Chapter 584： Escort carrier (1/2)
The so-called container is to put the goods in a box to pack up. In fact, the container has been around for a long time. In 1801, Dr. Anderson of England put forward the idea of container transportation.
Until the beginning of the 20th century, the British Railways tried to put furniture in wooden containers and transport them with railroad flat cars. After arriving at the station, they used cranes to transfer the boxes to carriages, and the carriages transported the goods to the destination. This new mode of transportation has been promoted.
Around 1920, the New York Central Railroad Company and the Pennsylvania Railroad Company introduced 9-foot-long steel containers. Each railway wagon can hold 6 containers, each with a carrying capacity of 5 tons. With these containers, the efficiency of the railway in transferring goods along the way is greatly improved, and the cost is greatly reduced.
During World War II in history, the U.S. Army's amphibious landing ship loaded trucks on beachhead landing missions. At the same time, the military also uses small steel containers to transport soldiers' personal belongings.
However, in this era, the advantages of containers have not been manifested. It was not until later generations when roads and shipping were combined transportation that it really rose. After being transported by sea, the containers can be directly loaded onto the truck and arrive at the destination.
What are the advantages of containers? Of course, it is convenient for loading and unloading. This advantage can only be realized when the land transportation is carried out from the sea. In later generations, the American Malcolm McLean did it. Therefore, he is called the father of modern containers.
Therefore, at present, container transportation, although there are, has not risen on a large scale. The Lufthansa Steamship Company has realized the huge profits, so it wants to provoke this new transportation reform. However, this requires a large number of container ships. Therefore, Lufthansa Shipping Company found the Newport News Shipbuilding Company of the United States and came to order new container ships. Moreover, the demand is still quite large. Ship!
This was normal, but when they took out the design drawings, Walter, the head of the Newport News Shipyard, was surprised. This so-called container cargo ship is very similar to an aircraft carrier!
At the top, there is a flat deck, and the ship island is arranged on the right side. Although the total length of this cargo ship is only 148 meters due to the limitation of displacement, from the outside, it looks like an aircraft carrier.
At the same time, in the lower part, there is a floor, and there are elevators on the side. This is definitely an aircraft carrier. What is the so-called container ship!
”This was designed after careful consideration by us. In the lower warehouse, there are some valuable containers. On top, four-layer containers can be stacked. This method can maximize the improvement. effectiveness.”
”Is it all piled on top?” Walter asked.
”We can think that when the sea is windy and waves are strong, the container may fall into the seawater risk, so put the precious container underneath.” Yate said.
”It turned out to be like this.” Wall Nodded: ”The power system you need is somewhat surplus, right? The speed of fifteen knots is not low for a transport ship. Why 18 knots?”
”In fact, we originally wanted 25 knots, but we reduced it to 18 knots after taking into account the construction cost.” Yate said: ”You should know that with the continuous progress of the times, the timeliness of cargo transportation has also been reduced. As mentioned, the higher the speed, the better.”
Yate's answer made the other party satisfied, and after discussing the details, the two sides finally finalized the preliminary framework for cooperation.
”As for the cost, we can pay 20% in advance, and after we get the cargo ship, we will deliver the rest. Anyway, our ships are not delivered together. We hope to build one ship and deliver it. We have Can't wait.”