Marine Structural Designer

Boats are amazing. Not just because they zoom across the lake like a high-speed carnival ride, or because they can carry thousands of people from one place to another, but because they do it all while floating on water. Passengers on ferries and cruise ships might even forget they are afloat while suntanning, eating four-course meals, and sleeping like a baby.

As a Marine Structural Designer, you’re the one thrill-seekers and travelers can thank for conceptualizing these wonderful vessels. Your Marine Structural Designer talents don’t stop with boats, yachts, submarines, barges, and tugs though. You also design just about anything a boat touches, from piers to docks to buoys when you’re a Marine Structural Designer.

For each project, you begin by understanding the needs of the owner, Architect, or Engineer working on the project. What is the capacity? What are the water levels during the different tides? What function will it serve?

With this information, you concentrate on the structural components of the design. Although your work is seldom visible in the finished project, it is of utmost importance. You concentrate on pivotal elements, such as support beams, bulkheads, columns, hulls, and bracings.

You use computer-aided design software to create the design and make adjustments throughout the project. You’re also in constant contact with the rest of the design team, so this job uses all your teamwork and communication skills.