Steel Hull Shipbuilding Cost Structure

This study analyses the cost structure of the several processes associated with the shipbuilding industry. The analysed productive processes are: the cutting preparation procedures; the several steel plate cutting processes; the processes of hull plates and stiffeners forming; the associated transport and assembling of plates and profiles; and finally the welding processes. The paper includes 2 independent case studies that took place at different Portuguese shipyards and covering different aspects of the steel hull shipbuilding processes. 1 Case Study – Time and cost analysis of cutting preparation processes made by the design office, cutting/marking of steel plates and forming processes of stiffeners and hull plates, required for the construction of an 83m Hopper Barge, built by MPG, at LISNAVE Mitrena Shipyard, Portugal, 2010. 2 Case Study – Time and cost analysis of stiffeners cutting, steel plates and stiffeners assembly and welding, associated with the building of several blocks of an 80m fisheries supporting vessel by JOPERINOX Shipyard at Alverca, Portugal, 2008; It is expected at the end of the analysis of these 2 studies to achieve simple formulae of costs estimation inherit to each one of the productive processes analysed and also the cost of the ship’s steel hull. Ultimately creating a work base for future studies in order to improve and update these formulas by adding new corrective coefficients based on the type of the built ship or construction complexity of certain ship blocks. It was also developed, within this study, a simple Excel worksheet that will calculate several aspects of the construction budget and expected building times by adding simple input data.