡l¡ty and inherent safety, the tractor tug aft can also
readity ass¡st the ship with slowing down or'braking'. Once the sh¡p ¡s subsequently
eithei stopped, or slowed to a m¡nimal speed' the tractor lug can work around the
radius of ihe tow line us¡ng its excelleni manoeuvrab¡l¡ty or should it become
necessary, move in quickly to repos¡üon for work alongs¡de. (pos¡tion 4)

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng The Use of Tugs

 4

Figure 7-15 Tractor tug aft

Notes on Shiphandling 7-23 The Usé of Tugs

Working an ASD tug forward

Whilst there are many operational s¡m¡larities to the tractor tug, the ASD tug is
d¡fferent by design and consequently one or two operational
points should be kept in
mrnd.

\:.\.\
.\'

Figure 7-16 Working an ASD iug forward

Position 1- ln th¡s posiüon the tug is, generally speaking, being used in much the
rrnn"t as a conventional tug, in that it is using its amidships towing po¡nt'
""rá attttougn ft may be very pówerful and manoeuvrable, it is none the less st¡ll
ftrárefore
at ¡si trom girtirig and tñis must, to some extent, l¡mit its operaüonal usetulness to
that of the convenüonal tug.

Position 2 - ln comparison to the previous example, th¡s ¡s the more versaüle

the
ooeEünq method, w¡th the tow connected at ¡ts bow and the thrusters ahead of
iJ*rg p"oi"t, ¡n true tractor configuration- The tug is safe in the event of g¡rting and
can side thrust effectively around the radius ofthe tow line

As previously mentioned, on some older design variants of this type of tug' when-
of
rnáüng *"y ltutn f¡rst, at any sort of speed w¡th the.power.on'.there is a tendency
it" stÉtn'i,j oe pr¡l.d dorvn ór'squaf quite alarmingly and badly enough for the after
o""i io u"ótné awash and flooáed This, of course, is not accePtable and worklng the tug
r"it"i Á"y therefore prefer, quite righüy, to. revert lo-the conve¡tional
rát¡ó¿ i" iosition t for'channel escort duties Newer ASDs may not be susceptible
to th¡s problem.

The Use of Tugs

Notes on Shiphandling
Pos¡tion 3 - lt is a characteristic of th¡s type of tug, ¡n some areas of the world, to be
designed w¡th a consp¡cuously well fendered, ffat nose, which facil¡tates either
'lashing up'or s¡mply laying on a sh¡p bow ¡n. This avo¡ds the problem of heel¡ng
angle when apply¡ng ful¡ thrust and places the thrusters further away from the ship,
thus decreas¡ng power loss through turbulence and backwash.

Some caution is needed, when tugs are approaching a ship to land bows in as the
ship's s¡de can be eas¡ly damaged through landing too heav¡lyl

Work¡ng an Az¡muth Stern Drive tug aft

tf an ASD tug is attend¡ng a sh¡p aft, ¡t can do so in the same manner as a tractor
tug, by using iis forward tow¡ng po¡nt and paravane out, us¡ng it own we¡ght and
water pressure to assist the sh¡p ¡n turning(see F¡gure 7-16 posit¡on 3). lt cannot,
however, génerate the same amount of force (through lift) as the tractor tug does
with its large skeg aft.

On the compleÍon of channel escort work, for example, when berth¡ng oÍ sw¡nging' it
can rapidly redeploy alongside as shown in posit¡on 2 or rema¡n on a long l¡ne aft.
This ¡s a matter of ¿ho¡ce for the ¡nd¡vidual pilot or ship's master and is dictated by
the nature of the manoeuvre they are conducting.

F¡gure 7-'17 Working an ASD tug aft

Notes on Sh¡phandlang The Use of Tugs

Posit¡oning a tug.

ln order to make the best use of a tug and achieve the des¡red result, it ¡s ¡mporiant
to position ¡t in the right place. To do this it is necessary to ask the following
ouestlons.

. What is the ¡ntended movement and/or manoeuvre?

. Will the sh¡p be Predominately w¡th headway' back¡ng, or stopped?
. Where üll the ship's p¡vot point be?
. Where wilt the tug be in relaüonship to the ship's pivot po¡nt?
. What type of iug is being used?

There is, therefore, given the very nature of the quesbons, every ind¡cation that there
¡s a vel importani
'irteractive link between the sh¡p's p¡vot point and the pos¡tion of
tne tug.ihii is oest ¡llustrated by looking more closely at some spec¡ic examples'

Channel escoÉ tug

ln verv manv cases when a ship ¡s in trans¡t of a narrow wateMay it ¡s not

oract¡áUIe ¡; the ¡nterests of safeiy to do so without the assistance of a tug An
lxample of this occurs when a sh¡p has to negotiate.a bend in the channel where'
Ju. il i"r"tiuu ship size, shallow water, tides, wind or any combinaüon of such
iu.t¡aion., it is cléarly beyond the capabilities of the ship's normal turn¡ng circles
and a tug ¡s required to improve the ship's turning ab¡l¡ty'

Another example occurs, usually in the aftermath of a major acc¡deni and serious
oollution, wheie leg¡slaüon is passed mak¡ng it mandatory to have a tug escort' even
-relatively
ioi quité nng and open water transits. Alihough the pilot and ship master
r"u norr"Ñ be quite capable of do¡ng the job without and tugs, l¡ke ¡t or not the
oi"i""to" oiin" environment is the moré ¡mportant issue the ship cannot be-
!)oos; to i¡u tr.r.at ol mechan¡cal fa¡lure, or placed at fisk f¡om even the briefest of
lapses ¡n human iudgement

It is in the role of channel escort, that the differing oPetational capabiliües of the
tractor and convent¡onal tug are most clearty illustrated and one where ¡t ¡s most
á¡m"uft t" bieak the moulá of long established' trad¡tional th¡nk¡ng and work¡ng
methods.

lf onlv one conventional tug ¡s to be used as an escorl ¡t ¡s not, as discussed earl¡er

;;il: ;|Jri;;, p;'1¡cutarty-suiteo to working aft while the shiP is.making anv sort of
of
;;;;t. ihi¡ ireans thit it ¡s usuallv secured forward but even then, if the speedand
i¡á.f,¡fj ¡. too h¡gh, it w¡ll be somewhat restricted ¡n its arc of operaüon
effecbveness.

This ¡s turther compounded by the position of the ship's pivot-point wh¡ch ¡s' while
¡t
¡" rai¡ng headway, approximately a 1/4 of the length from. foMard As a result of
t¡i" t"ti,g L *otiing ón a relaiively poor turning lever' Th¡s can be ¡llustrated' for

The use of Tugs

Notes on Shiphandliñg
example, with a 160 meke ship wh¡ch has engaged a 20 tonne tug forward (see
figure 7-18). Th¡s will give an approximate turning moment of .. .

40 metres x 20 tonnes = 800 tm

Figure 7-18 Channe¡ escort - convenüonal tug forward

By comparison, if a tractor tug ¡s engaged to escort the sh¡p (or an ASD tug) ¡t would'
ai previously ¡llustratéd, be able to work aft with considerable flexibil¡ty, due to ¡ts
nigñ manoeúvrability. lts effic¡ency would be even further enhanced because' unlike
thé example with the tug forward, it wiil be working on a very good turning lever of
3/4L of the ship (see figure 7-19).

Assum¡ng for the sake of compar¡son lhat the tug ¡s still of 20 tonnes bollard pull, this
w¡ll give a turning moment of...-

120 metres x20tonnes = 2400 tm

fh¡s ¡s three ümes that of the forward tuming moment and also ¡llustrates why the
effect of 'paravaning' ¡s achieved with relatively litue effort.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng The use of Tugs

RevÉd Já¡ 2003
Tr¿ctor

Azir!utl¡
Stern Drive

Figure 7-'19 Channel escort - tug aft

Tractor Tug at Positions I and 2

Azimuth Stern Dr¡ve Tug at pos¡t¡on 3

It is also very ¡mportant to appreciate Alat with a tractor tug secured afi, ¡f the ship
experiences ¡iff¿ult¡es, or an emergency, which requ¡re.it.to do]^ quickly' the
"l-o.y
iuj tan atso d¡g in and act as a very effective brake. whilst süll assisüng to conÍol
head¡ng,

Th¡s exampte clearly indicates that the posiüon of a tug rela¡ve to.the ship's
p¡vot

;;;;;ñ;iiy ¡nnueáces tne tug's efrecüveness. lt is also apparent that anv shift of
itre o¡vot pó¡nt w¡¡t also affect tug performance and th¡s may best be illustrated with
an example of tugs on Iong l¡nes.

Tugs on long lines

pu¡t tugs
In this example the ship is of 160 metres length with two.20 tonnes bollard
in átt"n¿"ni", one foruvard and one aft, both on long l¡nes lt ¡s assumed for the
examDle that the ship is on even keel, in deep water, with no wind
or tide and is
thereiore influenced by no other outside factors or forces'

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 7-24 The Use of Tugs

Ship stopped

With the ship stopped and on even keel the centre of gravity of the ship, and pivot
point, is approximately am¡dsh¡ps. lf both tugs now take the we¡gbt wiih full power,
they w¡ll be both be operating on sim¡lar tu¡ning levers of 80m and the tuming
moments will be:-

Forward Tug 80m x 201 = '1600 tm

Aft TUg 80m x 20t = 1600 tm

As a result the ship will l¡tt off, mov¡ng bod¡ly s¡deways with no residual rate of turn.
(Figure 7-20 a)

Ship making headway

Once the ship gathers headway, even a small amount, the pivot Po¡nt will move
forward to a pos¡üon approx¡mately one quarter of the sh¡Ps length from the bow Th¡s
substant¡ally alters the lengths of the respective tum¡ng levers and upsets the
balance between the two tugs whose turning moments w¡ll now be:-

Forward Tug 40m x 20t = 800 tm

Aft Tug 120m x 201= 2400 tm

The tug aft ¡s therefore considerably more efñc¡ent than the tug foMard and will lift
the ship's stern out mucb more quickly than the bow, wh¡ch will appear sluggish.
Altemat¡vely this may be perce¡ved as the ship's bow develop¡ng an undes¡rable
swing to port. (Figure 7-20 b)

Sh¡p making sternway

lf the sh¡p, wh¡ch was prev¡ously mak¡ng headway, is now allowed to develop
stemway, either intentionally or otherwise, the balance of the two tugs ¡s completely
changed. This is due to the sh¡ft of the sh¡p's pivoi point, fiom forward to a pos¡t¡on
-rhe
approx¡mately one quarter of the vessels length from the stern. respective
tum¡ng levers and tum¡ng moments are now completely altered and are as follows

Forward Tug 120m x 20t = 2400 tm

Aft Tug 40m x 20t = 800 tm

Notes on Shiphandling The Use of Tugs

 b) max¡"g headway

c) making sterllway

Figure 7-20 Tugs on long l¡nes

Notes on Sh¡phandling The Use of Tugs

The tug aft, wh¡ch was previously do¡ng well, is now poor ¡n comparison to the
forward tug and the stern of the ship w¡ll appear to be sluggish when lifting off. Th¡s
may also be perceived as a developing sw¡ng of the bow to starboard and opposite
to the swing to port, which was experienced when the sh¡p was mak¡ng headway-
(F¡9ure 7-20 c)

Balancing lhe Tugs

In the preced¡ng examples w¡th two 20 tonnes bollard pull tugs the maximum l¡ft for
the ship was:-

FoMard tug 20t

Aft tug 20t

Total 40t

Unfortunately, if the ship is develop¡ng an undes¡rable sw¡ng due to headway or

sternway and the tugs are at full power, it w¡ll be necessary to instruct the
appropriate tug to ease back ¡n order to balance the tugs and correct the swing. ln
this particular example, with the sh¡p making sternway, the foMard tug would have to
ease back io approximately one third of its potential-

40m x 20t = 800 trn

Forward tug 120m x 6.7t = 800tm
Totals 2olz t = Iltm
Having ordered two tugs that appear to be quite adequate, it is very important to
apprec¡ate that there will be occasions when they will be forced to work considerably
short of the¡r full potent¡al, particularly when compensating for an undes¡rable turn¡ng
moment, ¡n a s¡tuation that has pfev¡ously been demanding full power.
(Figure 7-20 d)

fugs alongs¡de
As previously mentioned in th¡s secüon, some countries and some tugs notably
tractor/AsD tugs, may favour working alongside. Elsewhere ¡t is not uncommon to
employ tugs alongside, particularly when several tugs are involved ¡n large ship
movements, e¡ther to assist a ship ¡n breasting up to a berth, or lifting off. Those
countries that predom¡nately employ tractor/AsD tugs alongside often do so most
effecüvely- To understand this it is necessary to be aware of the relationship that
exists between the tug's pos¡t¡on alongs¡de a sh¡p and the position of that sh¡ps p¡vot
pornL

Notes on Sh¡phandling The Use of Tugs

Revis€d Jen 2003
Ship Mak¡ng Head!¡YaY
important
When the ship is making headway' even a small amount, there is a very
aft'
dilference between using a iug alongside forward' as opposed to somewhere
Á, ir"rtr"i"á *r¡ t¡e s-nip oñ the ieft in fgufe 7-21 the forward tug
is likely to be
close to the shiPs pivot po¡nl In th¡s pos¡tion it ¡s work¡ng on a
turnlng
;;rki;g
""t
revei tñat is either very smali, or negiigibte and as a consequence
will be relatively
poor at ass¡sting the ship to develoP rate of tuñ or swng
jt
However, by working close to the ship's pivot point will.be most
effective in
when used in
asi,st¡ng thé sh¡p t;develop bodily 'laierai movément', .particularly
conjuniiion with full rudder and short kicks ahead by the sh¡p'

This wouid, for example, be most useful when approaching a berth

and it becomes
necessaNtooresstheShip¡ntowardsit,oralsowhenlifiingoffduringdepartufe'
ñññil; idú;tulÁJ extenstvery in this position, thefe is a considerable similarity
much greater
to á¡v¡ng a-s¡¡p úith a bow thrustér, but with the added advantage of
oowá, o"u", 360 arc of operation. This also enables the pilot to use
the tug fof
"
braking, or stopping the sh¡p, with good control, if so required

Breasüflg

Figure 7 -21Tugs alongside - mak¡ng headway

7-32 The Use ofTugs

Notes on Shiphandling
lf the tug ¡s used añ, as dep¡cted with the ship on the right ¡n figure 7-21, its role is
very mu;h altered. Wherever ¡t is placed il ¡s l¡kely to be some distance from the
shió's pivot point, working on a subs¡anüal tum¡ng lever and as such w¡ll always be
beit placed to help increase or decrease the sh¡p's rate of tum, whilst making
headway.

Under certa¡n c¡rcumstances, however, this is not as successful as one would expect
and may be due to the close prox¡mity of the tug to the sh¡p's side which creates too
much báckwash and turbulence for the tug to be effecüve, noticeably when the tug is
thrusling hard away from the ship. In one port, for example, th¡s.tug ¡s left off unt¡l a
soecifiJbend in túe channel has been negotiated' before being secured for the
berthing operation, which invo¡ves backing up to a berth.

