Antipodean designers continue to lead in lightweight high speed technology

摘要

Innovative designs and advanced construction techniques have provided the foundation for Australian shipbuilding's emergence over the past 15 or so years as the world leader in the production of lightweight, high-speed ferries and patrol vessels, complementing a diverse output of small craft and luxury yachts. David Tinsley reports. During the last decade and a half, the production value of Australian yards in the commercial vessel sector rose from Aus$5 million to a peak in excess of Aus$1 billion. Although the remarkable growth pattern in total civil and defence contract business, which reached nearly Aus$1.8 billion in the 1999/2000 financial year, was hit by a subsequent downturn in fast ferry contracts and the phase-down of subsidies, the industry's propensity for design value and technological advance is again bearing fruit.