Chantiers de l'Atlantique / Arms manufacturer

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Page modified: Friday, June 23, 2006 21:45:00

Those threw to Chantiers de l'Atlantique is in Saint Nazaire/France at the delta of the Loire. Them belonged to the largest shipyards of Europe and the world, production amounted to in the year 2004 approx. 630 million EUR. Since 1984 it is part of the company ALSTOM, whose maritime arm forms it as ALSTOM Leroux Naval.

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In January 2006 the Chantiers sold de l'Atlantique 75% of its portions to the Norwegian arms enterprise Aker yard.

History

Difficult beginnings

History threw begins with the marine industrialization in France in the middle 19. Century. Since its beginning connected yourself the existence threw with package boats. At this time Saint Nazaire was planned by a law from 18 July 1840 as main port of the line to South America, which was confirmed by three decrees 1857, 1858 and 1861. The Ligne postale of the Antilles et you Mexique of the Compagnie Transatlantique was created. At that time however the technical knowledge for the building of modern ships, i.e. Dampfantrieb and metallic covering, in France was missing completely. The CGT, of Napoleon III. obligated to make until April 1862 the connection bought therefore in England three package boats. The line after away de France was opened on 14 April 1862. Parallel to it the CGT created one threw in Saint Nazaire.

The technical knowledge was imported from Great Britain, where one had built 1857 the Great Eastern, a ship made of metal with a length of 230 M. a Scot, John Scott, left threw in Greenock and brought their techniques to France. It made the outer hulls with and designed together with 15 English foremen and one in recruited staff of four ships. On 24 April 1864 the first ship of the Chantiers Scott was left by the pile. This was that 108 m long package boat Eugnie. But the euphoria lasted only briefly: 1866 went threw, the 1,800 persons busy, into bankruptcy. 13 years later, the CGT opened threw again. In the following year, 1882, settled itself the Nanteser enterprise studio et Chantiers de la Loire at the same place on.

Beside the building of package steamers above all the construction of tankers was main support leg threw: After the building of the France modernized threw its production plants, in order to be able to keep up with the requirements of the oil market. Up to the building of the France threw the ships on an inclined level, as soon as the outer hull and superstructures were finished, it designed by the pile was then left. They slipped thus over the soil in the sea. Subsequently, they were terminated at the dock. In the course of the years the tankers continued to increase however, so that this method did not function any longer.

Throwing mechanisms

In the years 1929 to 1934 built the dry dock forms Joubert is with its length of 350 m and width of 50 m one of the largest dry docks of the world. To 27. /28. March 1942 became it the goal of the allied attack of the special-purpose forces operation Chariot with the goal of reducing the serviceability of the Tirpitz. Today it is for above all to the equipment before the distribution of the ships and their overhaul.

Into the 1970ern a construction basin was put on, which is broad 1,200 m long and 60 m. It possesses different depths and makes the simultaneous building possible of up to three ships. This basin permitted the building of four of the largest tankers to the world: Batillus, Bellamya, Pierre Guillaumat and Prairial. (Everyone of them with a loading capacity of approximately 500,000 t oil).

The size growth of the tankers was caused by the oil crisis into the 1970ern, when the Suez channel became closed. Thus the tankers were forced to take with same economy the longer journey around the cape of good hope. Thus with the Chantiers de a l'Atlantique further basin was put on: the basin C. this should actually serve for the building of 1.000.000 tdw tankers, but the tanker crisis under the reopening of the Suez channel made it redundant. This basin serves today for the termination work at the ships.

Those threw has the largest dry dock in France, the dry dock B, with a length of 415 m and to width of 66 M.