Sh¡p mak¡ng stemway

lf, afier mak¡ng headway, the ship now beg¡ns to make sternway, or ifihe ship will be
predominately making stemway, for example when backing up to..a berth, ¡t should
6e aooreciaied that the role of the two tugs Prev¡ously illusfated w¡ll be reversed'

The sh¡p's pivot point will have moved, to a posiüon approx¡mately a quarter of the
tength of ttré ship nom the stem and as shown w¡th the ship on the left in figure 7-22,
the-tug aft will nbw be actively engaged quite close to this po¡nt-.ln this position it is
not thérefore best Placed to ass¡st the sh¡p in turning' but will be very useful in
ass¡süng the ship io develop bod¡ly lateral motion especially when breasting in
towardJ the berth stern first. Although perhaps' less efñcient, due to its own
backwash and turbulence, the tug afi will also be usetul in l¡fting the sh¡p 'bodily' off,
typically during a stem first departure. lt should sti¡l however, be borne in mind that a
ti:g in tiris position is not naturally inclined towards assist¡ng a swing, or developing a
raie of turn and the outcome may therefore be qu¡te d¡sappo¡nt¡ng'

Notes on Shiphandling The Use of Tugs

 B¡eastllg

Figure 7-22 Tugs alongs¡de - making sternway

Given just one tug wo*¡ng alongs¡de and the need to control heading whilst mak¡ng
stemw;y,-asit is be¡t placed as shown w¡th the sh¡p
on the right in ñgÚe 7-22' as lal
forward praciicable. ln this posiüon ¡t is some distance from the ship's pivot po¡nt,
work¡ng on a substanüal tuming lever and therefore able to produce a powerful
turn¡ng moment when requ¡red

It may have been noted, that ¡n some cases there exists an importanl corelaüon or
s¡milárity between tugs work¡ng alongside and a ship be¡ng.worked with a bow
thruster- This is indeed so and in many instances, if the ship is ftted with a 'good'
bow thruster, ¡t can effectively replace a tug' which might normally work alongs¡de
fofward.

lf, on the other hand, the ship does not have a bow thrusler and only one
ava¡lable, this may perhaps be best posit¡oned well forward in roughly thé
locaüon as a bow thruster and used accordingly

Notes on Shiphandling 7-U The Use of Tugs

Reüsed J¿n 2!03
Bollard Pull v Wind Force

It is ¡mportant to have a broad idea as to what w¡nd force in tonnes is being exerted
upon the ship, in comparison to the total bollard pull wh¡ch ¡s available from the iugs.
Th¡s can help, for example, in establ¡shing the wind lim¡ts for certain vessels, or
assist in ana¡ys¡ng movements which may not be going well.

With an approx¡mate knowledge of the sh¡p's length overall and freeboard, plus the
length and height of the superstructure, includ¡ng any deck cargo such as containers,
it is poss¡ble to calculate roughly how many square metres of area the sh¡p ¡s
present¡ng to a beam w¡nd.

The conta¡ner ship in figure 7-23, for example, has the follow¡ng approximate overall
dimensions and area of windage -....

Length 280 m
Freeboard 25 m
Total Area = (280Ps) = 7000 sq metres

lf we know the pred¡cted wind speed for the intended movement ¡t is now possible to
establish a rough idea as to the force in tonnes that the ship ¡s l¡kely to experience.

ExamDle

W¡nd speed = 30 knots

W¡nd speed ¡n metres Per second M

knots = 30 = 15 nls
22
Wind force in Tonnes Per 1000 sq m

\f = 152 = 225 = 12.5 Usq.m

18 18 18

Total Wind Force 12.5 x 7 = 88 tonnes

(For further and more detailed reading concerning the ¡nfluence of wind upon a sh¡p
please reler to Chapter 4 - Effect of Wind)-

Notes on Sh¡phandling The Use of Tugs

 28o É
Figure 7-23 Container shiP - windage

To hold this sh¡p steady with a beám wind of 30 knots would require, at the very
least, a combináúon oi tugs that offer a total bollard pull of at least 88 tonnes'
Ho*éu"r, ¡t must also be re-membered that the wind force varies as the square of the-
wind speed, and a gusty wind, or squa¡|, may take the wind force w€ll beyond that of
ttre tujs, tnáreUy piacing considerable strain on the tug's wirés This- particular sh¡p
woutdlfor exampté, expérience the following increases in wind force if the wind gusts

. 35 knots 119 tonnes

. 40 knots 156 tonnes

With an approimate knowledge of the wind force and knowing the type and s¡ze of
tugs to bá used, it is now poisible to take a closer look at a movement ¡nvolv¡ng
several tugs.

Notes on Shiphandling 7-36 fhe use of Tugs

RevÉed Jan 2003
Mult¡-Tug Movement

ln this particular example, see ñgüe 7-24, the container ship whose windage we
have already established, will be inbound and ¡ntending to swing off the terminal,
pr¡or to go¡ng astern up to the berth. During the manoeuvre it is antjc¡pated that a
wind of 30 knots will be blowing off the berth and also be on the ship's port beam
wh¡lst ¡t ¡s go¡ng astern.

¡-f>
Wüd 30 knota

4\\

F¡gure 7-24 Container sh¡p - manoeuvre

Available to assist the manoeuvre are the follow¡ng:-

Tug 1 Forward 40t

Tug 2 Alongs¡de 30t
Tug 3 Alongside 40i
Tug 4 Aft 30t
Bow thruster '10t

We can now look at th¡s movement more closely' to obtain a broad ¡dea as to
whether ¡t can be conducted safely in these particular conditions with the tugs
prov¡ded. Th¡s could for example, be very usefulwhen discussing the movement w¡th
;ther ¡nierested part¡es such as the pori author¡ües and may offer a more
professional and substanüal argument' for or against a movement, than might
otherwise have been the case.

Notes on Shiphandling The Use of Tugs

MoYement I Discussion

Ship Stopped

+
'Wbd 30 hots
:i.-i-'i::r? fl,'.,T--T,-t-T,,T..1--.T -?-,i ,1 T,Í I I T r?rlii?D
Ttruste¡ 10 t

Force in Tonnes Levers in Metres Turninq moments

Port Starboard Forward Poñ Starboard
\Mnd 0 88 0 0 0 0
Tuo 1 40 140 0 5600 0
Thruster 10 al 115 0 1150 0
luq 2 30 0 65 0 2550 0
Tuq 3 40 0 70 0 2800
Tuq 4 30 0 0 140 0 4200
Totals 150 88 9300 7000

Figure 7-25 - Movement 1 - Sh¡P stopped

In the interest of simplicity, the wind in th¡s case ¡s shown working on thé p¡vot po¡nt
and exactly am¡dships thus ¡nd¡catjng no rate of tum- lt should be pointed out that ¡n
some ¡nstánces, wiih varying ship design, it may be a little forward or aft of th¡s
oosiüon.

Tugs 1 and 2 and thruster comb¡ne on their tuming levers of '140, 115 and 85 metres
resiectively, forward of the Pivot po¡nt, giving a total turn¡ng moment of 9'300
tonnes/metres to Port.

Tugs 3 and 4 are working on tuming levers of 70 and 140 metres respecüvely, aft of
thipivot point to give a tuming lever of 7,OOO tonnes/metres to starboard-
This leaves the ship with a res¡dual and Perhaps unwanted, tuming moment of 2,300
tonnes/metres to port with the tugs at full power.

To reduce this swing either tug 1, tug 2 or the thruster and may-be a combination ot
alt ttr¡ee, w¡lt have tó be backe-d ofi. io achieve th¡s with tug 1, for example, it would
tráuJ to pulr back by nearly 25 tonnes bollard pull So, to keep the ship straight'
without an undesirable swirig, it will be necessary to reduce the combined potent¡al
bollard pull of 15Ot to 1251. F;rtunately th¡s should süll cope reasonably well with the
88 tonnes of wind lorce w¡thout compromis¡ng the manoeuvre'

Notes on Shiphañdling 7-38 The Use of Tugs

Sh¡p making sternway

Once the sh¡p begins to back up, the p¡vot po¡nt moves aft and affects the balance of
the tugs qu¡te seriously.

W¡th the pivot point now further aft the wind force of 88 tonnes ¡s now able to get to
work on a 70 metre lever, producing a 6,160 tonnes/metres turning moment to
starboard.

,//////) I
I

+
Wi.qd 30 knots

P'j
Tb¡uste¡ l0 t

Force ¡n Tonnes Levers in Metres Turninq momenis

Port Starboard Forward Aft Port Starboard
Wind 0 EE 70 0 0 6160
Tuq 1 40 0 210 0 8400 0
Thruster 10 0 185 0 1850 0
Tuq 2 30 0 155 0 4650 0
Tuq 3 40 0 0 0 0 0
Tuq 4 15 0 0 70 0 1050
Totals 135 88 14900 7210

Figure 7-26 Movement 1 - ship mak¡ng sternway

Tugs 1 and 2 and the thruster are now working on excellent turning levers of 210,
185 and 155 metres respectively, thus giv¡ng a comb¡ned and very large tum¡ng
moment of 14,900 tonnes/metres to port.

Tug 3 is now positioned either on, or at least close to, the p¡vot point and is therefore
able to exert full power without ¡ncuning any tum¡ng moment-

Notes on Shiphandling The Use of Tugs

 pull to 15 tonnes' as
The afi tug 4 is now shown with an arb¡trary reduction in bollard
it aooroa&res the resficlive close proximity of the dock side Th¡s coupled with a
i""íñs l";áilh"t ¡. nów reauce¿ to 70 meties. results in a poor turning moment of
1,050 ton nes/metres to starboard.

The residual of these various tuming moments is a very substantial 7'690

away ftom
tonnes/metres resulüng in the stem swinéing to starboard, down w¡nd and
the berth.

To stop th¡s swing e¡ther tug 1, tug 2, the thruster' or a comb¡nat¡on. of all three'
w¡ll
which would
náe¿ to Ue ¡a*el off. Tug 1, for éxample, could be stopped altogether
combined potential bollard
result in a loss of40 tonne! of bollard pult. This brings tne
or¡i *flt tugs 'digging in' full down to 110 tonnes, thus leaving an almost
"lt¡"
certainly unacceptaób márgin of safety aga¡nst the 88t of w¡nd force'

Th¡s clearly highl¡ghts the dilemma of some tug operaüons, wherein the
total bollard
need.to
ouliappeais s-ubsianüal in the first instance, but ¡s seriously reduced by the
:;;rá";; ";;túted rate of turn, simplv as a result of commencing to make
;i";;;. or inüee¿ headwav. This can-also place a tug under sudden and
unáro"áL¿ ioaO.. tnich can eásily part a tow l¡ne' lt is Perhaps worth look¡ng to see
¡f the tugs can be re-posit¡oned to better effect'

.I'ugs
740 The Use of
Notes on Shipharidling
Movement 2 - D¡scussion

The crucial thing ¡n th¡s operation ¡s to get more power aft of the p¡vot point, in order
to counterbalance the excess¡ve swing of the stem away from ¡ts desired track when
backing, but w¡thout comprom¡s¡ng the ava¡lab¡lity of full power should it be requ¡red.
Some small changes ¡n tug positioning cou¡d Perhaps help.

Ship Stopped

--r---t--+--i,,,!, +--.1,-,r,-+-
Wad 30 hots
ro D $ & 60 .o 70 so !o ró¡¡diro
I r,+ r,,a,,+-,1 .'r,,+,1- +--+--t--,r,'+- l:,i¡--+,
? i -,/
Th¡nster 10 t

Forc€ in Tonnes Levers ¡n Metres Turn¡nq moments

Port Starboard Forward Port Starboard
W¡nd 0 88 0 0 0 0
Tuq 1 30 0 140 0 4200 0
Thruster l0 0 115 0 1 150 0
Tuo 2 30 0 85 0 2550 0
Tuq 3 40 0 0 70 0 2800
Tuq 4 40 0 0 140 0 5600
Totals 150 88 7900 8400

F¡gure 7-27 Movement 2 - Ship stopped

Because the after tug is work¡ng at such a d¡sadvantage on a poor turning lever, we
can help by exchang¡ng it with the more powerful 40t foMard tug. lf th¡s were a
tractor tug it may also be qu¡te useful afr, during the channel approach Phase'

This reduction of the previous imbalance and the residual turning moment of 500
tonnes/metres to starboard, is tolerable and easily adjusted.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 741 The Use of Tugs

Making Stemway

Wt¡d 30 krots

Th¡uste¡ 10 t

Force in Tonnes Levers in Metres Turninq moments

Port Starboard Forward Afr Port Starboard
Wind 0 88 70 0 0 o tou
Tuo '1 30 0 210 0 6300 0
Thruster 10 0 185 0 1E50 0
Tuo 2 30 0 20 0 600 0
Tuq 3 40 0 0 0 0 0
Tuq 4 30 0 0 70 0 2100
Totals 140 E8 8750 8260

Figure 7-28 Movement 2 - sh¡p mak¡ng stemway

By the time the ship commences to make sternway' tug 2 m¡ght be repos¡tioned afi,
a; close to the pivot point as pract¡cable and adjacent to tug 3, where they can both
work on full power without creaüng excessive tuming moments. Given its abil¡ty to
repos¡t¡on quickly when so required, this task might best be given to a tractor tug'

In the ¡nterest of ma¡ntain¡ng a safety marg¡n, tug 4 ¡s assumed to exper¡ence a loss

of effectiveness to 30t as it closes the berth.

The turning moments are now very well balanced with a small residual turning
moment of 490 tonnes/metres to port wh¡ch ¡s aga¡n easily adjusted.

AII four tugs can 'd¡g ¡n' w¡th futl power and press the ship up without ¡nducing
excess¡ve swing.

This Darticular movement has been picked at random, to

¡llustrate how an
approiimate, but useful, assessment can be made of any manoeuvre involving the
pó!¡t¡on¡ng of tugs, and then be rethought or adjusted to improve the overall
situation. lt ¡s also possible that such an analysis, no matter how s¡mple' may
Notes on Shiphandl¡ng The Use of Tugs
ind¡cate in advance that a particular manoeuvre is unl¡kely to work! The ¡mportance
of this exerc¡se also demonstrates $e need for plann¡ng and prior information of
available tugs.

Conclus¡on

As with all ship handl¡ng, the arguments and suggestions ¡n th¡s example are by no
means exhaust¡ve or conclusive and may wel¡ generate and encourage further ¡deas
for d¡scuss¡on.

It is perhaps worth remembering a few words from the beginning of this chapter"...

