Titanic will sail again. Already in about 2 years will the first passengers walk on board in the copi of the worlds most famous ship. A danish firm is just now making the draws to the new Titanic, there will cost about 500 mill. dollars to build. The ship will look like its legendary predecessor, but under the classic outside there is hiding a modern cruiseship, where safety and comfort will be in top.
Profile of a wonder:
The New Titanic: Length: 290 meters Breadth: 32 meters Floors: 11 Topspeed: 24 knot
The Old Titanic: Length: 269 meters Breadth: 28 meters Floors: 9 Topspeed: 23,5 knot
Itīs Steen Nielsen from the firm Olsen Design, who has been drawing the new Titanic. Just now the new Titanic only exist in a computer. In two years it will be built and ready to sail on its maiden voyage. On the new Titanic recrates the illusion in firesafety materiels and with help from phototechnicals tricks. Only the 2 topfloors will be entire looking as in the old Titanic. Itīs among other things the elegant stairscase towers and the commandobridge. This commandobridge will only be like a museum and Titanic 2 will get a new commandobridge under the old one.
From the outside will Titanic 2 most of all look like the old one. Big gates will hide the statutorys lifeboats, so that the illusion maintains. And a edge will hide the helicopterplatform in the back of Titanic (Ships on 130 meters and more shall have a helicopterplatform). Also the interior of the ship will be retain in the old style. But there will also be some new things, among other things: a theater, a shoppingarcade and a big restaurant with a southafrican locomotiv on 250 tons in the roof will create the atmosphere from the days of glory in 1912.
Excitement, fear and superstition will come again, when the world in 2001 gets a new Titanic. But the modern copi will also be a visual look of technological development of the 20th century. The hull of steel will be weld with modern technique, so the ship much better can stand against collisions. On the old Titanic was the plates of steel put together with riveters and the weakness of this method is that if just one riveter goes and the water press with just a few atmospheres will the hull crack. Admissions of the wreck - support with calculation from computers - shows that there in old Titanic was small and big cracks in a distance of 80 meters. A weld steel supposedly would menage with a bump. It is a shipowner from South Africa there has make the decision to built a copi of Titanic, to transport 1400 of passengers around the Seas of the World. And it is a danich firm of shipdesign there makes the design and construction. The first drawings is approved, so only the details is missing. (That was in March).
READY IN ABOUT 2 YEARS:
The plan is that the modern Titanic will go on its maiden voyage over the Atlantic Ocean April 10th 2001 - exactly 89 years after a crowd of people was whising the old Titanic a good journey. Also this time the journey will start in Southampton. Itīs not only the tecnique of weld steel, there will seperate the 2 ships from another. The regulatives for lifeboats are different today and there will be lifeboats for all passengers and crewmembers. The internatonal requirement also says that the hook to the lifeboats only must be 15 meters over the waterline. That means that they didnīt could put the lifeboats on the topdeck (as the old Titanic). It would also be a visual charging, because modern lifeboats are orange. Thatīs why the lifeboats is put behind some gates on the sides of the ship. The ports is so big that they strechts over two decks. That will be a kind of stays on the ship, so there not would be enough space to modern comfort, if Titanic 2 should have exactly the same dimension as the old Titanic. Therefor Titanic 2 is going to be a little bit biggere. The stability raises with the breadth, so itīs naturaly to make the breadth to the maximum of what the Canal of Panama can manage. A ship which is bigger in all ways makes it possible to contains everything there will make it comfortable on a modern cruiser. The cabins will be 20 square meters with their own bath. There will be casino, a pool and elevators between all floors. Steen told me and Patrick that the cabins will cost exactly the same, except from the cabins in the middle of the ship, they will be a bit cheaper. People will maybe think that there will be a tons of space when the old boilers replaces with a modern oilburning machine. But the space will quickly be used, because the modern Titanic will be equipped to a cruise for sewel weeks. The old Titanic was only built to be on the sea for four days. The time as it tooks to cross the Atlantic Ocean. A modern cruiseship shall have a laundry and space for a lot more of things and a lot more varied provisions. The old Titanic caried water for 4 days and nights but Titanic 2 will be able to make a production of 600 tons of fresh water in one day and one night. Steen Nielsen inform that there will be a gigantic distiller installered which is able, by help from the wasteheat from the headengine, can clean the oceanwater and make it free from salt. Such a big ship use about 400 liters of water on each person onboard for a day and a night - thatīs including laundry, coking and cleaning.
