Lesson 3

FRAMING SYSTEMS
As we have seen earlier, the shell (ships bottom and side) and deck plating of a ship has
to be stiffened internally to prevent it from collapsing. The stiffeners are welded
internally to the plating and are arranged in longitudinal and transverse directions
perpendicular to each other. Longitudinals run along the length of the ship and the
transverse frames run along the transverse section i.e; perpendicular to the fore-and-aft
centreline, horizontal along the beam and vertical along the ships side.
History
Historically, early iron and steel vessels were built with transverse framing as this was
the tried and tested configuration used for wooden ship building. The structural design
requirements used for wooden ships were copied over to iron ships, featuring very heavy
keel structures and relatively light decks. As ships got larger the limitations of thin
transversely framed decks were observed and understood, although the industry was
slow to adapt. One notable exception to this was the Great Eastern (1858) which was a
very early example of a scientifically designed ship. Isambard Kingdom Brunel, a civil
engineer, used beam theory in the structural design of this vessel which was based on a
cellular system of longitudinal framing. With a tonnage five times greater than any other
vessel of the time, this remarkable ship boasted many other innovative features and
despite her lack of commercial success, the structure performed well throughout her 31
year life.
Although the technical benefits of longitudinal framing were known in the 19th Century it
was not until the British naval architect Joseph Isherwood introduced his longitudinal
framing method in 1906, that interest was revived. His system used longitudinal
stiffeners and deep transverse web frames in the same way that modern
arrangements do. The benefit was primarily a lighter structure, which for
commercial vessels equated to increased deadweight for a given displacement,
and hence a more profitable ship. This was particularly true for oil tankers
where the increased web frame depth did not affect cargo stowage volume. The
first ship using this system, the tanker Paul Paix, was built in 1908 to Lloyds Register
class. By 1918, over 1000 ships had been built using the Isherwood framing system.
Description
The stiffening generally is provided by primary supporting and secondary supporting
members.
Primary supporting members
Primary supporting members are the big members or metaphorically speaking the big
bones having large scantlings and spaced wide apart. They provide most of the
longitudinal bending strength to the ship.
The word scantlings denotes the cross- sectional dimensions of structural
members, as distinct from their lengths. Thus an angle bar whose scantlings are
200 x 150 x 12.5 mm has one 200 mm leg and one 150 mm leg and is 12.5 mm
thick, regardless of its length. Steel plate scantlings normally refer only to the
plate thickness regardless of its length or width.

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 1 of 8

The primary supporting members or stiffeners consist of

Main longitudinal girders at the bottom, stringers and deck girders

Web or transverse rings

Longitudinal Girders. On the bottom a centre girder is provided which is also called as
the centreline vertical Keel. The vertical keel runs continuously from the fore peak to aft
peak. Depending on the beam of the ship at bottom there may be one or more additional
longitudinal girders provided by the side of the CVK which are also called as bottom side
girders. Up to beam of 10 m minimum one side girder is provided on either side of the
vertical keel and thereafter they are provided at a spacing of about 2.5 m. Side girders
are of smaller scantling, have same depth as centre girder but they are neither watertight
nor continuous.
On the shipside, horizontal girders known as side stringers (or stringers) are fitted. The
number of side stringer depends on the depth of the ship.
Similar to the bottom, under the deck of a ship, centreline and side girders are fitted.
Transverse Web rings The transverse web rings hold the main longitudinal girders
together and also provide the transverse strength. They are fitted at intervals of about 3
to 4 meters apart along the length of the ship, and can be divided into three parts:

Bottom transverse This is the first part at the bottom and is represented by a solid
floor or a plate floor in ships with double bottom construction. The height of the
solid floor is similar to that of the centreline girder.

Web frame The second part on the side is known as the web frame. The depth of
the side web frame is about 0.125 times the vertical distance from the tank top to
the deck above, e.g. if this vertical distance is 10 meters, the depth of the web will
be 1250 mm.

Deck transverse The third part on the deck is known as deck transverse. The
depth of the deck transverse varies depending on the span between supporting
girders or bulkheads, or between girder and side frame.

SECONDARY SUPPORTING MEMBERS

Secondary supporting members are the small bones of the ship which are arranged
within the space available between primary stiffeners.
They are much smaller in size as compared to the primary supporting members. The
necessity for providing the secondary frames arises because the primary stiffeners are
wide apart and the plate panel between them needs to be stiffened further as it would
otherwise deform because of water pressure. They are fitted usually at spacing of less
than 1000 mm apart. These are fitted either in the longitudinal or in the transverse
direction. Rolled sections of bulb plates or unequal angles are normally used for those
secondary supporting members
TYPES OF FRAMING SYSTEMS
Based on the direction of provision of secondary framing the framing system may be
classified into Longitudinal Framing system or Transverse framing system. It may be
remembered here that the Primary stiffeners are a part of both these systems.
BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 2 of 8