Given such a w¡de sphere of operations across the world, it is obv¡ously diflcult to
develop general instruct¡onal material for tug operaüons. Not surpr¡s¡ngly' ¡n some
cases, it may come ¡nto conflict with more specific individual working methods-
These natura¡ly take priority and this ¡s fully apprec¡ated and understood-

Wiih this in mind it is hoped that the overall obiective of this chaPter "to offer a broad
overv¡ew of the use oftugs in ship handiing", will be especially useful to those new to
tug operations. lt w¡ll also be useful to the more exper¡enced ship handler when ¡t
becomes necessary to analyse a movement in more depth

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng 743 The LJse of Tugs

 CHAPTER EIGHT

THE USE OF BOW THRUSTERS

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng &1 Bow Thrugers

Bow Thruster Work

lntroducüon
of fenies' cruise ships' supply boats
It is not uncommon for the masters and off¡cers ¡n a
;; ;i";;i¡";;esseis to spend a h¡gh proportion.of their operalional service
;;y-;;;;;;"s;;;ronment. Where ¡n a relatjvelv shoñ period of time thev can
on ships wh¡ch are usually
oain a considerable amount or sntp handling experienc:
án¿ ¡ot ii rutterls] anb therefore considered
ia¡rlv'handv''
;üil; t*i;;üdlei.
i'tti" oi uo* tñruster work is not the Goncern of th¡s sectton'
"r."
carrier' tanke..r or bulk carner' no
The single screw ship' such as a conta¡ner ship' car
mattefwhat¡tssize'doesnoweverrepresentana|togethef.differentcase.These
'""*rly -engaged on lóng haul inftequent
ái" l"q:t S"l -aff-ord
on' sh¡p handling and
oppottut¡ti." to gain a greai Oeal of exferience in 'hands.
""1"-"r""
;ltffiü-.-;t; 'Ji;. ""; fitted with bow thrusters' to improve their handlins
vessels wilich can still be
characterisücs, they are none rne less single screw
á¡m"últ to handle and relaüvely unforg¡ving'
"orpárat¡uefy
¡mportant
The ob.¡ective of th¡s chapter ¡s' therefore, to discuss some of the more
-t'ttJ"ttoulO ¡n the handl¡ng
oott be kept in m¡nd when using a bow thruster to assist
of a s¡ngle screw sh¡P'

Rel¡ab¡lity

In the past, and to some extent to th¡s day,

pilots are ofien' qu¡te correcfly' d¡strustful
for reliab¡lity- There ¡s
of bow thrusters. This is ln pan oue to ftrili poor track rec€rd
are prone to problems'
¿orOfi¡ái oü", units with outdated electrics or hydraul¡cs
;;.somewhat remotelv,.deeP 9ow3 il lle-f3f-lart of
the sh¡p and
;í""i;;;;;y
"o
in a truly hostile
tt"" pounding of heaw wéather' vibÍation and damp'passages
""-Oüit"Ji"
;"";";";i,;;tir;nd"ü ov ia"r át and neslect on lons sea
""
Fortunately the demand for reliable bow thrusters
in super ferries' explorat¡on work
fields, coupled w¡th modern technologv' has led
to the
;il-;th;¡ reliable units' These can be used in all
of altogeiher more io6"i
development"f."iári""o "nO of course a p¡lot must still
manner of vessels ffom r"rgu onl"i. to tugs, although
i""p a *".y uy" open for poor ma¡ntenance and neglect'

Bow Thrusters
Notes on Sh¡Phandling
Re!Éed J4 2003
Power

There are a variety of bow thruster units in use today, wh¡ch range from the unusuai'
Vió ¿¡"r.r engiÁe on the forecasüe with an amazing 30m drive shaft on a VLCC'
"io the more corñmon reversible electric motor driving a fxed p¡tch propeller' or an
electric motor with a hydraulically operated variable pitch proPeller'

On manv vessels the des¡gn parameters are severely l¡m¡ted by the need to
place
tne J¡vé un¡ts in a restricüie iocation' low down in the narrow fore part of the sh¡p'
Éu"n it rot" tp""" is ava¡lable on a larger sh¡p, the size of the tunnel and therefore
propetter is still resk¡cted by practical cons¡deraüons such as the ballast draft'
integral hull strength and realistic maintenance levels

Th¡S|imitationofpowerduetotheimposit¡onoftunne|sizeisparticular|yevidenton
¡arg" srp", feffies where, despite ¡ncreasingly large tonnages-, ¡t ¡s stil¡ necessary'
JrÉ- to
'op"ta¡onal restrictjons, to reta¡n a relatively shal¡ow draft ln these
c¡rcumstaices it is common to see such vessels fitted with twin bow thrusters
ln
áioo iá ¡rprouu power output. S¡milarly' in otherirades, there are.one or two s¡ngle
design. Unfortunately
J"i"*'"niJ! t¡nt bnjoy the benefits of improved bow thrusterpower
itris ¡" nbt geneáty the case and on many vessels output may be
d¡sappoinüng.

The ratinq. or power of a bow thruster is onen given in kilowatts (kW) This may be
t¡" inexperienced and it makes ¡t diffcult to compare thruster power to
ánotÁ", iot"" such ás a tug or the wind To improve this situation an approx¡mate
"onfu.ino-io

"onvers¡oncanbemadetoeithershaffhorsepower(shp)ortonnes(t)forceg¡Ven
that..-.

. 0.74 kw 1 shp
. 100 shp l tonne

A common range of thrusters would therefore g¡ve the fol¡ow¡ngi

500 ld / 676 shP 6 tonnes

750 kw 1014 shp 10 tonnes
1000 kw 1351 shp 13 tonnes
1250 kw 1689 shp 17 tonnes
1500 kw 2027 shp 20 tonnes
1750 kw 2364 shp 24 tonnes
2000 kw 2702 shp 27 tonnes

Lookingatth¡sl¡stitshou|dberemembefedthatthrusters'rathef|iketugs'may
power' This
sámet¡áes have a slighUy better conversion ftom kilowatts to shaft horse
mav be due to desión improvements in propelter characteristics' the fa¡ring
and
or anything els;.that will improve the rate of water flow
ii?ti"? t""""1
through "i "p.,iiures
the tunnel without increas¡ng motor slze

&3 Bow Thrustels

Notes on Shiphandling
 us¡ng a car carrier of 198m
It is now poss¡ble to compare thruster force to wind force'
on the..beam for each sh¡p
aná contá¡ner str¡p of 21bm as examples' The wind force
graph ¡n figüre 8-1 and s.ltgws a qualraü:-curve ¡nd¡ca¡ns a
il liÑüiéo üv
tonnes-torte for ielatively small increases-¡n-w-¡nd.strengths' most
iápiJl""i"á*i i"";¡mpte
*'t¡ fité triétrer wna strengths- ln order to compare this with a broad
l,iilátü 000 kW are shown with
ranoe ot í¡ruster powe; two bow thrustárs of 1'0OO kW and 2
.ii"l"-rri a"tt"Ji¡"L" across the graph at l3 and 27 tonnes respect¡vely

ln t¡l ca"e ot ttre conta¡ner sh¡p the wind force exceeds thruster force
at '

. 1000 kw 11kts (Force 3/4)

. 2000 kw 16kts (Force 4/5)

and on the car carier ¡t ¡s at:-

. 1000 kw 13Ks (Force 4)

. 2000 kw 18Ks (Force 5)

This,itshou|dbenoted,¡sthemaximumwindStrength'soshoulditbecomeeitherfesult will be a
n""é"""ry or Prudent to make an allowance for gusty cond¡üons' th€ watched most
i"'r"¡uáru'oooit"nge indeed. Thus the weather window will need to be
carefully ü avoid b;ing caught w¡th insufficient resources-
general ¡ndicaüon as to the
These examples are only shown in order to g¡ve some.
of specific ships
oossible limiiaüons that m¡ght be encountered. Ind¡vidual expe¡¡ence
may naturally be much better ot indeed far worse'
required to thrust the bow
Wh¡lst it would appear that l¡tue ¡maginaüon or thought is
l"t rai¡V a" ,"quiod, th"r" "r" oniol. two specific aspects of bow thruster work
which áre wortÉ looking into more closely These are ""'

. thrust¡ng when stopPed'

. the thruster and headway'

. creaüng lateral motlon'

. work¡ng the thruster with sternway

familiar with bow thruster

This may help to encourage more confidence in those not
work.

Notes on Shiphandling u Bo\,\, Thruslers

 Force [totrnes)
260

Ca¡ Carrier
Container Ship
Thruster A
Thnrster B

10 15 20 25 30 35

Wind Speed {knotsl

F¡gure 8-l Graph of wind speed and thruster force

Notes on Shiphandling 8ow Thrusters

Thrusüng when stoPPed
wh¡lst the sh¡p ¡s
The simple process of thrusting the bow to port or starboard'
noiiniti"rry appeaito warrant much concem once' however' the
sh¡p
.,"pü,-;d where movement
aiJno *orte¿ close tó a jétty, other vessels or any obstruct¡on'
i"i p"".¡i¡o"i"J to bé caretully monitored' there are two aspects which may
"""0
occas¡onally be of some s¡gn¡ficance - "

. Posiüon of Pivot Point'

. une)qJected movement ahead'

the bow ¡n the

When a shiP is stopped and the bow thruster is activated' to thrust
aft and (due to
des¡red d¡rótion, ¡t is work¡ng on a p¡vot point wh¡ch. is located.,well
ot t¡á ir¡pl ¡n á position wttich ¡s roushlvlhe equ¡valent of
one
ih";;;;;i;;ü;fiiá l0 tonnes
;hipb;;; ;oli ihe stern (seé hgura 8-2) lf the thruster is of a modest
boliard ou¡l th¡s will give ¡t a turn¡ng moment of ' "
. 'l 0t x 1 45m = 'l 450tm

t45m

Figure 8-2 Thrusting when stoppéd - Pivot po¡nt

Th¡s ¡s probably the best turn¡ng moment that can be achieved

because any
Subseouentheadway,orsternway'wil|movethepivol.pointadverse|yandshorten
ih" i;;i"g lever accórdinglv Th¡s w¡ll be illustrated in this chapter'

8-6 Bow Thausters

Notes on Sh¡Phandling
Re!Éed Ja 2003
|tisnotuncommontoobservethatwhenus¡ngthebowthrusterthesh¡pappearsto
develoD a small amount of headway, seemingly as a result of using the
bow thruster'
ii,J'iJto.t not¡.eable when the-ship wal previously stopped in the water' This
positv-e water pressure along
Dhenomenon may part¡ally be ¡nitiated by a build up of
[¡r" .n¡p'. side, is it is thiust sideways by the thruster (see figure 8-3) This ¡n tum
ireates a flow of water around the bow which may be of suflcient velocity to create a
ü* oiá..ut" area immediately ahead of the sh¡p. ln addiüon to this' it rather
¡s thought
than
i¡t"lu ttt"t tf," ¡o* thruster draws ¡n water more easily from the bow area'
pressure
iiáni aft of the tunnel and this will also encourage the development oi a low
aroundthebow.¡nasim¡|armanneftointeractionandbankeffecttheshipw¡|¡tend
to 'sn¡ff or'smetl' this area and creep ahead, pañicularly if the bow thruster ls
operated, perhaps a litüe too often or a little too v¡gorously'

Figure 8-3 Thrust¡ng when stopped - creeping ahead

a-7 Bow Thrusters

Notes on Shiphandling
Thrusting with Headway
is that
When us¡ng a bow thruster wh¡le a ship is making headway, the first lim¡taüon
which is im-posed by too high a sPeed. W¡th the excepüon of a few powerful un¡ts and
Áuiiit¡riiet un¡ts,'perfoniance will fall off quite rap¡dly once the ship's speedathas
the
risen above 2 knots or thereaboutrs. At h¡gher sPeeds turbulence,will develop
tu;;ei entrances, spreading through the tunnel to seriously imPa¡r propeller
o"rto-"n""- Extemally, thé increasing water flow across the tunnel mouth soon
¡eflects the meagre thruster output. In an attempt towards improvlng tnls' some
water
manufacturers h;ve altered the shape of the tunnel apertures' thus ¡mprov¡ng
tiow through the tunnel, but despite this, excess¡ve sPeed will probably süll be
detrimental to thruster effi c¡ency'
p¡vot po¡nt
Less obvious, but much more important, ¡s the position ol the sh¡p's
*tricn, wnen á vessel is making headway is approximately 1l4 of the sh¡p's length
from ti're bow (see figure H). This has the effect of placing the thruster
on a very
is poor-
short turning ljver, ii this case 25m, and the resuliant tuming moment

.10tx25m=250tm
the
This ¡llustraies the main feason for a reducüon in the thfusters turn¡ng ability as
ship gathers headway, in comparison with the previous example, when the sh¡P
was
stoDDeo.

+
(
+
1som

F¡gure 8-4 Thrusüng w¡ih headway

8-8 Bow Thrulers

Notes on Shiphandling
When a ship commences to make headway but ¡s also turn¡ng' as with a stand¡ng
tum or a kick aheád at very low speeds, the efiect upon the thruster needs to be
cons¡dered separately because the pivot point behaves slightly differently. W¡th full
rudder applied, as the vessel begins to make headway, the p¡vot po¡nt moves to a
position well forward, approx¡mately 1/8 of the shiP's length from the bow
(see figure 8-5)-

175m

Figure 8-5 fhrusting with headway - standing tum

Th¡s unfortunately co¡ncides very closely with the position of the bow thruster which,
for a brief period, will be working near to the pivot po¡nt with virtually no turn¡ng lever
and therefore a poor if not negl¡gible tum¡ng moment- The unwary eye looking
forward may st¡lf feel the bow is turning when ¡n fact it ¡s actually being pushed
s¡deways.

tf the ship conl¡nues to tum with the power on, the speed will naiurally increase and
the pivot point will be pushed further back to a position roughly 1/4 of the sh¡p's
length from forward- Whilst this may improve the turn¡ng lever of the bow thruster
slightly, unfortunately any advantage w¡ll be quickly eradicated by the adverse effect
of increasing speed.

Whilst a thruster may often 'appeai very useful for controlling heading when mak¡ng
headway at low speeds, it is clearly not very efficient at th¡s task as it is always
work¡ng too close io the pivot point. lt is on the other hand extremely useful' if used
¡n conjunction with the ship's ma¡n propulsion, at developing sideways movement or
'lateral motion'.

Notes on Shiphandling Bow Thrusters

Lateral Moüon
part of
An insünct¡ve ability, to feel lateral movement ¡n a sh¡p ¡s a very.important
oood ship handling and conning a ship by the 'seat of the pants' lt is also' of course'
iái.iUfeio ¿"uero-p tateral motón intent¡óna¡y, with the jud¡cious use of kicks ahead.
ihis is frequently put to good effect when working a vessel up to a berth

lf the bow thruster is ava¡lable as well it can be used s¡multaneously

with kicks ahead
to oenerate even better lateral motion' particularly on the bigger class of ship' where
i¡." Nnetic energy of such a large vessel moving sideways can carry on for qu¡te
some time. lt is, however, very important to apPrec¡ate that there ¡s a considerable
d¡ff"rence between trying to work a single screw ship to port, as opposed to
starboard. This w¡ll be ¡llustrated in the follow¡ng examples

It is assumed, throughout the following that the ship has a righlhanded propeller
*t"o .ánng'headiay. lf required it should be relaüvely easy to review the
pitch'
examptes toñ¡¡ps w¡th left-handed propellers and either fixed or var¡able

Lateral moüon to Port

Lateral motion to port can be iniüated wiih good but short k¡cks ahead on
full
;d;"¿ iudder, in conjunclion w¡th a balance amount of thrust to port on the bow
ttriu"t"r. Ttti. wúl also'kill any undesirable swing of the bow to starboard The
easy and
ouestion of balancing the thruster Power aga¡nst a kick ahead is not always
lEmoarison of thr-uster and kick ahead power range may be useful as a rough
guide (see figure 8-6a).

ln an example with a ship of 2OOm length we m¡ght find the followingi

Thruster '1,351 shp 't 3t

Ma¡n Engine 12,000 shp 1201

A kick ahead with full power m¡ght real¡sücally only produce some 40 or 50% of the
;;i; ;;¿i;; fo*"t in t"rm. o-f s¡de thrust, in this case apProximatelv 48 to 60
tonnes, ánd this can be apport¡oned accord¡ng to rpm

Dead Slow Ahead 13t

Slow Ahead 271
Half Ahead 40t
FullAhead 54r

&10 Bow Thrusiers

Notes on Shiphañdling
 i.i".
l==r:= r-
i.
j, a-l
i.:ri
: ,,::
tttij
a) u¡ith kicks alread i i:r.

