MOORING OF SHIPS

Mooring systems are used to secure a ship to a pier, wharf, mooring buoy, or
another ship. Mooring systems include the lines, fenders, ship/pier fittings and
related machinery that would be used to bring a ship into a moored configuration.
Purpose of Mooring

Loading/Unloading Loading and unloading items such as stores, cargo,

personnel, ammunition, etc.

Maintenance/Repairs Scheduled maintenance and simple repairs can

be performed at sea. Certain actions require shore services, special parts,
and outside assistance that can only be provided while moored.

Ship Storage Ships in an inactive or reserve status are stored at

moorings. This reduces costs to simple upkeep while ensuring the ship
can be made available again if needed.

Mooring Arrangements
When a ship approaches a berth, lines are passed to establish the positive
motion control required to position the ship alongside the fixed structure without
damage. The first lines ashore are the bow and stern lines which are used to
provide positive longitudinal alignment with a desired berth location and check
residual forward or astern motion, due to current, wind, or forces applied by the
tug or ships screws. After alignment has been established, additional lines are
passed to heave the ship into the berth and provide the security necessary to
restrain it against involuntary adverse forces.
Mooring lines which tend fore and aft are referred to as Spring Lines and resist
surge forces, while lines tending at right angles are referred to as Breast Lines
and resist sway and yaw forces. These lines may also be referred to as bow,
stern, waist, or quarter lines depending on their location on the ship.

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

It is common practice to use a minimum of four lines, two at the bow and two at
the stern. On large ships where large mooring loads are involved more lines can
be used. Ideally, for maximum line efficiency, all lines should be horizontal from
the ship to the pier fittings; lines acting in the same direction should be of equal
length and size to share the load equally. However, in practice lines are usually
attached on the weather deck of the ship well above the pier, reducing the
capability of the line to resist horizontal forces.
Design Considerations
Based on available studies, 90% of the winds experienced at commercial ports
are below 35 knots, discounting gusts of less than 5 min duration. As far as
current forces are concerned, maximum current velocities of 2 to 3 knots are
assumed to act simultaneously with the maximum wind force, parallel or
perpendicular to the ship to determine line loads for design. Wave forces are not
a significant design factor in typical mooring calculations and are generally not
included.
Shipboard Mooring Equipment
The majority of mooring systems aboard ships are relatively simple consisting of,
the mooring lines, a few accessories and deck fittings, and two speed capstans.
Ships do not normally carry the fenders to which they may moor against.
1. Mooring Lines
The size and strength of mooring lines is matched to the ship and generally
increases as the size of the ship increases. Synthetic lines have replaced
ropes made from natural fibers because of their superior strength, durability,
and reduced weight. While Mooring lines are used to secure a ship to a
wharf, pier, dock or another ship. natural fiber ropes require special drying
and storage to prevent dry rot and mildew, synthetic lines rarely mildew and
never rot. Nylon is the strongest and most elastic providing high energy
absorption capacity. Polyester is second in strength to nylon and
polypropylene is the lightest of the three and the least expensive. Wire ropes
are commonly used with wire rope winches which stow the wire on the winch
drum. Wire and traditional synthetic fiber rope must not be mixed as primary
load carriers in a heavy weather mooring system. In a mixed wire and
polyester/nylon fiber system, the wire lines will take virtually the entire load
because of the wide difference in elasticity between the wire and fiber ropes.
They may fail first, leading to a cascading failure in which lines fail in
succession as each comes under load. Wire ropes are very strong for their
diameter, but have an extremely high modulus of elasticity and very low
elongation until failure (1 2%). Wire lines can provide better positioning of
the ship because of their low stretch characteristics. Properly rigged and
tensioned wire rope mooring lines will keep the ship from moving significantly
and therefore will prevent the ship from building significant kinetic energy.
Nylon and polyester mooring lines are the best choice where high storm
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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

