MOORING OF SHIPS TO PIERS AND WHARVES

This manual is expected to provide the ship designer, shipbuilders and all personnel involved in ship operation with the technical knowledge and guidance required to properly determine the design practices for the safe mooring of their vessel at the wharves and fixed piers in sea ports and harbors.

The huge and technically complex vessels of today featuring significant wind exposure and deep drafts are posing serious mooring challenges to the masters, ship designers and pilots. the mooring incidents, should they occur, are commonly very costly - such incidents have already emphasized the demand for much better understanding of the fundamental mooring design principles.

It should be noted that none of the existing standards or construction codes specifically address the design of the mooring/berthing facilities. The present manual is aimed to give the required background in order to make sure that the designed mooring structures are technically sound and reliable, i.e. to assure that they will provide a safe berth for the ships.

The content of the Manual covers such important topics as the basic design requirements, various operational considerations, mooring principles, fender systems, hardware and fittings, equipment, maintenance issues, forces acting on the vessel and many other important aspects.