'-i';:
I
I
ji:

:ii
i i;!:
i r i:,
i-.itl
i .:tl
I . iir
: l::
',- ---.i

b) with aster¡ power

Figure 8-6 Lateral motion to port

Notes on Shiphandling &1'1 Bow Thrusters

Although this is only the most crude of comparisons, even allowing for a
cons¡d;rable percentage of inaccuracy, ¡t st¡ll is sufñcient to show that-

. fu ll bow thrust of 'l3tis only equal to a k¡ck ahead ofdead slow

. a k¡ck ahead with full power is 54t and actually very powerful

Another cons¡deration, particularly on ships w¡th controllable pitch propellers' is that

the reaction of a thruster may be much stower than the main propeller and therefore
it sometimes needs to be bróught in a l¡ttle earlier than the kick ahead lt is not ihe
intention ot t¡re toregoing to imP-iy that only dead slow ahead should .be used- On the
r"r" p"*érfuli¡cks ;h;ad may'frequenüy. be needed With these po¡nts in
"o"ir".¡Éá*"""t, it may be possible to find someth¡ng of a compromise between
l¡lJ,
thruster and kick ahead.

When the propeller is put astem, more often than not to reduce the headway wh¡ch
;;; briii;i;:; t""uit of ki"k" ahead, the transverse thrust of the Propeller on the
sárUoarO iuarter will continue to thrust the stern to porl and the anticipated
k¡ck
around of tÉe bow to starboard can be stopped by apply¡ng port bow thrust
(f¡gure 8-6b).
prev¡ously
The combination of these two forces will ma¡ntain the lateral motion to
oeneraFd with kicks ahead, thus mak¡ng ¡t a relatively easy tjask to work the ship
to have a natural tendency to do so Th¡s can be very efiectve
ñárt ái ,t *il
iuiO t"tg" tonnáge ships, even to the extent that some caut¡on may be required to
"pp""r
avo¡d land¡ng too fast and too heav¡ly'

Lateral motion to Starboard'

In comparison with work¡ng a sh¡p to port, this ¡s much. more problematic and
of
emerience has shown that haüng a bow thruster does not allow any relaxation
i;áih;si i; th; áffroactr ano iosiüonins of the sh¡p when attempting to work a
vessel to starboard. lt cán go very badly wrong!
problem and in
ln fioure 8-7(a) we can see that with kicks ahead there is no apparent
rnu"j"r tn" i"t" tann", as the preüous example, when working to port' a
of kicks ahead w¡th w;ll balanced thruster work will generate lateral
""*'¡i"áit"
mot¡on to starboard
As a
The problem begins when astem power is appl¡ed' usually to.control headway
naturally
iesuti, tne ¡ow ¡é l¡kely to swing inexorably to starboard. and there ¡s then a
¿;¿;;.y, automaticaiy to apply port bow thrust to check it as in figure 8-7(b)

u12 BovJ ThrusteF

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng
Revɀd J?n 2003
 a) witlr kicks ahead

coirecüng swir¡g

b) tlifficulty with
astern power

Figure 8-7 Lateral motion to starboard

Notes on Shipf¡añdling &13 Bow Thrulers

Revɀd Jan 2CO3
Thiscombinat¡onoftransversemrustaft,push¡ngthestemtoportandthebowbeing
unintent¡onal creation of
-*ñi"r.,,tn "n lnt¡J¡Ju" anJ' a[ogether
thrust to port forward, results
üi"ijr'-_i,ii"i-ii;-p,jrt if too much power is used, can. be of sufñcient
place and perhaps
,i"-g;trJ" to t"t" ilte ship back out to where it was in the first to.work the sh¡P to
even bevond lt is extremely emoarrassing, to see every.-effortport.
¡n the opposrre
iá-üo"iá. tn*á,t ¿ by an inexpticabte añd retenttess drift to
d¡recüon !

Every care should be taken to avoid placing 1:lip

into." p-o-=lli-o.l^Yhich creates the
by keep¡ng the
i."i t" *o* it to starboard unnecéssariti' Th¡s can be.achieved power ro
n"" whenever poss¡ble, but above all by-keeP¡ng stern
"iiioi"r'r "lose protongeiand exóessive periods w¡th the
""Javo¡¿¡ng proPeller runn¡ng
a minimum thus
astern.

Thrusting with Stemway

*ith or Úthout
Apart from when a ship is stopped it is onlv- when rnlkilg,:l:liY:L:
proves its worth and
iri" *"¡n propuf.¡on wórking astern, that a bow thruster really aft to a
ü.#;" ;;]ñ;ü n'i. is because the pivot point has moved
ñid;;-#.r-o-xi# t "tn"'"ni
ti á uof the inips length from the stem (se€ fisure 8-8) and
in this case 125m'
the bow thruster can now worK on a respecta6le tuming lever'
i! sternway In
The thruster can be used to steer the ship very.eff€cbvelY' ?t, I?k"t to get the feel
;;; th";;; manner as a ruooei aná altnough it doesn't take long
of il one or two points are worth keep¡ng ¡n mind - "

the thruster may be slow com¡ng up to full power'

the ship witl steer quite sluggishly with a tendency

io'flop'either
s¡de of the intended heading ¡f permitted to do so'

the thruster will be slow correcting any large rate

of turn

perceive rate of
lookinq astem from a br¡dge aft. the eye does not
irin ai qu¡cf<fy as it would when looking forward to the bow

a-14 Bor,/ fhrus'ters

Notes on Shiphandling
 125st

F¡gure 8-8 Thrusting with sternway - Pivot po¡nt

To the unwary, the key elements wh¡ch may create problems are the sluggish nature
of the responae times and poor thruster power. Wh¡lst the latter cannot be avo¡ded, ¡t
¡s possible to avoid the former by watching the heading and rate of turn with absolute
total concentration. lt is unw¡se to let the ship wander too far off the ¡ntended track'
or allow too big a rate of turn to develop. lf ¡t does it should be hit quickly with a 'bold
and vigorous' use of ti¡e appropriate tbruster Power.

At some stage it is going to be imperaüve to use stem power, perhaps to get or keep
the shíp moving astern. This then brings in the need to consider the additional effect
of transverse ihrust during periods when the main propulsion ¡s used astem ¡n
conjunction with a bow thruster. To do this it is advantageous to have some ¡dea as
to how much force in tonnes, is actually be¡ng exerted on the quarter by the
transverse thrust.

Using the same ship of 2O0m with a 12,000 shp main eng¡ne' and assuming fot- the
sakJof this exampie that the stem power ¡s only equivalent to 60% of the ahead
power, then the ma¡n proPuls¡on when runn¡ng astem will only be generating some
7,200 shp. fhis is the maximum output and it is quite possible that as little as 10% of
this total stern power will be trained onto the hull as transverse thrust, in which case
this ship will have a transverse force at full astern of on¡y .'-..

720 shP or 7 tonnes-

Wh¡le there is no doubt that stern power, hull design and therefore transverse thrust
may vary from ship to sh¡p, ¡t stil¡ rema¡ns in general terms a relatively poor force'

This is compounded by the fact that when the sh¡p ¡s making stemway' it is.also
work¡ng too close to the pivot point and consequently upon a very poor lurnlng lever
(see figure 8-9) wh¡ch in this ¡llustration may be as small as 30m. lf this is now
compared to the bow thruster of '13 tonnes the maximum turning moments are:-

Notes on Shiphandling 8-15 Bow fhrusters

 Transverse Thrust 7tx 30m = 2l0tm
Bow Thruster 13tx125m=1625tm
are favourable P" ?i:.:¡.bl" to work the
It should therefore. provided the conditions tnrust witn the bowihruster' This ¡s
shio astem by overridrng the erecr;il;;;;erse
indeed very effective. For this '"'"Jn
iüáy-on"n 9e ppfe-1red' in the case of sh¡ps
or to a berth'
;iiJ;i# bow thruster, to back up a waterway

13t

tuming moments
Figure 8-9 Thrust¡ng w¡th sternway -

Working Astem ¡n a Channel

with the aid of a bow-thruster' ¡s a very
The process of backing a shlp up a waterway
'*1j-"t''-tiany'omcers to-quite quickly Past
rewarding and satisfy¡ng op"'"oon .tare
iittó"t¡"nced can often' un¡ntent¡onally'
observation, however, has snown-i¡1ái'ir1" influence
allow a ship to become u'"ot o' ';;J
ii"* ü"iiious'and therefore-unexpected
wttr the shiP in a difficult and
of lateral motion and "can evend;ii
up
occasionally irretrievable sltuaüon'
of pos¡tions:-
8¡0 wtth a ship in the following sequence
This is illustrated in figure

Bo\,/ Thrusers
&16
Notes on Shiphandl¡ng
 F¡gure 8-10 Work¡ng astern ¡n a channel

Notes on Shiphandling il17 Bow Thrusters

 The sh¡p at this stage has iust entered the channel' ¡s in a
good
Pos¡t¡on 1- use of
pos¡üon and the bow i; cante'¿ to port to allow for a Pro¡onged
sterrl Power wh¡le stern way is built up'
corrected too late
Pos¡t¡on 2 - In this posit¡on the transverse thrust has e¡ther been
lhe
or not at all and the stern has been allowed to droP.away from this.
to cofrect
;entre of the ctrannet. ii ttle bow thruster is now applied
period the ship
while the ma¡n engine is st¡ll going astern' for a..short
bow thrust
will be under the ínfluence oi both transverse thrust.and
which comblne to generate lateral mot¡on to port This ¡s not intentional
and may not actually be noticed ¡n¡üally'
little b¡t of
Pos¡üon 3 - Here the ship ¡s steady on the conect heading' but that
centre line'
lateral movement nas iositioned the shiP sl¡ghtly .off .the
ÁiÁougt'i¡ü i. alwáys seen as a problem at th¡s stage' ¡t m¡ght be
*t and steer the
more advantageous b úse the bow thruster vigorously
sternbacktotnecentreofthechannel,particularlyasthepropelleris
poñ'
still working astern and encourag¡ng an unwanted
trend to

pos¡tion 2 is-
Position 4 - lt may now be the case that the sequence of events ¡n
combinaüon of
repeateo once, o, *"n W¡"", and each üme the,
thruster and Íansverse thrust ensures that the ship
mainta¡ns ¡ts
can be more
inexorably drift towards the edge of the channel' Th¡s
kinetic energy
pronounceo on a vessel of large tonnage'. where the,
way for some
leveloped in mov¡ng it sidewayi can keep ¡t.dJifting that
A l¡ghi
time, e;peciatly when encouraied to do so at freqüent lntervals-
wind on the starboard side wiltlugment and help io keep
th¡s tendency
going remarkably we ..

- The sh¡p could eventually be gettjng too close to the edge and
of ihe
Posiüon 5
sPace
channel, to the etent thai it is running out of manoeuvring
although ¡t is necessary to lift the stem back out ¡nto
the channel' this is
the bow to be
not poÁsible because t'here is insufficient water !o enable
thrusted to Port.

Pos¡tion6-Having|ostthespacetomanoeuvre,theseeming|y¡mpossiblecan
occur'- with the sh¡p ultimately succumb¡ng to lateral
mot¡on' and
pon srde'
touching the bottom or h¡tting an obstruction on the
one tug - lvhich
(lt is not uncommon during this manoeuvre for large ships to engage
is secured aft - where * on u"ry-"tfuitiu"ly assi;t with
the steering and posiüon¡ng
oJ i¡e stern, w¡itst tne bow is controlled solely
with the thruster)'

&r8 Bo¡,/ Thruslers

Notes on Sh¡Phandl¡ng
Rev6ed Jar ?003
To avoid being caught ¡n a sim¡lar manner, but keep¡ng ¡n mind that every movement
is un¡oue. with its own individual set of parameters, the follow¡ng general tips may be
of use.

Get the sh¡p mov¡ng smartly astem in¡tially and then keep it moving. Th¡s avoids
l¡ngering under the effects of leeway or lateral motion, which are worse at slow
speeds, or if the sh¡p is allowed to stop.

It ¡s often tempting to use k¡cks ahead to reposition the stem. This can easily take
all the way off the ship wh¡ch may then, because it takes some t¡me and effort to
gei a large vessel mov¡ng astern aga¡n, drifi out of posit¡on with leeway. Use
k¡cks ahead with cauüon!

. Don't attempt ¡t in h¡gh winds that can easily overr¡de the thrusters power.

. Once the ship is mov¡ng astem, in order to l¡m¡t transverse thrust to a m¡nimum,
take every opportunity to reduce or stop the stem power, unt¡l it is required to get
the sh¡p mov¡ng again.

. Bring the stern round suffic¡enüy to allow for transverse thrust when the stern
power ¡s brought in again.

. Watch the head¡ng carefully using the thruster boldly and vigorously to steer and
keep the stern on the intended track, the rest w¡ll follow!

Working Astem to a berth

Backing up to a berth on a sh¡p with a bow thruster can be an especially rewarding

and satjsrying operation. lt is part¡culariy useful at.esolv¡ng the difficulties that were
d¡scussed prev¡ously in this chapter, of working into a starboard side berth This
manoeuvre ¡s shovwr ¡n figure 8-1'l and in the interest of clarity the important aspects
of ¡t are dep¡cted w¡th three separate illustrations.

Posiüon 1- When approach¡ng the berth, it ¡s important to remember whete the

p¡vot point is when the ship is mak¡ng stemway because the odentat¡on
of the sh¡p as ¡t closes the dockside is fundamental to this manoeuvre

As the sh¡p makes sternway ¡t is, as a result of transverse thrust, apparently turn¡ng
about its p¡vot point and track¡ng astern in a wide arc' This in practical terms, means
that the whole ship foMard of the pivot point, some 125m ¡n this case, is swinging to
starboard as ¡t slowly works astern- By keeping the stern close up to the beñh and
head¡ng for a point which leaves sufficient d¡stance for the stern to work along the
docks¡de, th¡s tendency can then be used to swing all of the sh¡p forward of the pivot
ooint ¡n towards the berth.

Notes on Shiphandling 8-19 Bo¡,/ Thrusters

 3

F¡gure 8-'tl Work¡ng astern to a berth

Bow Thrusters
Notes on Shiphandlang
Revis€d Jan 2003
lf this natural bias of the sh¡p is enhanced w¡th the add¡tion of a bow thruster, the
positioning of the stern with the subsequent 'turning in' of the bow, can be achieved
with considerable confidence, making this a most satisfying manoeuvre.

