TWO A WEEK

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 August 1943, Page 4

TWO A WEEK

PRODUCTION OF SHIPS IN CANADA..

REMARKABLE WAR TIME EXPANSION.

An unprecedented era of shipbuilding in Canada is forseen by experts, a special message from Montreal to the “Christian Science Monitor” stated recently. All Eastern Canadian shipbuilding ports are operating to full capacity, with an abundance of experienced manpower to equip the ships with crews

Ships are sliding down the ways from shipyards throughout Canada at the rate of two a week. At the beginning of the war there were only two berths on the Pacific coast equipped to build large ships of the cargo type and six in Eastern Canada. Now there are more than 50. Today, War Time Merchant Shipping Limited is witnessing the building of nearly 300 new 10,000-ton cargo boats in Canada at an estimated cost of 600.000.000 dollars. Up to October 3, 1942, more than 70 vessels had been delivered, while since that time the yards have been expanded and speeded p to mueet the demand. Vast quantities of materials are required for ship construction programme of this magnitude. The building of one mine-sweeper uses 300 tons of steel shapes and plates and 25 tons of rivets for the hull alone. The time required to build such a boat is 350.000 man-hours, while the electrical power generated by its turbines would be sufficient to supply a village of 1,200 people. Quebec’s smaller shipyards are engaged in the construction of a variety of small craft, part of a 13,000,000 dollar contract. These include crash boats, aircraft tenders, bomb-loading dinghies, salvage and supply boats, refueling scows, fiat scows, and derrick scows for the Royal Canadian Air Force: harbour utility craft, motor- torpedo boats, gate vessels, whalers, pulling boats, and service dinghies for the Royal Canadian Nady: service boats and assault boats for the Canadian Army; battle practice targets for the British Admiralty; rescue launches for the I British Air Mission.

In the early part of 1940, only 4,000 men were employed on Canadia’s shipbuilding programme. Today, more than 50,000 men and women are employed. In the same period 14 major shipyards and 14 small boat yards were engaged in cargo and naval ship construction. Today, 21 major shipyards and 58 smaller boat yards are busy, with Quebec claiming a generous proportion.