Re: Question about Naval Architects

Ben & June Lockford wrote:

We're lightly considering having a person who claims to be a naval
architect design our dream trawler. This person has no ABET approved
college degree in engineering and does not hold a professional
engineer's license at all. My questions are:

Will the insurance on the boat be higher because it was not designed
by a licensed naval architect?

Probably not. Insurance companies care about safety equipment, materials, how well the boat is constructed, etc. Bad design doesn't bother them too much unless something is obviously understrength.

Can I even get the boat insured/documented/USGC approved?

Easily. Fiberglass will be easier than wood. There are lots of home builders that DIY including their own plans (though this isn't my recommendation)

What are the risks involved by not using a licensed naval architect?

It depends. A lot of older NA's are not licensed, and studied under other designers before working on their own. They can easily design a typical trawler if they they have a bit of experience in that type.

Somebody without an engineering degree will often specify heavier construction, to make up for lack of engineering knowledge on how to calculate appropriate structure. That's a bit of a generalization by the way; some guys do fine with structure without an engineering degree.

A bigger question - where did this person get his experience/education to be a NA? Does this person have a track record of successful designs? If he/she is just beginning I would walk away quickly!

Aren't naval architects supposed to be licensed?

No. Licensure of NA's is a pretty recent thing, and to my knowledge only WA state has some requirements. You're not required to be licensed generally. I'm a P.Eng. in Canada, in Mechanical Engineering, but my specialization is NA. Just about anybody can call themselves a NA or a yacht designer with no formal qualifications or training. It's a buyer beware thing.

House architects require licenses as do bridge designers,etc. What's
the deal with boats?

Our mistakes sink, so they don't tell any tales :) (NA joke)

Evan Gatehouse
.

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