Skip to main content
European Commission logo print header

Production to improve total efficiency of new generation Short Sea Shipping

Final Report Summary - CREATE3S (Production to improve total efficiency of new generation short sea shipping)

The CREATE3S project aimed to initiate a new impulse in European short sea shipping and shipbuilding innovation by realising a new advanced concept in short sea ship design, manufacturing and operation. More specifically, the project objectives were to develop:
1. a modular short sea ship concept, composed of a basic ship hull module upon which various cargo containing modules could be mounted;
2. a logistic concept based on the modular ship concept for the waterborne transport leg that would outpace alternatives in terms of logistic and economic performance while possessing at least equal economic performance;
3. an advanced manufacturing concept based on the modular ship concept that would outpace competition in terms of production cost and lead time.

The CREATE3S work programme followed an end user driven, problem solving approach. The starting point was the 'cargo movement' along the logistic chain in accordance with the logistic operation's requirements. In the same way, required capabilities on cargo carrying at sea and cargo handling in port formed the starting point for the development of the new ship proposals. In both occasions the logistic operator identified and quantified the economic, operational and technical parameters, hereby ensuring that the resulting concepts were competitive, safe and clean 'transport vehicles'. The problem solving process evolved in two sequential iteration cycles of analysis, synthesis and evaluation.

Research and development was a holistic procedure that iterated information from several disciplines, namely hydromechanics and structures, logistics, economics and ecology, distributed production and advanced techniques. Moreover, a parallel track with access to all project information sources but following its own course with the aim to drive, push and stimulate discussion on the evolving project using external expertise and in-house generated knowledge was also developed.

Firstly, the ship operator requirements were outlined and their reflection on the CREATE3S modular concept was determined. Four alternatives were then developed, each with a dedicated cargo concept. Their logistic merits were evaluated, leading to the choice of the modular ship as the basis for further research and development work. Its main particulars were a dock ship concept carrying standard cargo barges loaded with containers. The barges were loaded or unloaded by ballasting the dock ship. Three different dock ship classes were then examined and the larger one, i.e. class III of 7500 Tons dead weight (TDW), was selected for the preparation of a detailed design, which already integrated more advanced hydrodynamic and structural developments. The advanced design stage included detailed structural calculations and extensive model tests for investigating resistance, sea keeping properties and safety. The final outcome of the CREATE3S project was assessed with respect to the initial defined objectives, advances beyond the state of the art and innovations.

The project was overall successful and obtained several interesting original results. Its envisaged potential impact addressed two issues, namely the competitiveness of short sea shipping as a crucial transport mode in a growing European economy and the competitiveness of the shipbuilding industry as a primary provider of advanced, safe, clean and economically efficient short sea ships.