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In southern Finland , model tests can be arranged in Vuosaari and Otaniemi . Abroad , test laboratories can be found in Germany , Russia , and Canada .
” Additionally – and perhaps surprisingly – there is a very good lab for model tests in Austria where different types of vessels are often tested for inland water navigation ” Lehtonen points out .
VESSELS FOR ALL PURPOSES
Propulsion systems are also an integral part of ship design .
” All of ILS ’ s ship designers have been trained for propulsion system design . Then again , none of our designers are concentrating solely on propulsion designs on a whole-time basis ,” recounts Lehtonen .
Many ILS projects over the years have focused on the design on tugs .
” Typically , tugs are vessels that are able to operate even in very difficult conditions .”
” We have also designed three multipurpose ice-breakers that can operate as ice-breakers in Finland ’ s winter – but in summer they can double as offshore vessels or supply ships , or perhaps cable-laying ships . Each ship concept must be determined individually , so that the ship can be designed just for its future purpose .”
According to Lehtonen , arctic research vessels are often intellectually
”
Good cooperation can usually solve all problems .
rewarding projects from the ship designer ’ s point of view . He was one of the original designers of R / V Aranda , the renowned ice-strengthened Finnish research vessel capable of operating both in icy waters and on open seas .
” A few years back , we also designed major alterations for the Aranda design , giving the ship a longer life-span . The midsection of the ship ’ s hull was lengthened by more than 10 metres to provide additional laboratory space and displacement and to expand the operational capabilities of the vessel ,” he explains .
GLOBAL CHALLENGES
Finding new customers and new projects can sometimes be challenging for ship designers .
” These days , more and more ships are buying built by shipyards abroad , even when the ship has been designed in Finland .”
” Recently , ILS was commissioned by a Russian shipping company to design an ice-breaking multipurpose tug . We provided first the ship concept design and later the final blueprints , but the ship was eventually built by a shipyard in China ,” Lehtonen mentions .
” As it turned out , the resulting ship was good and solid , even if it was the shipyard ’ s first-ever ice-breaker newbuilding
project .”
Lehtonen feels that it is important to communicate the ship designer ’ s intentions in some detail to the shipyard , to avoid any misunderstandings or construction errors .
” Good cooperation can usually solve all problems . Of course , communication is more simple if the ship is to be built by a local shipyard .”
” Even so , today ’ s shipbuilding projects have become more globally oriented than they used to be just a couple of decades ago . Nowadays , is not uncommon that shipowners select foreign shipyards for the task of building their ships .” n
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