USING THE WASTE HEAT:
By using the wasteheat from the cooling water of the headengine, can they in a economic way take the salt out of the oceanwater. It happends by sending the water through some kind of heatinteraction, where the pressure will be reduced the boiling point to 60 degrees celcius. This proces repeats 6-7 times. When the machine is for full speed, the production of fresh water will be 600 tons in af day and night. Also the energy in the 400-500 degrees hot boilers on the exhaust on the engine will be used on Titanic 2. It changes to steam of low pressure and this will primary be used to make a comfortable temperature on the ship. It happens by a system of aircondition. There will be 10-12 systems of this aircondition on board. One system will be length: 12 meters, breadth: almost 3 meters and hight: 3-4 meters. In the summer will there often be 35 degrees celcius outside and a humidity on 80 procent outside. To keep a comfortable temperature in the ship, will the hot air be pulled in and it will be cooling down to 22 degrees celcius, so the water can run off. This will feel very cold, so the air is warming up again with a humidity on 50 procent. When the ship not is sailing will 2 standard oilboilers take over the proces. By using the wasteheat, even when the shipīs not sailing, will the total utilization of the oil be 65-70 procent. The modern machine gets 50.000 horsepower - almost the same as the old Titanic. The old machines weight about 8000 and 9000 tons - double as much as the new one. The new machine use only 65 tons of oil in a day and night. And becauce the fuel fills less, can there be space for modern facilities on board. The old Titanic had 4 funnels but there was just smoke in three of them. On that time a modern oceanliner should have 4. To day it would be enough with 2 funnels but because of the visual sight, will there of course be 4 funnels on Titanic 2. There will be smoke in the 2 funnels in the middle. Itīs not decided what the funnel behind will be used for. But in the funnel in the front there will be a advanced satelite-and radarequipment, which among other things will warn against icebergs. Therefor the funnels will be constructed in fibre glass and other materials, so the signals can come through. Itīs decisive that the look of Titanic 2 comes as close as possible to the old one. The black painting will be a bit higher on the ship to compensate for the hight of Titanic 2. If they donīt do this the visuel sight will be disturbed. There will be a exactly copi of the old commandobridge. It will be reconstructed by old drawings. The passenger will be able to visit this commandobridge but the new commandobridge (where the ship will be operate from) will not be open for passengers. The new commandobridge will be just under the copy of the old bridge. There will be a pool between 1. and 2. funnel ( it can only be seen from the air). Another one will be behind a holdport on the back of Titanic 2. When the holdport pushes away, the pool will be in fresh air. There will be one visuel detail there will tell us that itīs a copy. The helicopterplatform. This platform will be behind the second pool.
GIANT ON 30.000 TONS:
There will be used 15.000 tons of steel to the hull and almost the same to arrangement. That includes the machine on 4000 tons weight. There will be used about 10 tons to the railing of Titanic 2. Because of the steel weld in sted of using riveters the weight of the hull will be reduced with 25-30 procent. When using riveters the plates have to lay over each other. By using modern steel weld the plates can lay close to each other. Titanic 2 will be able to carry 10.000 tons (this includes passengers and crew) The interior of the ship have to follow the requirement of modern safety. That will reduce the quantity of wood and plaster on board. Therefor there not will be skirting board of mahogany on Titanic 2. They will instead be created like a illusion with help from modern phototecnique. On the old Titanic worked over 800 cabinetworkers on the furnitures. Today can painting compensate for a lot of that work. The old Titanic had heavy curtains and soft carpets. This is also supposed to be on Titanic 2. There will be no problems finding approved products in wool. Itīs special the restaurants, loungs and saloons, there will make the passengers feel the whirr of wings of history. In the cabins will look almost the cabins on the old Titanic, but other places it will be different.
CASINO, THEATER AND CINEMA:
It canīt be excluded that there will be examples of the old days games - domino - on Titanic 2, but it primary will be the casinos the passengers go for. There will also be a shoppingarcade, discotek, cinemas and a restaurant of theme (a bit like Planet Hollywood). Olsen Design has suggested the shipowner from South Africa, that there in the restaurant of theme will be a southafrican locomotive on 250 tons weight hanging down from the roof. Steen Nielsen told Patrick and I that there wouldnīt be 1., 2. and 3. class on board (the cabins look all the same) but in the article itīs told that there will be. But the ship will not be build with blind corridors, so in case of emergency all three classes will be equal. If there will be a emergency there will be lightstreaks in the floor which is leading to emergency exits. There will be installed emergencylights and there will be modern alarmsystems on board. The old Titanic was build on Harland & Wolff in Belfast, but they donīt know yet, if Titanic 2 also will be build here or some parts of the new Titanic. It will cost about 500 mill. dollars to build Titanic 2. But itīs not decided what the tickets will cost.