surge is expected, and especially where the ship can be breasted out into the
middle of a slip. The elasticity of these materials provides excellent load
sharing and shock absorbing as the ship moves within its mooring.
2. Mooring Fittings
Mooring Bitts, Cleats and Rings
The bitts consist of two vertical hollow steel cylinders, called barrels (welded
or casted) rigidly attached to a base. The bitt barrel is fitted with a top plate
and in certain designs, a rope guard to keep lines from riding up the barrel .
Their function is to secure the shipboard end of the mooring line. Mooring
bitts are located a minimum of 1.8 to 2.4 m from chocks to allow space for
stopper (which allows transferring the tensioned line from the gypsy or
capstan to the bitt). The bitt location should not require a sharp bend around
the chock.

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

Cleats perform a similar function but are used primarily for mooring barges or
other small craft along a ship. Cleats are mounted on the top of the bulwarks
or on deck near the side of the ship.

Mooring rings are installed in the side shell between the water line and the
weather deck at a convenient height for barge or small craft crews to handle
their mooring lines.
Fixed and Roller Chocks
Chocks are installed at the sides of the ship to lead the mooring lines from
their point on shore to the hauling end aboard ship. Fixed chocks are used
for fiber rope hawsers which do not require adjustment under load. When
chocks are located in way of bulwarks, the chock consists of a heavy ring
welded into the bulwark. In way of open rails, chocks are mounted on the
deck and would either be of the open or closed type.

Roller chocks and fairleads are used to lead mooring lines around
obstructions and provide alignment with the gypsy heads. Chocks intended
for constant tension winches with wire lines are fitted with four pipe rollers (2
vertical and 2 horizontal). The Panama fairlead is an almost elliptical opening
formed in a casting which is fitted into a suitably stiffened aperture in the
bulwark. The following figure shows the (b) Multi-angle fairlead; (c) Pedestal
fairlead; (d) Two-roller fairlead; (e) Panama fairlead.

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

3. Mooring Machinery
Mooring machinery facilitates the handling and securing of mooring lines. It
includes the capstan head and related machinery, as well as constant tension
mooring winches.
The capstan is a warping head with a vertical axis used for handling mooring
and other lines. Capstans are generally designed to rotate in both directions.
All capstans consists of a capstan head, drive machinery, and operator
control. A vertically mounted capstan is referred to as a capstan while a
horizontally mounted capstan is typically referred to as a warping head. The
capstan/warping head is sized to accommodate the largest mooring line
which must be handled. The operating surface of the capstan/warping head is
machined smooth and should be kept free of paint, nicks, and burrs to avoid
damaging the mooring lines.

The windlass is a machine used to hoist and lower anchors. The gypsy head
is a cylinder like fitting on the end of a winch or windlass shaft. The drive
machinery for the capstan is frequently located below deck, often times in the
overhead. On some capstans part of the machinery is located within the
hollow of the capstan head and is hidden from view. On anchor windlass
systems equipped with capstans, the drive machinery for the capstan is
integrated with the machinery that drives the windlass.
Steam, D.C. and electrohydraulic drives are designed to give speed variation
from creeping to a maximum of about 43 m/min. A.C. electric drives usually
have two speeds; full and quarter.
Constant Tension
Ships that change draft rapidly when loading or unloading, such as tankers
and ore carriers and ships which must moor alongside a pier where there is a
large rise and fall of tides, frequently are fitted with constant tension mooring

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winches and wire rope lines. These winches may haul in or payout lines as
the tension varies from the limit for which the controls are set.

