Langesund mekaniske sold

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Langesund mekaniske verksted A / S was a shipbuilding company in the Norwegian city of Langesund in the province of Vestfold og Telemark . The shipyard was founded as a stock corporation in the spring of 1914 by the shipowner HP Jacobsen. Shipbuilding and ship repair companies have been operating in this area since the end of the 16th century. In the period from 1890 to 1920 there was also an industrial boom in Norway and the establishment of Langesund mekaniske verksted was part of this development. Ships were built in the shipyard until 1967.

The shipyard founder HP Jacobsen

history

The place Langesund developed into an important base for shipbuilding in Scandinavia . A large part of the new buildings went to the Danish-Norwegian navy in the 17th and 18th centuries and were mainly used for territorial self-defense and use in the perennial Northern Wars .

From the sailing shipyard to the shipyard for steamers

In 1898 HP Jacobsen bought land and buildings and established Kongshavn Langesund . This included old shipyards on both sides of the port. In the first few years Jacobsen concentrated his business on ship repairs. With the transition from sailing to steam shipping , the business area was expanded to include mechanical engineering. In addition, the recruitment of qualified specialists was of crucial importance for the shipyard operation. In the first few years this was a challenge because there was still a shortage of skilled workers. Nevertheless, the shipyard business could be maintained through repair orders. When the engineer Samson Tokheim took over the management of the shipyard and trained the existing workers, the problem of the shortage of skilled workers was resolved after a few years. However, the modernization and expansion of the shipyard was not so advanced that steamships could be built. The establishment of the shipyard was important for the urban development of Langesund. The influx of new employees who wanted to work in the workshop was large. In the years 1917–1918 ten new houses were built for employees on behalf of Langesund mekaniske verksted. The standard of the apartments was good and the new part of town developed into one of the better residential areas with large wide streets and newly planted trees.

The first steamships in the Langesund Mekaniske verksted from running batch that were Terneskjær with 700 tonnes deadweight and the slightly smaller Eikhaug . The steamer Terneskjær was built in the winter of 1917/1918, but did not start operating until March 1919. The Terneskjær was a modern ship for the time with three large hatches, steam winches and a steam rudder system . The launch of the ship was dramatic. One of the safety chains broke during the launch and hit two shipyard workers. One of them died from his injuries. The ship was lost off Iceland in November 1924 .

The second half of the 1920s was a difficult time for the shipbuilding and engineering industries. The problems were exacerbated by the stagnation of the world economy as a result of the stock market crash of 1929. Many ships were laid up in Langesund and the business focused on repairs, maintenance and inspection, which saved the company. The difficult years continued into the early 1930s.

Second World War

Normal shipyard operations were not possible during the Second World War . The German occupying power took over the company. During the occupation, two ships were built that served the German warfare. From 1943 onwards there was a shortage of steel due to the war and the main task of the company was to manufacture concrete boats and prehouses for the occupiers.

After the war

The shipyard was able to complete the first post-war ship in 1948. The cargo steamer Vigør was a so-called Great Lakes ship . The design and size were adapted to the locks on the great North American lakes . In the immediate post-war period there was a great need for these ships. Several Norwegian shipyards supplied this type of ship, with the Langesund mekaniske Verksted ship type being particularly popular. By 1952, the shipyard received orders for five such ships. In 1956 the first motor cargo ship, the Bahia , which was completely built in Langesund, was launched.

The period from 1964 to 1967 was marked by the construction of ferries and the end of shipbuilding in Langesund. Six large car and passenger ferries were built during these years. The first was Kraakerø . The ferry was 57 meters long and could carry 250 passengers and 40 cars. The ferry was used between Kragerø and Østfold . The car ferries Stena Baltica (construction no. 53), Stena Germanica (construction no. 54) and Stena Britannica (construction no. 55) were delivered in 1966 and 1967. The ferries had space for 1200 passengers and about 190 cars on two decks. Shipbuilding ended with construction number 55 at Langesund mekaniske Verksted.

In April 1967 the company Sverre Munck Elektro-Mekanisk Industri took over the workshops and saved them from bankruptcy . The name Langesund mekaniske verksted was changed to Langesund Industri AS . The new company focused on the construction of cranes and accessories for board cranes and loading gear for conventional cargo ships. Another business area was the construction of offshore structures such as drilling rigs and their accessories.

photos

  • Shipyard 1913

  • Shipyard 1919

  • Shipyard 1942

  • Shipyard probably mid-1960s

Ship list (selection)

image Names Construction no. / IMO no. Year of construction / use Comments / whereabouts
Eikhaug , Hasseløy 2 1919 / until April 22, 1925 Steamship, Mæland, Lars & H. Karlulf Hansen shipping company, Haugesund, Norway, sunk in 1925
"Lake" -skipet Kollbryn. Levert 1951.jpg Kollbryn , Kristina , Chichow Frog , Hwa Hang , Beauty Rose 31/5196804 July 1951 to 1973 Two-cylinder composite steam engine built in the shipyard, demolished in 1974 in Kaohsiung
Motor skipet Bahia ved slippen.jpg Bahia , Italian , Marsina , Maldive Coral , Papua Chief I 35/5033818 1953 to 1979 November 12, 1979 to Akberally & Co. Bombay (Mumbai) for demolition
Ceara , Havel , Kefallonia , Georgios , Tarablos , Sea North 41 July 10, 1958 to December 28, 1987 Demolition of Gadani Beach
Styrsö , Olympios Hermes , Tartous II , La Luna del Mar , Stella Maris , Stella Maris V , Nados 48/5342661 1962 to September 16, 2010 Demolition of Aliağa from September 16, 2010
Kraakerø , Gilleleje , Polhem , Corsica Ferry , Lastovo I , Partizanka , Ston , Güniz , Azzurra II 50/6411342 1964 to 2011 on December 26, 2011 to Aliağa for demolition
MS Stena Baltica 001.jpg Stena Baltica , Caledonia , Heidi 53/6513451 1966 / to 2006 Aliağa demolition (on April 20, 2006)
Stena Germanica (1967) 001.jpg Stena Germanica , A. Regina 54/6702155 1967 to 1985 Wrecked on February 15, 1985 on Mona Island , 40 miles west of Puerto Rico ; Canceled in 1989.
Viking 6 aug 1978.jpg Stena Britannica , Viking 6 , Goelo , Sol Olympia , Wickersham , Moby Dream , Sardegna Bella 55/6717148 1967 to 1993 Aliağa demolished in 2001

Web links

Commons : Langesund mekaniske verksted  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Footnotes

  1. ↑ [1] Store norske leksikon (Norwegian / Norsk bokmål) accessed on February 9, 2016
  2. ↑ Finnish Mercantile Marine Database (English) accessed on February 10, 2016
  3. ^ German shipping companies Volume 23 VEB Deutsche Seereederei Rostock, page 168
  4. ↑ Das Schiff at 7seasvessels.com , source: Miramar Ship Index (English) accessed on February 11, 2016
  5. ↑ The ship at faktaomfartyg.se (Swedish) accessed on February 10, 2016
  6. ↑ Pictures and description of the Stena Germanica (English) accessed on February 10, 2016
  7. ↑ Stena Germanica (English) accessed on February 10, 2016
  8. ↑ Information about the ship (various languages) accessed on February 10, 2016