An international research project is currently under way between five EU countries aimed at saving Europe's endangered shipbuilding industry. The aim is to develop a new type of high-speed seagoing vessel, which can increase transport capacity at the same time as it reduces environmental impact. Chalmers University of Technology in Göteborg (Gothenburg), Sweden, and the ÅF Group are providing specialist assistance on behalf of Sweden.
"High-tensile steel means that ships can be far lighter in relation to their cargo capacity than has ever previously been conceived, and the lower weight reduces energy consumption both during manufacture and during operation," explains Erik Adolfsson, who is responsible for project at the ÅF Group.
The recent expansion of international trade has resulted in a steep increase in the need for transport around the world, not least in the European Union where the free movement of labour, capital, goods and services has generated huge flows of both products and people between the member states. The proposed eastward expansion of the EU over the coming years will necessitate even more cross-border transport, which could well lead to certain problems.
"The European road network is already under enormous pressure," Adolfsson says. "Every year the increase in traffic on our roads breaks new records, and train and air traffic is also extremely intensive in many regions.
Seagoing traffic is a good alternative when it comes to increasing transport capacity and reducing the impact of noise and fumes on the environment. Transporting goods by ship is the most environmental alternative in terms of the energy consumed per kilometre for each tonne of freight. And, apart from rail traffic, seagoing traffic also produces fewer emissions and less noise.
"Energy consumption for road transport is approximately four times greater than for transporting goods by ship in coastal waters," says Erik Adolfsson. "Sea transport also creates less noise than transport by land or air and can often be directed to areas that are less sensitive to this kind of environmental pollution."
If ships are to be competitive, however, they must be able to demonstrate that they are as efficient, cost-effective and - not least - as quick as other forms of transport. The pan-European "FasdHTS" project is now laying the foundations for a new generation of large, high-speed cargo vessels built of high-tensile steel in an initiative designed to give the European shipbuilding industry a head start in this important area of development.
"Not long ago Europe, and Sweden especially, led the world in this area, but today, for economic reasons, most cargo vessels are built in Asia. This project can help to save jobs that are under threat in the European shipbuilding industry. The manufacturing processes involved are so advanced and sophisticated that it is neither economically viable nor technically feasible to build these ships in low-cost countries," Erik Adolfsson concludes.
The first of these high-speed cargo vessels may be sailing the seas within the next five to ten years. Participating countries are Sweden, Holland, France, Germany and Portugal.
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