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Shipbuilding
“I’d have to say we’re right at the peak now,” says
Joe Carpenter whose Port Union shipyard has seven vessels under
construction. “There’s a big demand for new boats right now, and I’m
pretty satisfied with the way things are going.”
“Things are busy, and it looks bright for the next
couple of years,” agrees Henry Vokey, with his Trinity shipyard barely
visible behind vessels being built. “I’ve had to turn down quite a bit
of work this last year and a half, and the outlook for the next couple
of years is good.”
Shipbuilders, like fishermen and farmers, aren’t
noted for taking an overly optimistic view of the prospects for the
future. The industry has long been plagued by a variety of problems,
ranging from the supply material to the supply of skilled labor, and the
ever changing bounty and subsidy programs. Today, with the near shore
fishery starting to boom in the wake of the 200 mile economic zone,
fishermen are asking for newer and bigger vessels that will let
fishermen fully utilize the resurgent fish stocks. While that demand is,
in part, responsible for the escalation in the cost of vessels, there
appears to be no shortage of fishermen willing to invest heavily in new
vessels.
Both Vokey and Carpenter enjoy enviable reputations
as shipbuilders. The presence of these major yards and two smaller
operations owned by Wilson Vokey and Sam Vokey gives the Bonavista
Peninsula another string to its economic bow, with a total labor force
approaching 100 between the four operations.
Henry Vokey has approximately 30 men working at his
yard. Two 65 foot longliners, two 36 footers, a 52 footer and a 38
footer are all being built by the traditional carvel planked method,
with the bulk of the larger size planking brought in from British
Columbia. While good lumber was in short supply for a whole this winter,
Mr. Vokey reports the supply has picked up now, and he had no problem
getting enough men for the yard.
“I’d say that about half of our men are new fellows
to boat building,” he continues. “Some of them have to be trained, but
that’s O.K. since they have a chance to learn a trade while they are
earning a living.”
A short distance away in Port Union, Vokey’s friendly
competitors, Carpenter’s Shipyard, has six traditionally built wooden
boats underway, all 38 of 45 foot longliners. The seventh vessel the
yard is working on represents a new direction; an ABCO 37, with a
fiberglass hull, is being finished by the yard.
“We’re adding the decks and house,” Joe told us.
“Then we’ll install the engine and some other gear and get her ready for
fishing. We’ll probably try a few more of the fiberglass boats after
this, just to see how the cost compares with wood. I’ve quoted this one
at $85,000. A similar wooden boat would run $80,000.- $90,000. As far as
the work goes, it much like a wooden boat, only we’re starting with a
fiberglass hull.”
Given the scarcity and rising prices of good
shipbuilding wood, it is likely that alternatives, such as steel,
fiberglass and aluminum maybe used. At the moment fiberglass is the only
alternative from local supplies.
“We’re doing this one more or less as an experiment,”
he says. “In glass there should be low maintenance because there aren’t
any rot problems, but there might be problems in its resistance to
abrasion. However if it can hold up in our sheet ice conditions, and the
scaring of nets being hauled in over it, I think the fishermen should be
getting a boat that requires little maintenance. But the boats haven’t
been used in Newfoundland long enough to find the answers we need yet.”
Whether you want a wood or fiberglass hull for your
new dream ship, you’d better book soon if you plan to have it done at
Vokey’s or Carpenter’s. Both yards predict busy times ahead.
Decks Awash
Vol. 8, No.2 April, 1979
Page 18-19
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