Transverse Framing
System
In the transverse framing
system, the hold frames are
fitted transversely.
The
bottom member is known
as an open floor or bracket
floor (for ships with double
bottoms), the side member
is known as the hold frame
(or main frame) and the
deck member is known as
the
deck
beam.
Longitudinal deck girders support the transverse deck beams.
The
transverse
system
therefore
consists
of
following stiffeners
Primary: Centre girder
and
other
bottom
longitudinals,
stringers,
deck girders and Web rings
Secondary:
Open
or
bracket floors, hold frames
and deck beams
Longitudinal strength in
a transversely framed ship
is provided by:
the center girder, the shell plating and inner bottom plating,
by the deck plating
by a number of large, widely spaced longitudinal members e.g; bottom longitudinals
and deck girders.
Longitudinal Framing System
In this system, all the secondary supporting members are fitted the longitudinal direction
and are known as longitudinals (bottom longitudinals, stringers or side longitudinals, and
deck longitudinals respectively). The system consists of many small, closely spaced
longitudinals supporting the plating directly and being supported in turn by a few large,
widely spaced longitudinals.
The longitudinal system therefore consists of following stiffeners
Primary: Centre girder and bottom longitudinals, stringers, deck girders and Web rings
Secondary: bottom longitudinals (secondary), stringers and deck girders
The bottom longitudinal on centerline, or center girder, is extra large and heavy,
principally to carry the loads imposed by keel-blocks during dry-docking. Very deep,
heavy transverse structures called transverse webs or web frames are constructed at
BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 3 of 8

intervals of about 3 to 5 meters to support the longitudinals and to provide transverse

strength.
Where a ship's length exceeds 120m it is considered desirable to adopt
longitudinal framing.
The explanation of this is that,
on longer ships tests and
experience have shown that
there is a tendency for the
inner bottom and bottom shell
and deck to buckle if welded
transverse framing is adopted.
This buckling occurs as a result
of the longitudinal bending of
the hull, and may be resisted
effectively
by
having
the
plating longitudinally stiffened.
The secondary logitudinals also
contribute to the longitudinal
strength of the ship, making
the longitudinal framing system more structurally efficient than the transverse system.
This is the main system used
for larger tankers where
longitudinal strength is a
major
consideration,
and
adoption of any other system
will result in unacceptably
large hull weight. Longitudinal
stiffeners spaced about 600 to
900 mm apart give direct
support to the plating of the
deck, sides, bottom, and
bulkheads. Very deep, heavy
transverse structures called
transverse
webs
or
web
frames are constructed at
intervals of about 3 to 5
meters
These
heavy
transverse webs consist of
deck,
side,
and
bottom
transverses plus a vertical web
on each longitudinal bulkhead.
The side transverse and vertical web on the bulkhead are usually tied together with one
to three horizontal struts or cross ties.

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 4 of 8

TWO SYSTEMS COMPARED

Although the transversely framed ships were structurally sound and satisfactory in
service, the fact that most of their stiffeners contributed nothing to the ship's resistance
to longitudinal bending. The transverse framing system was not optimal from the
standpoint of structural efficiency, that is, of achieving the required strength for the least
weight. The longitudinal system, in which most of the plating stiffeners are disposed in
the fore and aft direction, has superior structural efficiency.
Advantages of the longitudinal framing system over transverse framing system:
Strength to weight ratio. Many longitudinal stiffeners serve dual purposes: they
support the shell plating against local loading caused by water pressure and cargo loads
(just as transverse frames in the transverse system do), and at the same time they
contribute to the ship's resistance to longitudinal bending (which transverse frames do
not). Therefore, a longitudinally framed ship has superior longitudinal strength to a
transversely framed ship of equal size and structural weight.
Resistance to Buckling. Longitudinally stiffened plating is more resistant to buckling
between longitudinal stiffeners, when the deck or bottom (especially prevalent in a ship's
upper deck) is subjected to compressive stresses as it bends in a seaway than it would be
if stiffened transversely.
Graduated size. Longitudinal stiffeners supporting side shell and bulkhead plating are
subjected to variable pressures from the sea or from liquid cargo. The hydrostatic
pressure on each successive longitudinal and its associated plating increases with its
depth below the waterline or below the surface of the liquid in the tank. Each longitudinal
can be sized to withstand the maximum pressure associated with its depth in the ship,
thus achieving an efficient use of the structural material. This "graduated size"
configuration cannot be done effectively with transverse frames, which as a result are
overly heavy at their upper ends.
Disadvantages of the longitudinal framing system:
The intrusion of deep webs into prime cargo spaces for ships carrying packaged cargo
is an disadvantage.
Constructional difficulty. Another difficulty arises in the structural arrangements near
the ends of the ship. The spacing of the longitudinals around the girth of the ship can be
maintained constant so long as the girth does not change. As the hull narrows toward
bow and stem, however, the girth necessarily reduces and the longitudinals become closer
together. Difficulties in construction arise when they converge so closely that some
longitudinals have to be eliminated. For this reason, transverse framing is usually
resorted to at the bow and stem of longitudinally framed ships.

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 5 of 8

COMBINED OR MIXED FRAMING SYSTEM

In this system, a combination of

both transverse and longitudinal
framing is adopted in the same
cross section of the ship.
Longitudinal framing is used
in the bottom and decks,
where the advantages of
extra longitudinal strength
and
resistance
to
compressive plate buckling
are
most
needed,
and
transverse framing is used in
the sides, precluding the
need for deep webs that
might inhibit efficient cargo
stowage.
The transverse framing members
are the deep, widely spaced
transverses that support the
longitudinals in the decks and
bottom. More closely spaced,
smaller transverse side frames
support the side shell plating
between the deep transverses.
Combination systems are employed in many types of ships, including general dry cargo
ships, containerships and RO/RO ships.

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 6 of 8

Longitudinal Framing Transverse sectional view

Longitudinal Framing Longitudinal sectional view

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 7 of 8

Ordinary Frame

Web Frame
Transverse Framing

Transverse Framing - Longitudinal sectional view

BSW Ship Co Lecture Notes4

Framing Systems Page 8 of 8