Pos¡tion 2 - One of the big advantages with approaching a berth stern irst lies in
the fact that the whole range of the ships main power f¡om dead slow
ahead to full ahead is ava¡lable as an enormous reserve of power, ¡n
th¡s case 12,000 shp, with which it is relaüvely easy to correct the
following...-.

. an approach speed that is too high.

. inaceurate pos¡tioning of the stern.

lf it ¡s apparent as the ship approaches the berth that the speed of stemway is too
high, or v'/hen it is time to stop the ship ¡n any case, the main eng¡ne can be put
ahlad and this considerable power ¡s then used to bring the ship to a fa¡rly smart
and abrupt ha¡t. This excellent range of reserve power can also be used in the form
of'kicks ahead'to either bring the stern closer in to the dockside or altemaüve¡y lift ¡t
clear, thereby working the stem into the required posiüon.

It is very ¡mportant to be aware of the fact that if the ship ¡s allowed to creep ahead'
when uling k¡cks ahead, at the instant it beg¡ns to make headway the pivot point
moves to Jposiüon approximately 1/8 of the length from forward. This means, ¡n this
example, wiih a kick ahead on full siarboard rudder, that 175m of the sh¡p aft of the
pivot po¡nt will be swinging away from the dockside' Remember the difficulties
discussed earlier, ¡n developing lateral motion to starboard. This is extremely unwse
and should be avoided at alt costs, as ¡t may be imPossible to gei the ship back'
particularly with a light ofbhore w¡nd!

Pos¡fon 3 - lf the stem ¡s ¡n pos¡t¡on but the bow has not been brought in close
enough, th¡s need not be a problem, because if the ship is stopped and
the bów thruster is used, the p¡vot point will move to a pos¡tjon right aft'
and it w¡ll be working upon a good turn¡ng lever' thus producing ¡ts best
tum¡ng moment with wh¡ch to bring the bow alongs¡de' This might
cause the stern to drop away ftom the dockside slightly, but what
movement there ¡s can be checked with stern l¡nes (or s¡ngle tug afi)'

ln situaüons when !t is d¡ffcult to work the ship ¡nto a starboard side berth, perhaps
because of an initaüng off shore wind, it ¡s often more exped¡ent to use th¡s method,
and get the stern alongs¡de and sorted out ¡n¡tially, before then using the thruster to
work the bow in, as opposed to struggting with a seemingly insünctive and automat¡c
determ¡nation to always get the bow in frst.

Finally, ¡t may be of interest to recall the discuss¡on concerning the diftculties that
can, unfortunately, develop when approaching a starboard side berth in the more
customary mann'er, with headway and bow ítst. lf the be¡th is prov¡ng totally
unattainatle, it is worth keeping in m¡nd, provided there is suffic¡ent water ahead of
the ship, thát ¡t m¡ght be possible to run on a little past the berth, get the bow well
Notes on Shiphandling v21 Bo¡¿ Thruslers
round to port, and then work the sh¡p back up to the berth stern ñrst, ¡n the same
manner as ¡l¡ustrated ¡n figure 8-11.

Summary

It has been the intention in this chapter to look at some of the advantages and
disadvantages associated with bow thruster work. Those with l¡tüe or no eper¡ence
¡n working á single screw sh¡p with the a¡d of a bow thruster w¡ll then have the prior
knowledge ¡n th¡s erea of ship handl¡ng and avoid some of those d¡fficuhes which
are not always obvious before attempting a manoeuvre.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng Bo\r,/ fhrus{ers

 CHAPTER NINE

SPECIAL PROPELLERS AND RUDDERS

Notes on Shiphandling +1 Special propellets and rudders

Revised Jۖ 2003
Special Propellers and Rudders

lntroducüon

The major¡ty of vessels upon which most seafarerc sewe, have a trad¡üonal single'
fixed piich propeller and s¡ngle rudder, wh¡ch is designed Primarily.for getting the
ship from one fairyvay buoy to another as economically as poss¡ble. This clearly
leaves a lot to be desired in tems of manoeuvrab¡l¡ty and this is not always
acceptable, particularly in trades where the sh¡p is fequenüy in the confines of
pilotage waters.

In order to ach¡eve a better compromise between manoeuvrab¡lity and economy

some vessels may be ftted with prope¡lers or rudders that differ considerably from
the tradiüonal, balic design. There are also a number vessels which are des¡gned
with a total commitment to manoeuvrability that have completely d¡fferent propulsion
and steering systems.

Unfortunately this type of sh¡p ¡s ¡n the minority group. Many seafarers with a great
deal of eperience on convenüonal ships, and particulady tainee P¡lob' may
occas¡onally fnd themselves boarding a ship that is ftted with a propuls¡on or
steering system with which they are totally unfamil¡ar. With this in mind, th¡s chapter
will také a'broad look' at some of the d¡fiering systems and the principles involved,
with the hope that ¡t will provide oficers with a little general knowledge prior to
boarding.

Controllable Pitch Ptopellers

Unl¡ke the fxed piich propeller, the blades of these propellers can be altered, to set
whatever gitch is required, across the whole power band ftom full ahead to fu¡l
astem.

Th¡s is usually ach¡eved with hydraul¡c pumps or pistons, the older mechan¡cal
systems be¡ng less able to cope with the s¡ze and speeds ofthe modem vessel. The
hydraulic pumps themselves are activated by an elecfic motor, which is in tum
operated by remote bridge contol. This may be either pneumat¡c or elecfonic.

To use a controllable p¡tch (CP) propeller the main eng¡ne has to be clutched in' so
that the propeller ¡s conünuously turning, frequenüy at quite high revolufions- One
advantage of a controllable pitch propeller is that it facil¡tates the use of a shafr
altemator as the engine can be run at a constant RPM with the propeller pitch being
set to su¡t the requ¡red manoeuvre, Alternat¡vely the propuls¡on system may be
confolled by a "combinatod wh¡ch automatically balances the eng¡ne revoluüons
against propeller pitch, thus producing a saving ¡n fud and beüer propeller
perfofmance.

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ñg 9-2 Special propellers and rudde6

RevÉed Jar 2003
Ahead moYements

To use ahead power, a sh¡p w¡th a CP propeller is not reslr¡cted lo the stepped
progress¡on, through dead slow ahead to full ahead, that has for some, been long
assoc¡ated with fixed p¡tch propellers. Any speed can be selected, simply by
adjust¡ng the combinator control to the required setting. lt ¡s also possible to set the
propeller pitch for extremely low speeds, so that on these occasions when it is
essenüal to proceed at very slow speeds, the propeller and rudder are süll active and
steerage way can be mainta¡ned for a lot longer than is usual. Th¡s ¡s particularly
advantageous if compared to the many sh¡ps with fixed pitched Propellers, where the
speed for dead slow ahead can somet¡mes be as high as six or seven knots, due to
excessive engine revolut¡ons and/or stalling speed ofthe engine.

Slowing Down

When 'low speed' or'stop' are demanded, the blades of the CP propeller are set with
a very fine angle and p¡ich, to the extent that when they are v¡ewed from astem, they
will appear to open like a fan and the propeller will look rather l¡ke a closed d¡sc or
wheel. lf the sh¡p's speed is too h¡gh and does not already match the propeller
speed, the flow of water through ¡t will be restricted and a great deal of tuóulence
wili develop beh¡nd the propeller, wh¡ch will also have an adverse effecl upon the
rudder (see figure 9-1). lf therefore, the ship's speed is not reduced slowly and
progress¡vely, ¡n much the same way as a la¡ge d¡recüonally unstable ship, the
rudder will be shielded and the steering may become erratic or poo¡.

Wh¡lst it is ¡nitaüng ¡f the steering ¡s poor, ¡t should not be forgotten that CP

propellers are ¡nstantly available for conective 'kicks ahead', in a virtually unl¡mited
supply, and are not liable to the restrictions that can be experienced with fixed p¡tch
prope¡lers, such as limited air suppl¡es for starting the engine or delays wh¡lst the
eng¡ne ¡s put astem.

Figure 9-1 lmpeding the rudder with fine pitch seü¡ngs

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng Special propellers and rudders

Transverse Thrust

One of the most common concerns ment¡oned by many officers, and qu¡ie rightly so,
is the uncertainty as to which way ihe bow will cant, ¡f at all, when a controllable p¡tch
(CP) propeller ¡s put astem. Th¡s ¡s also something the pilot needs to know when he
comes on board.

To answer this quest¡on, ¡t is first necessary to know which way the propeller is
tum¡ng lvhen it is v¡ewed ftom astem. With the maiority of CP propellers it is ¡n an
anti-dóckwise direction and they are called lefr-handed. lt ¡s important however,
when informed that a CP ship is left-handed, that ¡t is not contused with a fixed p¡tch
left-handed shiD, because the CP propeller, ¡t should be remembered, rotates the
same way all the time. When the pitch ¡s set for stem power, it ¡s only the angle of
the blades that has changed and the propeller is slill rotating anü-clockwise or left-
handed.

The effect is now s¡m¡lar to a lxed pitch right handed propeller working astern. The
flow of water through the prope¡ler ¡s d¡rected up onto the slatboard quarter and may
be sfong enough to thrust the steñ to port, so that the bow ¡s seen to cant or'k¡cK
to starboard .

It is ¡mportant to note that the transverse thrust on some sh¡ps with a CP prope¡ler
may be weak and unre¡iable, due to vorlices or turbulence around the prope¡ler
blades. This is usually the resutt of specific design l¡mitations and might, for example,
occur when a CP propeller is designed to operate at slow speeds, with fine pitch
sett¡ngs, but high shañ revolutions. ln anolher example, ¡f the p¡tch ¡s altered trom
ahead to astem, some of the inner or lower sections of the blades may be set at
rather crude angles and this, too, can ct-eate vort¡ces around the propeller. These
characteristics can also have a detrimental effect on the max¡mum stem power
ava¡lable when compared lo a similar ship with a fixed pitch proPe¡ler.

It is therefore advisable to exercise some cauüon, when antic¡pating the

effects of stem power on some CP ships.

Notes on Sh¡phandliog 9-4 Spec¡al propellers and rudders

Stopped and alongside

On some sh¡ps, when the conÍol lever on the bridge is posiüoned for stop with zero
p¡tch, the propeller mighi not be accurately aligned to the same sett¡ng and some
residual thrust may st¡ll exist. Although, üth experience, a sh¡p's master can
compensate for this enor, ¡t is stil¡ imperative to remember, that even though ,stop'
has been requested, a sh¡p with a CP propeller can creep ahead or astem.

Th¡s is very important during the period prior to sl¡pping from a berth, wtren the
eng¡ne ¡s started and the shaft is cl¡_.rtched ¡n. lf the ropes are not kept üght,
part¡cularly Mrile singl¡ng up, the vessel may start to move along the docks¡de w¡th
serious consequences ¡f other ships are tied up close ahead or astem- lt is also
noticeable on some ships that the CP propeller, wh¡ch ¡s constanüy running with h¡gh
revolut¡ons, can pump quite a lot of water up onto the quarter and along the sh¡p's
s¡de, even with zero p¡tch set. ¡n the case of a left handed CP propeller this water will
be froúng along the starboard side,

lf then, he ship is laying alongside a sotid dockside starboard s¡de to and the ropes
are slackened ofi, th¡s can act l¡ke a t¡de flowing from astem and push the stem
away f¡om the docks¡de (see figure 9-2). lt can also make it very difficutt to get the
stern alongside when berth¡ng, particularly when coming ¡nto a berth stem first and
there has been a need to use stem power as well. Th¡s might not be resolved, until
either a stem l¡ne is ashore and t¡ght, or the revolutions are reduced.

Figure 9-2 Creat¡ng eddies and cunenls on zero pitch

Notes on Sh¡phandling Spec¡al propellers and rudders

RévÉed Jai 2@3
Breakdowns

It ¡s ¡nevitable that complex mach¡nery, no matter how rel¡able, can eventually be

exposed to the risk of fa¡lure. Whether th¡s is a result of human error or negl¡gence is
another maüer- What does maüer, ¡s that ¡t is ¡mportant to know that as a result of a
breakdown in the syslem, wh¡ch way the CP propel¡er will fail. Th¡s may be either to
stick, or abort to full ahead, stop, or full astem.

On a modem vessel, in an effort to counteract this eventuality, the hydraul¡cs,

e¡ecfic motoG and bridge control aÍe usually backed up with alternative systems,
wh¡ch can be activated by the ship's personnel ¡n the evenl of a failure. This may of
course take a l¡ttle t¡me. Whilst that might be acceptable ¡n open waters, it would not
be satisfactory within the confines of p¡lotage waters wtlere, for example, a shorl
period of t¡me with a propeller stuck at full power could result in a serious accident! lt
is therefore worth bearing ¡n m¡nd, that there should be an 'emergency stop' button
on the bridge wilh which to either stop the engine, or de.clutch lhe propeller, ¡n an
emefgency.

Finally, if power to the propeller is lost, it ¡s helpful if the propel¡e/s pitch can be set
to full ahead, so that the rudder ¡s not shielded and can be used to some effect. with
what steerage way rema¡ns.

Propeller Shrouds

In Europe, some years ago, t¡ials were conducted with a vessel whose propeller was
placed ¡nside a tube.l¡ke shroud or tunnel. The hope was that it would restrict the
propelleis wash to a smaller arc and so reduce the erosion of canai and river banks
by pass¡ng baffic, Wh¡lst th¡s was ¡ndeed successful, more s¡gnificandy it was not¡ced
that a vessel fttted with a shrouded propeller was considerably more powerful than a
comparable vessel üth an unshrouded Drooeller.

Today many vessels, ranging from tugs to the wide variety of t¡affic using ¡nland
waterways, ¡nclud¡ng some coasters, may be fitted w¡th shrouded propellers.
Alihough not common on larger deep sea ships, some do ex¡st and one or two sh¡p
yards have even bu¡lt the occasional VLCC with the propeller encased ¡n a shroud of
truly g¡gantic proportions!

The increase in power output from the propeller, wh¡ch can be either fixed or
controllable p¡tcf|, is ach¡eved by reducing the d¡ameter with¡n the shroud from
forward to aft (see figure 93), Because ofthis, the propeller is constantly drawing a
mass of water into the shroud which then has to be forced out through a smaller
aperture, For this to happen, the water has to be eiected out of the shroud at a much
h¡gher velocity than it entered. lt ¡s this which gives the vessel its add¡üonal lift or
drive, rather like a circular aerofoil!

Notes on Sh¡phandling 9€ Specia¡ propellers and rudders

Re!Ée.t Jáñ 2(D3
 +---.'--"'----
+-- -.-----.'----

+-----*--"--"
+''.----'-'- -

F¡gure 93 Prope¡ler shrouds - fixed tunnels

lf a shroud is insialled on a large s¡ngle screw ship, it is usually rig¡dly attached to the
ship's stem rather like a fixed tunnel. In other cases however the shroud, together
with its propeller, may rotate as one unit and effectively become a nozzle or az¡muth
drive. These can be ¡nstalled as s¡ngle or twin un¡ts and although some coasters may
be found with azimuth stem drives, the most common example ¡s the azimuth drive
tug, wh¡ch usua¡ly has twin un¡ts, either am¡dships or afi (see figure g).

