The Hawaiian gazette., 1918-03-26
Big: Concrete 'qp I: etc Ship
Is, launched
On Pacific Coast

A PACIFIC PORT, March 4--(As
sOeiated Press The largest concrete
ship in the world, the Faith, was
launched here today. II the vessel
stands all tests, the builders hope this
type will help to solve the Nation 8
need for ships. Every step of the con
struction has been watched by the gov
eminent. The vessel is 800 feet be
tween Perpendiculars, 40 feet w;de
and thirty feet deep, and when loaded
will draw twenty four feet of water
Her displacement will be 1000 tons and
he will have carrying capacity Of
5000 tons and make ten or eleven
knots On hour with triple expansion en-
gines furnishing 100 horsepower. She
is ten times larger than any concrete
boat now on record in THE country
AdvantaG res claimed for the new YES
sci are that concrete. constructs ton does
not interfere with steel construction.
plenty ~ co"crete can, be, had; concrete
vessels can be built for the present cost
Of wooden vessels; concrete vessels of
800 tons can be launched within nine
ty days after, works starts; while the
cost of the "plant is las $25 900 to
$5o0oOO." compared with steel ship
ward.
Vessel Is Success
''When the first steel vessels were
built, people said they'd not float, or
if they did, they would be too heavy, to
be s"rVieeahle. " said w. Leslie Comyn
president of the concern, which built
the boat. Now they say the SANE
thing about concrete. But all the rngi
nrerS we have taken over this bout in
GLIDING many who said it was an i'm
possible undertaking, now agree that
it is a success.
The floor of the vessel is about four
and a half inches thick; the side four
inches. with great steel shoe DOWN
the bow. IRbodied in the concrete are
$40 tons of steel: a continuous basket
work of welded steel mesh, and hun
drcds of heavy iron bars, also welded
together. So. It.
4 watertight wood flooring resting on
III" bottom beams constitutes the ,tou
bic bottom of the vessel. No prov ision
is made for water ballast, the theory
being that the vessel will travel With
out ballast, riding safely with her
heavy bottom. Six concrete bulk heads
divide the vessel. The main deck il
wood laid on concrete strinPers; the
shelter deck is concrete. The dead
weight is put at s0O>tons more than
thnt Of a steel vessel of, like eapacitv.
The vessel will burn oil, using 100 bar
rClS a daV aud her reinforced rOurretr
'ank viii carry thkty days supply.
Must Stand Tests
"Thjs boat will have 10 stand hrr
tests, like any other vessel " said the
builder today. ~ expect We will send
her to the Orient, aud when she gcts
back We will know all about her. At
present there are no insurance quota
t"ns covering concrete vessels: it + all
as new to everyone else as IL was to US
ms We had to design Our steel and have
it rolled as We needed II.
" Besides thu low hrst cost, we will
saw" seventy five percent Of our lon
Der on later boats, by re,usinI it. Two
other vessels of 1900 tons each, will he
started as soon as we get this one out
of the way. Ia these We will use forms
built in sections and boIted. When We
strip them from the concrete, they will
come of a section at a time.
:" A concrete boat viii last don t
know how. long We know that con
crete gets better the hrSt nine years OF
its life and after that II should last
long while, NThe life OF a steel boat
Ordinarily Ia twenty five ynars .t.r...r..