Oldendorff Centenary Book - Flipbook - Page 205
THE FIRST
BULK CARRIER
A new class of vessel emerged in
the 1950s – and Egon Oldendorff
was quick to identify its decisive
competitive advantages.
Egon Oldendorff commissioned his first bulk carrier in 1958. Increased
movements of bulk cargoes of all descriptions but mainly coal, grain and
phosphates had stimulated the design of pure bulk carriers. Flensburger
Schiffbau-Gesellschaft was one of the leading shipbuilders in this field. This
new category of merchant vessels had large unobstructed holds without
tweendecks.
Typically, the ships were given high wing tanks and slanting hopper bilge
tanks connected with the double bottom tanks. Basically, the new bulk carriers
were the modernised versions of the self and easy trimmers designed by
British shipbuilders just before the turn of the century with the intention of
making them more acceptable as colliers. The new ships offered decisive
advantages by having greater water ballast capacities.
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