Passing and Securing Mooring Lines

The method for passing and securing mooring lines depends on the mooring
plan, the type of pier fittings and the parts of line to be secured. The
sequence of operations is to pass the line and secure the initial lines on pier
fittings. Next remove the slack from these initial lines and secure a single part
on the ship fitting, in turn securing the ship. Then deploy the remaining
mooring lines or parts of line in accordance with mooring plan and adjust the
initially deployed lines as required (slack or tension). The procedure for
securing mooring lines to shipboard fittings may also include taking lines to
power for pre-tensioning.
Fendering Systems
Fenders and fendering systems are designed to absorb or dissipate the
energy of impact that occurs during berthing and mooring of ships. Fenders
provide a load dampening interface, protecting ship hulls and berthing
facilities (piers, wharfs, etc.) from excessive damage, which could otherwise
occur in the absence of proper fendering between ships and piers.
Marine fenders are classified as either solid or resilient. The solid type, which
have minimal capacity to absorb impact energy, may be timber facing on a
flexible pier structure or mounted on the face of a rigid pier or wharf structure
that is not subjected to large docking forces. Resilient fenders have the ability
to absorb sizable amounts of impact energy without causing damage to the
ship, the pier, or the fender.
Fenders are also classified as either fixed or portable (floating). Fixed fender
systems could be comprised of floating fenders attached to a quay, or could
be non-floating fenders attached to a pier, wharf or quay. Fixed fender
systems are engineered for a specific site, to provide the desired protection
from impact loads. Floating fenders are normally easily portable, so they can
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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

be deployed in a wide range of situations to meet ever changing mooring

requirements.
Deck Layout
A practical mooring equipment layout keeps the number of winches to a
minimum and they are driven by a common power source.

At least one chock is installed at each mooring station to provide a fairlead for
mooring lines between the ship and shore. Chocks should be arranged to
accommodate Panama Canal Requirements. One bitt should be provided for
each mooring line.
Shore Mooring Fittings
Mooring fittings provided on piers are cast metal structures bolted into the
concrete structure. Common pier mooring fittings are a combination of cleats,
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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

double bitts and bollards of various shapes, sizes and strengths. Fenders are
used for protection between a ship and a pier. Fenders are needed to absorb
energy, to cushion against impact loads, and to provide standoff between ships
and piers.
Cleats on piers are similar in function and appearance to shipboard cleats, but
they differ in size and strength. Pier cleats are bolted in place, whereas
shipboard cleats are welded to the ship structure. Double bitts have the same
basic barrel construction as shipboard bitts. They differ in that their caps are
more one sided. A bollard is a strong, cylindrically shaped, upright fitting found
on a pier or wharf. The eye of a ships mooring line is placed around it during
mooring.

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

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Automated Mooring Systems

A new mooring system has been developed to replace the traditional system
using ropes. The new system uses vacuum pads to provide the mooring
attachment. Each pad has a measurable working load, providing a powerful
physical attachment between ship and shore. The MoorMaster is the name given
to the range of generic shore based mooring systems. It does not require specific
installations on the ship and can directly attach to the hull of most commercial
and military vessels. The quay face model has the advantage of compact storage
when not in use. This enables the system to rest behind the maximum fender
impact line during berthing. For instance, The MoorMaster 400 is ideally suited to
ships from 70 up to 250 metres in length. The number of units required to safely
moor a ship will be dependent on the hull windage area and environmental
weather patterns. In most instances between 2 and 6 units will be required for a
single berth. The unit has a design load capacity of 40,000 kg and an outreach of
900mm.

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Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya

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The new system is assumed to have the following advantages:

Risk of injury to shore and ship personnel by mooring ropes eliminated.

Continuous load monitoring and sophisticated alarm functions, relayed in
real time to operations personnel.
Multiple redundancy of vacuum pads and inherent fail safe features ensure
secure mooring even during power cuts or loss of control signals.
Robust mechanical design ensuring reliable operations.
Fast attachment ( typically 12 sec) and instant release.
No more delays while waiting for mooring crews to become available.
Only one operator required, based ashore or onboard, to activate and
remotely monitor the mooring system.
Eliminating costs for enlarging pier structures when larger ship arrivals are
scheduled.

Marine Outfittings

Prof. Dr. Yousri Welaya