\ry1
^

F¡gure 94 Propeller shrouds - roiaüng nozzles

Notes on Shiphandliñg Special propellers and rudders

The des¡gn of tugs hás benefited enormously from shroud technology, as ¡t enables
bollard pull to be inc¡eased econom¡cally, without ¡nstalling larger engines and
incuning the penalt¡es of h¡gher cap¡tal e&enditure and rising tuel bills.

It is espec¡ally effecbve at low speeds and h¡gh loads. At zero foMard speed and full
power (the bollard pull condition) about 50% of the thrust comes from the duct alone.
At high speeds he drag ofthe dud ¡s detrimentalto ib efficiency.

WhiFt the fitting of a shroud to the propeller of a convenüonal s¡ngle screw sh¡p, is
primarily a matter of economic consideraüon and not one of manoeuvrab¡¡ity, it must,
nevertheless, be of some consequence with regards to its handling characterisücs. lt
is quite poss¡ble, for example that the h¡gher veloc¡ty of water flow from the shroud
onto the rudder will improve both the quality of steering and response to k¡cks ahead
at low speeds. The shroud, rather l¡ke a skeg, may also give better d¡rectional
stability to the ship.

These points are however, d¡mcult to quanüfo and may not be part¡cularly noticeable
when on board a ship. What ¡s more noticeable ¡s the effect of a shroud when the
propeller ¡s put astem.

Transverse thrust

In normal circumstances, when a convent¡onal righi handed propeller is going astern,

the water flows diagonally through it and part of the water flo\¡v is then defected up
onto the ship's starboard side. lf on the other hand ¡t ¡s placed ¡n a shroud, the usual
water flow into and out of the propeller ¡s restricied, to the extent that very l¡ttle ¡s
d¡rected up onto the starboard quarter.

Assuming it is not influenced by any other external forces, th¡s means that ¡t is
poss¡ble for a sh¡p with a shrouded propeller to run a relaüvely sfaight ¡ine when
slowing down or stopping because there will be no cant of the bow when the
propeller is put astem. On the negaüve s¡de, however, it must be remembered that
the ixed shroud ¡s des¡gned for effc¡ency when making headway and not sternway,
so when compared to a s¡milar ship w¡th an unshrouded proPeller, the transverse
thrust ¡s very poor.

Blockages

It is not unknolvn, particularly on tugs or coastal sh¡ps with azimuth drives and
constantly running controllable pitch Propellers, for foreign ob¡ecls to be sucked into
the shroud and jam with such force that the engine either stops, or has to be
stopped, because the excess load is caus¡ng the eng¡ne temperatures to rise
unacceptably. This usually occurs ¡n shallow, fast flow¡ng, t¡dal rivers and estuar¡es'
when fore¡gn objects, such as lorry tyres and other debris have been thtown into the
upper reaches ofthe river and work the¡r way down stream.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 9€ Special prope¡lers and rudde¡s

Revɀd Jan 2003
There are no immediate answers lo this problem, other than to keep a sharp look out
for any rubbish in the water and be aware that it can happen! In the long term it can
only be hoped that polluüon controls will ¡mprove.

Rudders

The tradiüonal or convenüonal rudder emptoyed world wide ¡n thousands of ships, is

unfortunaiely, from a sh¡p handling point of v¡ew, something of a comprom¡se
between economy and necess¡ty On sea passages it is continuously being worked'
with a success¡on of small rudder angles, tor normal steenng purposes and at
modest speeds large alterations of course are easily ach¡eved with¡n the customary
35o of maximum rudder angle.

For th¡s fa¡rty simple requirement the rudder, iogether with ¡ts assoc¡ated hydraulic
pumps and electric motors, does not need to be unduly large or complex and w¡ll
thereforc be relatively economical in tems of both installaüon and running costs.

Whilst bigger more expens¡ve un¡ts could be installed, this would not be
advantiageous, because the basic rudder is not hydrodynam¡cally effcient beyond an
angle of 35', or in some cases 45o, At any stage up to this angle and 'hard ovef, the
rudder retia¡ns a smooth water flow across both faces and th¡s creates a posiüve
pressure on one side but equally important, a negative pressure on the oppos¡te side
and this g¡ves the rudder, ralher like an a¡rcraffs wing, ¡ts lift (see fgure +5).

<-------_-

<--

Figure 9-5 Convenüonal rudder - rudder angle up to 45o

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng Special propellers and rudders

Unfortunately, at any angle exceed¡ng 45o, the water fiow across the rudder,
particularly on the low pressure side, becomes progressively more turbulent, unül
eventuafly the rudder stalls and il is rendered much less effective (see fgure 96).

.t
_<_--- t
I
<-____

-<
F¡gure 9-6 Conventional rudder - rudder angles over 45o

As a result of this ¡¡mitaüon, the convenüonal rudder, although satisfactory on

passage, is some what restricted when ¡t comes to manoeuvrability at slow speeds in
confined waters. The excepüon, perhaps, is the 45'rudder, which in comparison to
lhe mofe common 35o rudder does perform a little better with regard to tum¡ng ability
although ¡t is not usually possible to exceed 35o above a specific speed. lt ¡s,
nevertheless, süll a conventional rudder and manufacturers have had a look at
altematve designs to ¡mprove rudder performance.

Notes on Sh¡phandling 910 Special propellers añd rudders

Revbed Jan 2003
Rudder Flaps and Rotors

There are qu¡te a few ships in service wh¡ch are now fitted with what ¡s essenbally a
conventional rudder, but with an additional 'flap'on the trailing or aftemost edge of
the rudder. These are not unlike the flaps that are deployed on the wings of aircrafi
and wh¡ch generate eúra Íift during take ofi and landing. When the helm ¡s put over,
the ma¡n rudder can be set at any angle up to a max¡mum of 35o, in the normal
manner, and as the ma¡n rudder rotates the ffap automatically articulates with it until
a maximum ang¡e of 70o or more is reached (see figure 9-7).

(optional rotor)

F¡gure 9-7 Altemat¡ve rudder designs - fap rudders

The progress¡ve nature of th¡s artjculation in terms of rudder angles, ensures a

smooth flow of water over the rudder and flap at all times with good lift and a much
¡mproved tuming ab¡lity over conventional rudders. In some cases, water flow around
the rudder may also be enhanced by a rotating rylinder, mounted vertically, on the
lead¡ng edge of the ma¡n rudder. Indiüdual designs vary according to spec¡ic
manulacturers so that some rudders may have flaps, others rotors and some rotors
and iaps. They all however, give excellent performance.

These types of rudder are most commonly known as either'Becke/ or'Jastram'

rudders.

Note6 on Shiphandling 911 Special propellers and ruddérs

Revised Jan 2003
Shaped Rudders

Th¡s is an alternative des¡gn to the flap and one where the manufacturer has shaped
the rudder so that it can be tumed to angles of up to 70o and yet slill reta¡n excellent
performance (see figu¡e 9-8), The forebody of the rudder ¡s elliptical in shape, but
runs ¡nto a rear body section which is concave. The top and bottom of the rudder ¡s
constructed with fianges, which help to channel or coniain the water flow across the
rudder face as ¡t runs ¡nto the concave section, before being deflected out at a sharp
angle at the afi end oflhe ruddeÍ.

This type of rudder ¡s commonly known as the 'Single Schilling Ruddef .

F¡gure 9-8 Altemat¡ve rudder designs - shaped rudders

Operational Aspects

Although all of these spec¡alised rudders deploy to 70o or more they are still used ¡n
much the same way as convenüonal rudders, but with the advantage of excellent
turn¡ng ability from the correct use of kicks ahead. When worked in conjunction with
a good bow thruster it is possible to develop outstanding lateral motion and care
needs to be exerc¡sed when land¡ng on the dockside or upon other sh¡ps, ¡n case the
sh¡p's s¡deways movement is excess¡ve-

ln situaüons other than berthing the excellent tum¡ng ab¡lity of these rudders müst be
bome in mind ¡n o¡der to avo¡d excessive rate of tum with possibly embarrassing
results.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 912 Spec¡ai propellers and rudders

Speed L¡m¡tat¡ons

Vvith many of these rudders able to rotate to angles of 70o or more on ships which
are capab¡e of moderately h¡gh speeds, it is not surprising that enomous loads can
be placed upon the rudder and ¡ts assoc¡ated systems. Although the rudder and
steering gear are built to withstand these loads, without some safeguards they could
be seriously damaged. For h¡s reason, some ships with specialised rudders may be
f¡tted with a system overr¡de wh¡ch will lim¡t the use or the angle of lhe rudders to 35"
wfien the ship's speed exceeds a certa¡n speed- Th¡s m¡ght, for example, be at
around 5 orG knots.

Tw¡n Sch¡ll¡ng Rudde6

This innovaüve system may now be found on an increasing number of vessels.

Although ¡n the past these were mainly of smaller tonnage, the system may now be
found on a range of new larger vessels wh¡ch p¡¡ots around the world may find
themselves board¡ng on occasions. Unl¡ke the s¡ngle flap or shaped rudders that
were illustrated ¡n fgures 97 and 9-8 and which are used in much the same manner
as convenüonal rudders, th¡s system ¡s totally different in both design and operation-

The most unusual but essential feature of this system is the propeller, wh¡ch even
though ¡t ¡s fixed p¡tch, is constanüy running with the main engine permanently on
ahead revolutions. For sh¡p handling purposes, the optimum rprn required are those
which are normally associated with manoeuvring full ahead, although this can be
adjusted ¡f so requ¡red, tor example to reduce excess¡ve wash.

lmmed¡ately astem of the propeller, in place of the conveniional rudder, are two
Sch¡¡l¡ng rudders each of which can roiate through a total arc of 1450 (see figure
9-9). They are set up so that each rudder hás an arc of operation either side of the
fore and afi l¡ne rang¡ng from an inner angle of 35o right round to an outer angle of
110'. The rudders do not act ¡ndependenüy of each other but are ¡nstead
synchron¡sed to work in harmony with each other ¡n response to a s¡ngle ioy stick
control on the bridge wtr¡ch is extremely easy to operate.

ln igure 9-9 four important rudder pos¡tions are ¡¡lustrated, each of wh¡ch ¡s in
response to a specific joystick setting, The ioy st¡ck can be adjusted as requ¡red to
obta¡n a wide range of intemed¡ate rudder pos¡üons.

Full Ahead - This is the posiüon for normal tull ahead with the joystick tully
forward- lf the joysück is eased back the rudders progressively
open outwards, deflecüng the propelle/s wash or drive and thus
reducing the sh¡p's speed.

Bow to Port - lf the joystick is put foMard and to port at the maximum setting,
one rudder goes to 35o and the other to 70o. This gives excellent
tuming abil¡ty, particularly at slow speeds.

Nqtes on Sh¡phandling 913 Special propellers and rudde¡s

FullAstern - To obta¡n stem power up to the equivalent of full astern, the
joystick is pulled right back until each rudder has rotated right
around to 1100 thus closing the gap belween them. The
propelle/s wash is then deflected forwards and works ¡n much
the same way as the reverse thrust of the a¡rcrafts jet eng¡ne,
when it is deployed to stop the a¡rcrafr after touch down.

v.

a
b ó

a) ñrll alread b) bow to port

..f

a
ó

-t

cl zul astern d) astert stertr to Port

Figure 9-g Twin Schilling rudders

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 9-14 Spec¡al p¡opellers and rudde6

Revb€d J€,i 2m3
The equ¡valent of the conventional 'stop eng¡nes' ¡s obtained by ad.iusting the ioyst¡ck
to the approPriate intermed¡ate neutral setting, so that the rudders are rotated to a
pos¡üon somewhere between futl ahead and full astern, which g¡ves neither forward
nor astern thrust. Th¡s varies a l¡tüe, because the propeller wash ¡s then deflected
sideways and may be affected by such things as depth under the keel, tjdes, or the
close prox¡m¡ty of sol¡d jett¡es.

Astern.

Stem to port - Th¡s figure ¡llustrates one of the most beneicial characterisücs
of these rudders and one which gives good control of the ship's
head, when either slowing down, stopp¡ng, or back¡ng, with the
rudders deployed for astem thrust. In this particular example the
joystick has been eased across ¡n the d¡rection of the port
quarter and this will rotate and open out the appropriate rudder,
so that the stem is also thrust to port.

This is extremely useful, bearing ¡n mind that it ¡s not always so

easy to keep control of the sh¡p's head and speed at lhe same
time, when as an altemaüve the rudders are employed for kicks
aneao-

Wh¡lst this system, with its constantly running propeller, seems a little strange at first,
most ofi¡cers, after a short period of instructjon, appear to get the feel of it relat¡vely
quickly.

Summary

Th¡s chapter has only been concemed with conventional cargo carry¡ng ships, which
m¡ght have a propuls¡on oÍ steering system that is a little d¡fferent from the trad¡tional
single rudder and fixed pitch propeller. The obiect¡ve herein is to fum¡sh
inelperienced personnel with a broad knowledge of some of the more common
systems. There are other more comPlex systems in service, on dynamic pos¡üon¡ng
(DP) vessels for example, but these are highly sophisücaied and will always requ¡re
highly trained and spec¡alised operators.

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng 915 Special propellers and rudders

 CHAPTER TEN

TWIN SCREW WORK

Noles on Shiphandl¡ng t0-1 Twin Scre',\,Work

Twin Screw Work

lntroduction

Wh¡lst it may seem a l¡tt¡e strange at first the techn¡ques for working a twin screw
ship arc usually p¡cked up quite quickly. Unless the ship is especially cumbersome or
unw¡eldy ¡t doesn't take long to get the feel of the ship.

Th¡s ¡s part¡cularly so for masters and offcers permanently employed on twin screw
sh¡ps, such as short haul fenies and cru¡se ships, where they are able to gain
cons¡derable exper¡ence conn¡ng a twin screw sh¡p. lt soon becomes second nature.
There are however, one or two ¡mportant po¡nts that may be worth look¡ng at and
wh¡ch m¡ght be of use to those less fortunate personnel who have l¡ttle or no
exper¡ence of twin screw work, but may occas¡onally find themselves board¡ng such
a ship.

The essence of twin screw work and a good twin screw sh¡p ¡s not the result of any
one factor alone, but rather several ¡mportant factors which can comb¡ne to produce
excellent handling characterisücs are:

. the rudder configuration.

. the efiect of torque.
. the effect ot transverse thrust.
. the pivot ooint.
. tuming abit¡ty.

fhe Rudder Conf¡gurat¡on

lnitially ihis might seem a somewhat odd top¡c to d¡scuss, as it is all too easy to
assume that the rudders are adequately designed for the task. There are, however, a
few sh¡ps ¡n serv¡ce, and ¡n part¡cular some older generation container ships, which
although twin screw, are unfortunately built with only one rudder. On this type of sh¡p
the rudder is situated on the centre l¡ne between the two propellers. Even when 'hard
ove/ it may be e¡ther wholly or partially out of the propellers helical d¡scharge (see
figure 'lG1). This rneans that response to the rudder may be poor at very slow
speeds because it may be solely re¡iant upon ship's speed and not propeller wash to
generate water flow across it.

