The Washington herald., 1921-09-21
ENCLAND'S SHIPS
NOW COST MORE
THAN THEIR VALUE
. -
Labor and Materials Too
High to Meet Com
petition.
LOWER IN AMERICA
British Builders Strive to Re-
store Industry to Old
Basis.
LOWER IN AMERICA

Prospects Of British shipbuildinR
are still gloomy. according TO W.
]. Page, trade commissioner at Lon
don for the Bureau of Foreign
and Domestic Commerce. The Sc
we're Shipping depression has stop
ped placing OF new contracts, and
the unsatisfactory attitude Of la
l.or hindere efficient and economical
work. Yarrow Company. large
shipbuiiding concern on the Clyde
recently announced its intention 10
close its yards for an fndennite
period beginning Noevmber !. giy-
ing as a reason impossibility OF
promising dates of delivery.
Shipbuilding trades are beginning
to realize that work must be speed
ed up In British shipyards. Betore
the war the best foreign custom
ers which British shipowners nao
were Norwegian owners, and there
Is reason TO believe that this would
be true today were IL possioie 10
get reasonable deliveries.
L. s. Firm Builds Fastest
Some time ago the Norwegian
/ American Line, of Christiania, plac-
ed orders On the Clyde for four
steamers, each Of $500 dead-weight
tons. At the same time IL placed
orders with Canadian Vickers
Company. Montreal. for two sister
ships and gave an American COM
pany In Pennsylvania an order for
an oil tanker. Although the ves-
sells built on the American side OF
the Atlantic were ordered after
those on the Clyde. they were de-
| livered first. and one or them was
completed exactly on the contract
date. OF the Clyde vessels but one
has been delivered, two are sup
posed to be fitting out, and one IL
still on the stocks.
Despite the general gloomy out
look there Is a desire on the part
Of all interested in shipbullding to
! normal condition. Labor in tht
shipbuilding and marine engineer
ing trades is at the present time en-.
tIreIy free Of strikes. and there 4,
| prospect of continued harmony fol
the immediate future. as labor !.
coming to the conclusion that tn,
worst possible service which an,
organization could give the trad
would be TO prevent steady wori
on contracts now on hand.
British Yards to Reduce
with the Industrial horizon clear
ing, British shipbuiiders have Civ
en- serious thought to reports from
other countries, which emphasis
the necessity for more -economics
production in British yards.
"A. l. Ayre. managing director o
the Burntisland Shipbuilding Com
pany, estimates that new carg,
steamers are now worth less thai
half the cost Of wages and mate
rials for their construction. an,
points out cost OF producing a shil
must be reduced to a level at whicl
proft from operation can be mad
at present rates. II. Ayre adds
the value OF a ship should improv
by so per cent with improvement
in trade, the vessel would still b
worth only 10 per cent Of presen
cost Of production, SO that the ship
building industry would have {
cut its costs at least 20 per CEN
This adjustment cannot be brough
about solely by decreasing wage,
, Employers themselves must effec
great economies OF work in thei
yards. Unions must abolish all re
strictions on output. General adop
tion OF payment by results must b
effected, and latest labor savin
machinery must be utilized.