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| 5000 cubic
meter LPG boat |
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One more
local trait that has received great benefit
from the ocean since long ago is the traditional
ship-building industry. Nowadays the industry
mostly uses high-tech machines, but here
at the Miura Shipbuilding Site ships are
made in a process called “iron-plate
melting,” in which the ships are skillfully
made directly from blueprints. Local craftsman
pass these skills onto the younger generation.
The plates for the hull are gradually curved
by heating and cooling them repeatedly to
the point where they match the design on
the blueprint. Through such technology and
experience, up to eight or nine 5- 6,000
ton-class ships are turned out a year here.
While other places use high-tech machinery, by using the “iron-plate melting” process
here interpersonal communication is prioritized. It’s rather fun to make
things specific to one’s tastes. Building is a man’s romance. This
romance is utilized to carry out the development of human resources.
The “Oita Regional Shipbuilding Technology Center” was established
in January of this year inside the Nooka Factory Site of Miura Shipbuilding Site,
with ship-building companies in Saiki and Usuki being the central sponsors. This
facility aims to pass on the skills and technology of metal-heating processes
to new workers, and to develop new human resources while promoting the expansion
of the shipbuilding industry. I have been told the research center here has 353
square meters of usable space, and 71 square meters of classroom space. The employees
that are trained at these facilities are intimately connected with the future
of the ship-building industry.
I’m extremely happy to have been able to show you Saiki—the town
blessed by the ocean—from various angles. |
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Miura Shipbuilding Site
Saiki City, Tsurumi 4900
Tel/0972-22-2033 |
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| After cutting the
iron plate with a plasma burner, it is gradually curved
with a gas-burner and water. |
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| Because I have a huge
interest in building boats, I shoot questions at the
guide, Mr. Furuta. |
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