Th¡s ¡s most noticeabte rvhen getting under way frorR stopped. The ship takes a long
time to answer the helm and travels quite some distance ¡n the interim time interval.
lf th¡s type of sh¡p is exposed to any adverse manoeuvring conditions, such as
it
shallow water or confary winds and tides, ¡s l¡kely to become seriously
unmanageable at slow speeds and considerable care should be exercised, with
emphasis on the need for adequate tug support. ln view of experiences such as this,
¡t ¡s desirable to have two rudders on tw¡n propel¡er ships, so that

Notes on Shiphandling 10-2 TvJin Screv, Work

 PI,\,
0i-^

Figure '10-1 Twin screw - s¡ngle rudder

each rudder ¡s pos¡üoned with¡n the helical discharge of an ¡ndiv¡dual propeller. They
can then work ¡nteractively, in the same manner as the propeller and rudder on a
sing¡e screw ship.

The Efiect Of Torque

The term torque is used ¡n this ¡nstiance to describe the natural tuming effect that ¡s
created by one engine pushing ahead and one engine pulling astern, or to a lesser
extent, just one of those engines being used. Th¡s conüibutes towards good twin
screw tun¡ng abil¡ty, but occas¡onally it is poss¡ble to come across a ship where the
effect will be extremely disappo¡nüng, because the ship is des¡gned with the
propellers too close together (see figure l0-2).

Figure 10-2 Propellers too close together

A few specialised sh¡ps, such as sa¡l train¡ng ships with auxiliary power and some
low powered naval vessels, are naturally nanow beamed and therefore torque is
poor. In the worst cases a prolonged period with one engine ahead and the other
astem, even with full power, will produce an ¡ns¡gn¡ficant or negl¡gible rate of turn. In
these c¡rcumstances the master will often adv¡se, quite conecty, that the propellers
are used together as one, ¡n much the same manner as a s¡ngle screw ship.

In view of the problems associated with handling twin screw ships with single
rudders, or propellers too close together, or both, a better des¡gn is one where there
are twin rudders and where the propellers have as much athwartship spacing as
possible (see ñgure 10-3). Having sa¡d this, it is possible to go from one extreme to
the other and board a sh¡p where the propeller blades extend well out beyond the
fore and aft l¡ne of the sh¡p's s¡de, With this type of ship, when close to the dockside
Notes on Sh¡phandling 1G3 Twin Scre¡¡, Work
during berth¡ng and unberth¡ng, the master may have no choice but to ¡ns¡st that the
inboard propeller is stoDDed and in the case of controllable pitch propellers, the
shafts as well.

Figuré l0-3 Propellers well spread

Fortunately, ¡f they are on a regular run, ships with these un¡que handl¡ng problems
lend to become well known with¡n a pilotage d¡strict and ¡ndividual pilots are
forewamed before boarding them. There will always, however, be exceptions and
many pilots around the world may not have preüous experience of this type of ship.

The Efiect of Transverse Thrust

It ¡s essenüal that when the appropriate propeller is put astem to ass¡st tum¡ng ab¡l¡ty
that the bansverse thrust is d¡rected uD onto the correct quarter. To ascertain ¡f th¡s
¡s so ¡t is necessary to look at the d¡recüon of rotaüon of each propefler, when v¡ewed
from astern, and detem¡ne whether thev are e¡ther

. outward turn¡ng.

or

. inward tuming,

Out\ rard tum¡ng f¡xed p¡tch propellers

In relaüon to each other when go¡ng ahead, the blades of lhese propellers are
outward tum¡ng in the upper half of the¡r circle of rotaüon, when v¡ewed fom astern
(see figure 1G4a). lf however, the starboard propeller ¡s put astem, ¡o assist fo¡
example in tuming the ship to starboard, ¡t will now be rotaüng ¡n the opposite
direcüon (see figure 1Hb). Th¡s propeller is therefore behav¡ng in exactly the same
way as the right handed propeller on a s¡ngle screw ship and part of ¡ts hel¡cal
d¡scharge w¡ll be deflected up and onto the starboard quarter. The resultant
transverse thrust will cant the bow to starboard, not only assisüng the tum, but also
work¡ng in conjunction with both the rudders and propeller torque.

Notes on Sh¡phandling 1H Twin Screw Work

Inurard tuming f¡xed p¡tch ProPellers.

These propellers, when viewed from astem, are now inward tuming in the upper half
of the¡r circ¡e of rotation (see figure 10-5a). lf, once again, the ship is tuming to
starboard and the starboard propeller put astem to assist, it will be roiating ¡n the
oppos¡te d¡recüon (see figure 10-5b) This propeller is acting ¡n the same way as a
Idfi handed propeller on á single screw ship, so wh¡lst go¡ng astern part of the helical
discharge will be deffected up and towards the port quart€r! fhe resultant transverse
thrust will attempt to cant the bow to port, not only in the opPos¡te directjon to the
des¡red turn, but also working aga¡nst the rudders and propeller torque. The astern
wash f¡om the starboard propeller may also seriously deflect the smooth flow of
water ftom the port propel¡er onto ¡ts own rudder.

The effect of inward tuming propellers upon a ship can be extremely severe and
render it total¡y unmanageable from a ship handling point of view ln the worst case ¡t
has been fouñd necessáry when manoeuvring, to stop one eng¡ne completely and
work the vessel in the same manner as a single screw sh¡p

It ¡s difrcult to ¡magine why sh¡ps are built with inward turning propellers if they are
so difficult to handlé, but apparently th¡s configuraiion does give a better econom¡cal
performance in terms of fuel consumpt¡on, part¡cularly on long passages!

Contollable p¡tch p¡opellers

With a CP propeller rotaüng the same way all the t¡me ¡t can, at first, seem a little
confus¡ng when trying to understand whether they should be inward or outwerd
turning fór twin screw work. To work this out it is best to start with the assumption
that the inside propeller duíng a tum must, when it is set with astem pitch' give
transverse ihrust onto the appropriate quarier. Looking at figure 104b the starboard
propeller would therefote need to be tum¡ng anticlockwise or lefi-handed, but looking
át iigure 10-5b the port propeller would need to be rotaüng clockwise or right-
hand-ed. The brvo CP propel¡ers thus need to be inward tuming or 'handed' as ¡t is
sometimes called, in order to achieve the same results as outward tum¡ng fixed p¡tch
propel¡ers.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 10-5 Twin Screw Work

 a) abead ooly

Bridgcco rols
AEEAD

llr trl I

ASTERN

b) otre elgine astern

Bridge Conüols

áSEAI)
-5e--
lm ml
--------2E-
ASTERN

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng 10€ Twin Scre\¡,/ Work

 a) ahead only

Br¡dge Co¡t¡ols

AI¡EAD

ll|l |Ir I

b) oqe eagire astern

Brid€c Coútrols

AIIAI)

tm wl

F¡9ure l0-5 Twin fixed p¡tch propel¡ers - Inward tum¡ng

Notes on Shiphandling Twin Screwwork

Although, in general, ships are built to give the conect twin screw response, there
are ¡n fact a few ships ¡n existence which do not have handed twin CP propellers, but
instead have twin propellers which roiate the same way and they may be either r¡ght
or left handed. lt can actually be difficult to ascertain from the ship's personnel which
way they turn unt¡l stem power is used and it is possible to see wh¡ch way the bow
cants. Th¡s ¡s another example of an unusual case where again, it is best to use the
two propellers as one, rather like a single screw ship.

The Pivot Point

lrespective of what rudder and propeller configuration a ship has, the fundamental
principles conceming the pivot po¡nt and the forc€s involved remain the same_ All of
those princ¡ples wh¡ch were relevant lo the handt¡ng of a s¡ngle screw ship are of
equal importance when work¡ng a twin sc¡ew ship. The only d¡fference be¡ng the
greater variety of options available ¡n terms of engine power.

With Stemway

It should still be bome ¡n mind, when the ship ¡s moving astem, that the pivot point
will be.approximately a 114 ol the sh¡ps l€ngth Íom the stem and that any forces
created by the propellers, whether astern or ahead, will be working upon a small
tum¡ng ¡ever and therefore generaüng relat¡vely poor tuming moments (see figure
10-6a). The only exception to this would be excessively powerful vessels, such ás a
modem warship, where the immense power can have a lendencv to conceal th¡s
fact-

W¡th Headway

On the other hand, when the sh¡p is mak¡ng headway, the p¡vot point wilt move to a
pos¡tion roughly l/8 to 'll3 of the ship's tength fom forward and vary accord¡ng to the
ships speed and whether ¡t ¡s tum¡ng or steady. lf the propellers are now useá either
ahead or astem they will be working upon a much better tuming lever and produce
excellent tuming moments (see figure 10-6b), In view of this some masters, when
tuming a twin screw sh¡p ¡n a restricted area, prefer to back up as far as practicab¡e
frst, and then make some headway wh¡lst turning, because it results ¡n a much
better rate of tum- Again the only exception would be ¡mmensely por,verful ships,
where the d¡fference is not d¡scem¡ble and there is a tendency to tum on the spot.

Notes on Sh¡phandling 1G8 Twin Sceü/Work

Re\,É€d Jan 2003
 32m
F-----r:----.+

a) with steroway

b) with headway: one engine astern

cl witi headway: both eng¡ines ahead

F¡gure l0S Tw¡n sctew tum¡ng ability

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 1G9 Twin Scren, Work

Rsbed Jan 2!03
Tuming abi¡¡ty

The abil¡ty to develop rate of turn, with a twin screw ship oi modest power ¡s perhaps
best viewed ¡n two different cetegories .

. low speed manoeuvring.

. manoeuvnng at h¡gher speeds.

Tum¡ng ability at low speed

L¡ke any other sh¡p manoeuvring at low speeds, ofren with¡n the conines of a port
complex, the tum¡ng ab¡l¡ty of a twin screw ship has constantly to be balanced with
the need to monitor the sh¡p's speed and keep ¡t under control. The b¡g advantage of
a twin screw ship, and this is perhaps the best way to view it, is that the appropriate
eng¡ne can be used ahead wifh tull rudder to develop what ¡s essenüally a prolonged
'kick ahead'wh¡lst the other eng¡ne is used astem, to keep the speed down.

By going astem on the ¡ns¡de eng¡ne the sh¡p is kept permanenüy in the ñrst shge of
a standing tum, with the p¡vot point approximately l/8L trom the bow and lateral
res¡stance to the ü.rm constanüy low (see chapter 3 - Tuming fgure 34). The eng¡ne
which ¡s going ahead and its assoc¡ated rudder are therefore permanenüy working
on an excellent tuming lever with minimal lateral res¡stance. The engines can of
course be balanced as so required to e¡ther mainta¡n headway, stop, or ease the
shiD back. but it should be remembered that this will sh¡ft the D¡vot Doint and affect
tuming ab¡lity accordingly.

At that point during ship handl¡ng, when ahead power can no longer be used and
stem power has to be used to stop the vessel, lhe twin screw ship ¡s someth¡ng of a
luxury over the single screw ship. Any undes¡rable cant of the bow with stem power
can be checked by adjusting the ba¡ance of power between the two engines as they
are go¡ng astem and, if so required, th¡s can also be used to develop smal¡ rates of
tum which give fine control over the bow wh¡le stopping.

Notes on Sh¡phandling 1G.10 Twin Screw Work

Tuming ability at speed

When handl¡ng a twin screw sh¡p at moderate speeds however, often ¡n the confines
of a channel, river or estuary, ¡t is worth recalling some of the points which were
re¡evant to handl¡ng s¡ngle screw ships .

. transverse thrust ¡s a poor tum¡ng force,

. the wash from a propeller go¡ng astem and therefore transverse thrust, will
not reach the hull if the speed is too h¡gh.
. the rudder forces generated with ahead power are an excellent tuming
force.
. constant speed tuming circ¡es are always s¡m¡lar no mafter what the
speed.
. conecüy applied 'kicks ahead' are the most effecüve way to üghten a h¡m.

These points are particularly sign¡ficant because there is oñen an automatic

tendency with ¡nexperience, to rely upon back¡ng one engine to tighien a difiicult
tum, at a bend ¡n a channel for ¡nstance. Whilst th¡s is absolutely fne at low
manoeuvring speeds it is very unwise at moderate speeds, for example over 5 ot 6
knots. This is because transverse thrust is a poor force, ¡n comparison to rudder
force and ¡t will actually result ¡n a reduction of the vessels rate of tum and a larger
tum¡ng circle.

Altemaüvely, the rudders could be put hard over and both engines used with
sufhcient power to generate a good k¡ck ahead wh¡ch wil¡, ¡f the speed is not
excess¡ve, result in a much tighter turn¡ng c¡rcle (see figure 10€c). This will be
exFemely ¡mportant, when negotiaüng a d¡fficult tum with adverse conditions, such
as shallow water or high adverse winds.

As so often is the case, excessive speed is the greatest enemy and it must always
be b.ought well down, before the advaniages of either k¡cks ahead or twin screw
work can be fully uti¡ised.

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng tG11 Twin Screw Work

Split rudder operation

A number of new ships are entering serv¡ce which have the ability to "splif the
rudders, ¡.e- to operate them ¡ndependenüy of each other. This can be very useful in
a manoeuvring s¡fuation, because it allows the rudder force to be maimised when
one propeller ¡s being operated ahead and the other astem, to move the ship's stern
laterally. When proceeding normally, the rudders are synchronised and are only spl¡t
when actua¡ly berth¡ng or swinging the ship..

When it ¡s required to tum the sh¡p or move her laterally, the greatest effc¡ency ¡s
obtained by having the appropriate rudder turned "¡nwards" within the hel¡cal
d¡scharge of the propeller wh¡ch is operat¡ng ahead - the acfrve rudder. There are
two altemat¡ves which can be appl¡ed to the other rudder - the passrve rudder.

The method which is favoured by many masters and pilots is to'toe in" the rudders,
i,e. both rudders are tumed inwards and rema¡n there. The appropriate rudder is now
¡n a pos¡üon to maximise the rudder force when either engine is operated ahead.
The passive rudder may partially obstruct the fow ¡nto the astem propeller and
reduce its efiect. On some installations, when a propeller ¡s operated astem, the
rudder automaücally retums to m¡dsh¡ps. Any blank¡ng efiect ¡s therefo¡e m¡nimised.
(lt ¡s possible that when 'toed ¡n", the passive rudder could d¡rect the helical
d¡scharge in a manner to enhance the transverse thrust but due to d¡ffering stem
shapes and water turbulence around the propellers, ¡t ¡s difficult to be specific on this
matter).

The a¡temative method is to adiust the rudders manually to corespond with each
alteration in power settings - ¡.e. to apply appropriate (inwards) rudder to the ahead
propeller and m¡dsh¡ps the rudder of the astem propeller on every occasion.

When berhing a
ship there are many demands on the masteis or pilot's
concenlration, so there ¡s a cons¡derable advaniage in employing the "toe in"
method. The need constanüy to co-ordinate rudder position and timing with power
sett¡ngs ¡s el¡minated and the poss¡bility of enor ¡s conespond¡ngly reduced.

