How to launch ships in a safe manner?

A vessel is launching using marine airbags.

Marine airbags, as a safe and economical way of ship launching, are generally used all over the world. In China, there are about 200 vessels carrying out their launching with the help of marine airbags. But the incorrect methods may cause damages to your prized vessels even result in a fail of launching.

The method listed below may gives you some help for your ship launching:

Launching preparation:

1. Clean, flat and compact the ramp ground.
2. Make sure that the ground leaning at a 0.8 degree angle to the water.
3. Hold the ship using some blocks.

Ship launching

1. Put deflated marine airbags flatly under the hull of vessel. Normally, more airbags with higher pressure are placed near the water side. The maximum spaces between airbags should not be more than 6m and the minimum spaces are effected by the diameter of airbags as follow:

   Diameters of airbags	1m	1.2m	1.5m	1.8m	2m
   Minimum spaces between airbags	1.5m	1.8m	2.2m	2.8m	3.0m

   

   Arrangements of ship launching airbags

   • When the length of airbags are longer than vessels' width, they can be arranged center to center with vessel in a single row.
   • If the length of airbags are longer than one half of vessels' width, they can be placed with cross over arrangement.
   • When the length of airbags are shorter than one half of vessels' width, they can be positioned in two or three rows as shown in the picture.
2. Pump air into marine airbags until appropriate pressure has been reached.
3. Remove the blocks.
4. Deflate a little air of the airbags near the water side and inflate those far away form water to form an angle of inclination bigger.
5. Remove the blocks under the head of the vessel.
6. Push the vessel a little and let the vessel go smoothly into the water.
7. Recapture the airbags using small boats and deflate all the airbags.
8. Fold and store these marine airbags.