Important Trends and Junctures in Warship Design

Abstract

Concerns about risks associated with new conceptual designs of surface warships have led many decision-makers to relyon the parent-design approach. For example, the design of the Oliver Hazard Perry Class (FFG-7) became the standard ofsurface warship design for 71 subsequent vessels in three Navies, e.g. Australia, Spain and Taiwan, even though the FFG-7was initially considered under-armed and vulnerable. This paper finds that following warship designs remain derivationsprimarily of limited parent designs and that generally warship design is now increasingly costly, yet mostly stagnant, andwith fleet numbers in steady decline. By contrast, submarine-build programmes generally show regularly refreshed conceptualdesigns, new modularised build and construction, usually improving affordability and proliferation. Approaching amodern Synthetical Age, this paper submits that a reconceptualisation of the surface warship design space, shipyards andbuild techniques are arguably at a critical design juncture. As such a revolution in warship design, like the FFG-7 designwas, is overdue. This paper provides insights into the ship designs that are necessary and possible from today's emergingtechnologies. Such revolutionary design could inject greater usability and affordability to naval surface fleets and build morepolitical, economic and military affordability of ships and potential warfare losses. This new approach is called 'Versatilemodularisation'.