The above appl¡es to conventional tw¡n screw ¡ndependent rudder ¡nstallaüons, and
may not necessar¡ly apply to complex advanced systems presently being developed.
Such insta¡laüons should be mnsidered on their own merits.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 10-'12 Twin Screw Work

 E¿
F----r---.+-.}l
a) W¡th stemway

b) With headway: one eng¡ne astem

c) W¡th headway: both engines ahead

Figure 10-7 Twin screw tum¡ng ability w¡th rudders 'spl¡f

Notes oñ Shiphañdl¡ng 1G13 Twin Sc¡e¡, Work

 F-..---:_-+i

a) Eitll sterEreay

b) Eit¡ head.walt oae elgi¿e a'stera

cl Fit! beadreay: bot! e!'gir.es a¡eaal

F¡gur€ lO€ Twjn screw turn¡ng ab¡lity with rudders "splif

Ndes on Shiphandling M4 Twin Screw Work

 CHAPTER ELEVEN

SHIP TO SHIP OPERATIONS

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 1 l-1 Ship to ship oper-ations

R€vised Jar 2003
SHIP TO SHIP OPERATIONS

Sh¡p to Ship Transfer Operaüons (sometimes called "L¡ghtering', Lightening' or

s¡mply 'S.T.S.") take place frequently on many of the worlds oceans, between very
different types of sh¡ps, and in very varied environmental conditions. D¡fferent
techn¡ques are used to su¡t the preva¡l¡ng condit¡ons. These notes will look at some
of the shiphandl¡ng problems involved in such operations,

S.T.S.Ope¡aüons on an Anchored Sh¡p

In th¡s case one ship (normally the larger) remains at anchor throughout the
operaüon, allowing the second ship (normally the smaller and more manoeuvrable)
to berth alongside, The main shiphandl¡ng problem during th¡s berthing operation will
probably be yawing of the anchored ship. Such yawing can make a safe berth¡ng
very d¡fficult, part¡cularly ¡f a comb¡nation of some of the following unfavourable
factors are present :-

. The anchorage is an exposed open roadstead.

. Saong and conff¡cting environmental cond¡tions of wind, sea, and current.
. The use of large sh¡ps.
. The manoeuvring characterisücs of the berthing vessel being unsuitable for the
task. (suitable manoeuvr¡ng characteristics for such a vessel could ¡nclude - s¡ze
below 100,000 dwt, bridge control of main engine, controllable pitch propeller,
h¡gh eng¡ne power in relation to dwt, adequate steerageway at low m¡n¡mum
speed, and a powerful bow thruster).

lf a wrong comb¡naüon of the above lactors ¡s present, then a difficult operat¡on can
become potent¡ally very dangerous and it would be advisable to cons¡der the
altematives, of e¡ther postpon¡ng the operation, or carrying out the berth¡ng with both
ships underway. Some aspects of berthing with both sh¡ps undeÍway are described
below.

Notes on Shiphañd¡ing Sh¡p to ship operations

ContIol of S.T.S.Operations

It is recommended that an off¡cer, experienced in S.T.S.Operat¡ons, ¡s appo¡nted to

control the conduct of the operaüon. Th¡s oficer could be the master of one of the
two ships or altematively could be a ded¡cated "Lightering Mastef, spec¡ally
allocated to the berthing vessel for the operation. He normally needs to take the
fol¡owing action before the 'berth¡ng phase" can start :-

a) Arrange a rendezvous for the operaüon, where there ¡s suff¡c¡ent searoom.

b) Anange and check eff¡cient communications between ships.

c) Ensure that su¡table Yokohama type fenders are provided and rigged upon one of
the sh¡ps.

d) Order the mosl su¡table 'l¡ghtering course' for the operaüon wh¡ch will depend on
preva¡l¡ng weather cond¡tions and the characteristics and siate of loading of the
two shios.

e) Determ¡ne the 'lightering speed" for the operation wh¡ch wil¡ normally be the
minimum speed at wh¡ch both sh¡ps are able to ma¡nta¡n steady engine revs. and
steerageway. During the "berth¡ng phase', the "STBr (ship to be l¡ghtered) which
¡s nomally the larger ship will need to steer the "l¡ghtering course" at steady revs
to mainta¡n the "lightering speed' - these revs. should not be altered except ¡n an
emergency.

D Ensure that S.T.S. procedures are thoroughly understood aboard both ships by
master, ofticers and crew.

Dangerous Posit¡ons during S.T.S.Operat¡ons

It is ¡mportani to be aware of two potentially dangerous pos¡t¡ons wh¡ch need to be

avo¡ded during the 'berthing phase".

a) Figure 1l-l shows the port bow of the berthing vessel getting too close to the
starboard quarter of the sh¡p to be lightered. Strong interaction forces will iend to
aftract the bow of the berthing vessel ¡nto the side of the ship to be lightered while
at the same t¡me the STBL will tend to be tumed to starboard across the bows of
the berth¡ng vessel.

b) The same lgure also shows the second position to be avoided whereby the
berthing vessel has overshot the STBL during the final approach. Strong
¡nteract¡on forces will now tend to attact the bows of the STBL into the after
sect¡on of the hull of the berthing vessel wh¡le at the same time the berth¡ng
vessel will tend to be tumed across the bows of the ship to be l¡ghtered-

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 11-3 Sh¡p to ship operations

To avoid these two potentially dangerous pos¡üons two distinct methods of approach,
and berthing have been developed, namely :-

. The Parallel Approach - a safer slower method.

. The Angled Approach - a faster melhod, where considerable experience and
expert¡se are required.

The Paratlet Approach - see Figure 11-2

The sh¡p to be lightered first steadies on a suitable course with the w¡nd some '10- 150
on the port bow.

The berthing vessel then approaches the STBL from the starboard quarter, and
"takes süaüon' about a ship's ¡ength off - this avo¡ds pass¡ng through the dangerous
¡nteraction area around the stem. The berth¡ng vessel does not attempt to close the
STBL untilthe following conditions are matched between the two ships -

a) Speed.
b) Position.

The berthing vessel now starts to close the other sh¡p at a fine angle of some 10o
degrees or less. As the distance closes, care must be taken for both speed and
position of the berthing vessel to match that of the ship to be lighlered.

Interaction forces around the bows of each vessel will tend to oppose coniact
between the ships. lt ¡s essential for the STBL to use effect¡ve rudder to counteract
th¡s force, and ma¡ntain a steady course whereas the berth¡ng vesselw¡ll need to use
rudder to drive the sh¡ps together.

The berthing vessel should aim to make "first contacf on the forward shoulder
fender, while st¡ll maintaining the approach course at a fine angle to that of the other
sh¡p. lmmed¡ately after "first contact'there w¡ll be a tendency for the berth¡ng vessel
to bounce off the shoulder fender. This tendency will be reinforced by interaction
pressure forc¡ng the bows apart, and interaction suction bringing the stems together.
At th¡s stage the berthing vessel will need to be prepared to use cons¡derable port
rudder to stop the bows separat¡ng, and a gap opening between the two sh¡ps.

It is considered advisable for the berthing vessel to remain bows ¡n to the STBL at a
f¡ne angle until all the forward mooring l¡nes and springs are secured- The berth¡ng
vessel can then gently ease parallel to the other sh¡p ass¡sted by interacüon suct¡on
at the stem. The aft mooring lines and springs can now be secured.

Once the berth¡ng vessel is fully secured ¡t is not unusual to proceed to anchor the
larger ship, prior to cargo transfer. However, circumstances may favour transferring
cargo unoerway.

Ndes on Shiphandling 114 Ship to sh¡p operations

Re|/is€d Jai 2003
The Angled Approach - see Figure 11-3.

This method ¡s faster than the parallel approach, but does require considerable
expertise and experience, and thus is potentially more dangerous and is therefoe
used less often.

The berth¡ng vessel closes the ship to be lightered from the quarter at a fine angle,
aiming to make "f:rst contacf on the forwSrd shoulder fender and thus needs a
sl¡ghtlt greater speed than the STBL during this approach. The berthing vessel
neédi tó ma¡nta¡n th¡s speed advantage when passing through the other ships
quarter wake, and then thtough the dangetous interaction area around the stem'

It ¡s then necessary to reduce the berthing vessel's speed, so that by the t¡me of "first
contacf, the two sh¡ps speeds are matched. Th¡s ¡s where exper¡ence and expertse
is requ¡red, as efiecüve steerageway must be maintiained throughout.

Once'first contacf is made, then the procedures described above under the parallel
approach apply.

Notes on Shiphandling 11-5 Sh¡p lo ship operat¡ons

Precaut¡ons during Cargo Transfer

Careful attenüon needs to be paid to mooring l¡nes during the transfer of cargo due
to potenüal changes in the fo¡lowing factors :-

a) Weather condiüons.
b) Change of üde.
c) The freeboards of both vessels will be chang¡ng.
d) Stability changes may well affect the rolling Periods of both vessels'

Unberthing

On compleüon of cargo transfer ¡t is ¡mportant that the unberth¡ng operation is

carefully planned and iafely executed. In particular the follow¡ng po¡nts need careful
consideraüon.

. The freeboards of both vessels will have changed cons¡derably since berthing.

. The sequence for leüing go moor¡ng lines needs careful thought' particularly
when only sma¡l deckcrews are ava¡lable.

. All personnel involved need thorough briefing

. The departing vessel will probably be tully laden and therefore powerful eng¡ne
movements may be requ¡red to get her mov¡ng ¡nitially, and parliculafy when
wind and/or cunent are present.

DeDarture can be made, either with both vessels underway or f¡om one ship at
anchor. The actual method will depend on local cond¡tions and procedures.

When all mooring l¡nes have been let go, interaction forces may cause both vessels
to remain tocked together. In such circumstances, care, patience and skilled planned
shiphandl¡ng are needed to ensure a safe deParture.

The departure procedure may ¡nvolve'lift¡ng off the bow of the departing vessel
where consideration will need to be given to the effec{ of the vessels sterns closing.
Boats and bridge wings can come into contact particularly when ships are rolling in a
seaway. Appropriate fendering needs to be ¡n place.

Notes o¡ Shiphandl¡ñg 116 Sh¡p to sh¡p operat¡ons

 +
I

<-

-+

Dangerous positions during l¡ghtering

F¡gure l l-l

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng Ship lo sh¡p operat¡ons

 ?
{7
Wind

Figure 11-2 - The Parallel Approach

Notes on Sh¡phandl¡ng 11€ Ship to ship operáions

Revis€d Jan 2@3
*1
v \Mnd

i\
s
\\

\\
^\

F¡gure I l-3 - The Angled APProach

Notes ofl Shiphandl¡ng 1 1-9 Ship tó sh¡p operations

Revbed Jan 2003
 CHAPTER TWELVE

SBM OPERATIONS

Notes on Shiphandl¡ñg 12-1 SBM Operátoris

Relised Jar 2003
SBM OPERATIONS

Background

The history ofthe single buoy mooring (SBM), or as it is sometimes known the single
point moo¡ing (SPM) dates back to the late 1950s when the forerunner of the
modern types was ¡nstalled in 1959 for the Swedish Navy.

ln the same year Shell Oil in co-operation with Gusto

Fngineering, wh¡ch later became SBM Ltd of Monaco
_ * r::-: became actively ¡nvolved in
the design and
manufacture of offuhore load¡ng buoys due to the
'-,
increasing size of tankers, the¡r increasing draught,
and the practical¡ty and costs assoc¡ated with the
*
bu¡lding of term¡nals to accommodate them. The f¡rst
¡nstallaüons were of the rotaiing tumtable type and
moored to the seabed by four to eight anchor cha¡ns
which became known as the Catenary Anchor Leg Mooring system (CALM).

Development of the technology continued unül the

present day, resulting in one of two types of buoy being
used ¡n numerous locaüons around the world. These are
primarily of the CALM type mentioned previously, or the
S¡ngle Anchor Leg Mooring (SALM), whereby the buoy is
secured to the seabed by a single anchor cha¡n- Currently
these buoys are capable of secur¡ng the largest tankers
¡n serv¡ce, with those at the Louisiana Ofrhore Oil
Terminal (LOOP) be¡ng designed for vessels up to
700.000 dwt.

Wh¡le the prime use of oftshore loading buoys is in the transfer of o¡ls, there are a
number of locaüons where they have been adapted for other uses, such as sweet
water, sand or s¡urries therefore it is not just in the o¡l üade that they may be
en cou ntered.

A po¡nt to note ¡s that although the majority of the buoy installat¡ons are des¡gned to
allow the transfer hoses to be connected on the port side of the vessel th¡s is not
exclus¡ve and there are a few localions around the world where the hoses will be
taken on the starboard side of the transfer vessel, Cayo Arcas in Mexico being one
exampte.

Noies on Shiphandl¡ng 12-2 SBM Operaijons

Rflis€d Jf¡ 2m3
Moo¡¡ng Arrangements.

The accepted mooring arangement of wh¡ch there are normally two for each SBM
is, ¡n order of pickup, usually as follows:

. A messenger
. A p¡ckup rope
. A chafe cha¡n
. A moor¡ng rope assembly composed of 150 metres of Eomm d¡ameter rope

The chain wh¡ch is hauled inboard and secured to the mooring bracket ¡s normally
secured to a flotation buoy used to ke€p the assemb¡y aloat when the buoy is
unoccup¡ed. When a vessel is secure on the SBM, th¡s flotation buoy will hang clear
of the bow.

It is recommended practice ¡n the interest of safety and effciency that the messenger
and pickup rope be spooled onto an empty drum during p¡ckup. On no account must
the p¡ckup rope be used to attempt to heave the tanker into posiüon as th¡s presents
an extreme risk to the fo'c'sle crew. The sole purpose of the p¡ckup rope ¡s to enable
the mooring assembly chafe chains to be brought ¡nboard. On reach¡ng the required
pos¡üon, wh¡ch is nomally about 50 metres off the buoy, the ship must be held ¡n
pos¡üon by the careful use of kicks ahead while the chafe cha¡ns are made fast ¡n the
moor¡ng brackets. Wh¡le in th¡s position the moorings should not be allowed to
become t¡ght.

Vessels which are not fitted with moor¡ng brackets are nowadays normally rejected
for loadino at most SBM term¡nals.

The Approach

The approach to an SBM wi¡l normally be made under the gu¡dance of a mooring
master and is usually accompl¡shed without the use of tugs although there ¡s
frequently one standing by to ass¡st if necessary in the interest of satety. The
mooring master ¡n most instances will remain on board throughout the cargo
operat¡ons to prov¡de advice and assistance.

The ideal approach to an SBM is normally considered to be one wh¡ch allows a large
tum onto the in¡üal approach line, thereby ensuring that any excess speed is lost
prior to making the final approach, which by preference should be a turn to starboard
to take advantage of the transverse thrust when go¡ng astern.

An ind¡cation of the general direcüon of approach can often be gained by the

observance of other vessels ¡f a mulü buoy term¡nal though it must be remembered
that vessels that are already part loaded may lie in a different d¡rection to that of a
vessel in ballast.

Notes on Shiphandl¡ng 12-3 SBM Operáions

Revɀd Jd 2003
Further ¡nformation is conta¡ned wiihin the following publicaüons:

OCIMF Single Po¡nt Mooring Maintenance Gu¡de

OCIMF Moor¡ng Equipment Guidelines

Notes on Sh¡phandling 12-5 SBM Operáions