New Hyundai Heavy Technology Slashes Shipbuilding Time
Hyundai Heavy Industries said Sunday that it has developed a new technology that makes it possible to launch a completed ship while continuing shipbuilding work at the same dock."The new technology is expected to help reduce the terms of works by almost 20 percent because we no longer have to stop building ships to launch a completed ship," a company source said. "The number of days working at a dock will decrease by 13 days from 70, and it will make it unnecessary to remove and install again various facilities and equipment."
The company has used the technology since last May to build seven ships including a 10,000-TEU container ship (one TEU means one 20-foot container) at the third dock of its Ulsan shipyard.
The company registered the patent in Korea in January, and is now working to apply for not only an international patent but also separate patents in each foreign country.
The company said that it is considering using the technology at its 10th dock, which is scheduled to be completed in October, as part of its plan to gradually expand the use of the technology.