What is Ship?

Ships are defined as large complex vessels capable of sailing across the oceans and are of more
than 500 tonnage. They are large, robust and strong vessels which carry large goods, perform
war efforts, carry people and transport raw materials. Ships are different that boats, you can
check their differences from link below;

Difference between Ship and boat

History of Commercial Ships (Brief)
Long before the discovery of trucks, planes and trains; ships were used to transport goods from
one part of the world to another. Earlier they sail and were much closer to boats. Nowadays these
ships have grown bigger with around 90% of world’s trade depending on them. Against the
earlier days when a single type of ship use to carry different types and grades of cargo.
Nowadays ship’s have became complex and efficient, designed for a certain type of cargo. They
are all made up of welded steel (Mostly) with an life expectancy of 20 to 30 years.

Types of Ships
The different types of ships in global shipping:
Container Cargo Ship

Container ships are designed to carry large containers. Shipping containers are of the size of a
truck with 20 feet by 8 feet to 10 feet by 8 feet in dimension. These containers are designed in a
way that; they can be easily transported through trains, trucks and ships without any problem.
These ships are on liner trade delivering goods from one place to another across the globe.

A typical container ship contains around 10-15 thousand containers in its single or double deck
hull. They are used to transport world’s manufactured goods; such as processed food, electronics,
machinery, spares, furnitures and tools.
Bulk Carrier
Bulk Carrier

The power house of world’s economic engine; these ships carry the essential raw materials for
various industries from Agro based to heavy manufacturing. These ships are also called as
bulkees or frights and are easily identified by the large hydraulic hatches covering its holds. They
are designed to carry unpacked raw materials such as wood, raw grain, ore and coal.

In these ships; cargo is poured down directly into the holds according to the charter plan. These
ships are around 800-1200 feet long and account for 15-18% of the total merchant fleet.
Ro-Ro Ship
Ro-Ro Vessels

Most vehicles that you use on a daily basis are transported across the globe using a special type
of ships known as Ro-Ro or car carriers. Basically they are like a big floating garage (Yes ! like
that in your house); where newly made cars are parked, latched and then shipped.
Generally these ships are 500-700 feet long with high free board. These ships are used to
transport vehicles like trucks, tractors and cars all over the globe in a safe efficient way.

Tankers

It is a special type of ship constructed to carry heavy bulk of liquid cargo. They are primarily
used to carry petroleum and its derivatives; but can also be used to carry water, juice, wine,
chemicals etc. They might look similar to those of bulk carrier apart from missing hatches;
(There are small manholes provided for inspection and maintenance purposes). These ships are
normally quite large in size with a large part of its fleet being super tankers.

Tankers can be classified into following categories depending on its cargo:

Oil Tankers

They carry oil and its derivatives and are further classified into product and crude tankers. Crude
oil is used to transport crude oil while product tanker is used to transport refined oil; such as
diesel, jet fuels and petrol.
Gas Tankers

These are the modified form of tankers well suited for transporting gases such as LPG, Natural
gas, LNG, Etheline etc. They are further classified into fully pressurized, semi refrigerated, fully
refrigerated, ethylene and LPG, LNG ships.

Chemical Tankers

They are another type of modified tankers well suited for carrying hazardous chemicals; such as
acid, base, alcohols and other reactive chemicals.

Juice & Wine Tankers

According to their name; they are used to transport juice and wine from one place to another.

Cruse Ship
Passenger Ships

Half a century ago, passenger ships were used for going one place to another by many people
across the world. But today passengers ships are mostly used as a cruise ships for pleasure
voyage. They provide luxury voyage with beautiful sight seeing. They are like a five start hotel
floating on the sea which focus on the user experience rather than reaching destination on or
before time.

Specialized Support Vessels

These are the ships used to assist the work of commercial vessels like ice breakers, dredging
vessels and other offshore support vessels. They can also be used for specialized purposes such
as laying underground sea cables and other research purposes.

Also Read:
 Starting Air System in Marine Diesel Engine
 Difference Between two and four stroke Marine Diesel Engine
 Steering Gear System in Ships
 Hydrophore System in Ship
 Purifier Basic Principle and Working!
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Categories LifeAtSea, Marine, Ship Tags Ship types Post navigation
Starting Air System in Marine Diesel Engine
PMMC Instrument; Construction, Working and Application
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