Analysis of Richmond Shipyard No. 3 Haer # Ca-326, Chapter Five, Section B

Analysis of Richmond Shipyard No. 3 HAER # CA-326, Chapter five, Section B (pp 118-126), Fredric L. Quivik, © 2 July 2004

The article reviews the general welding techniques used in Kaiser’s Richmond shipyards during World War 2, when all-welded ship construction was first pioneered in the US. Specific issues identified were proper welding techniques and training, and residual stresses resulting from uneven heating and cooling being “locked in” upon completion. This stress can prove damaging after construction, as in the case of the SS Schenectady, which suddenly fractured transversely while moored in the still waters of the Willamette River on 16 January 1943. Official investigations found that, while some of the steel used in the construction did not meet standards, most of the steel that failed did, and "The principal cause [of the failure of the hull] was an accumulation of an abnormal amount of internal stress locked into the structure by the process of construction."