What's Up Dock

A dock is an area of water found between two piersDocks have been around for as long as man has
or alongside a pier. Docks are also used to build orbeen coursing the seas of the world. In the United
repair ships and to load and unload commercial shipsKingdom, for example, docks such as Wollwich and
and ferries.Deptford were built on the River Thames in 1512 and
A dockyard is one or more docks and their1513.
structures. Docks can be emptied of water andOther notable docks include the River Mersey, River
turned into dry docks. All parts of a ship can then beTyne, River Wear and River Clyde. Sir Alfred Yarrow
inspected and repaired here.established his yard by the Thames in London's
In everyday American English, the words dock andDocklands in the late 19th century before moving it
pier are synonymous - any man made structure innorthwards to the banks of the Clyde at Scotstoun
the water which people can be on.(1906-08).
However, strictly speaking, a pier is generally used toOther famous UK docks include the Harland and
refer to structures that were intended only forWolff yard in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where the
industrial use, such as seafood processing or shipping,Titanic was launched, and the naval dockyard at
and more recently for cruise ships.Chatham, England on the Medway in north Kent.
Docks, technically speaking, are used for otherAfter a ship's useful life is over, it makes one final
purposes other than those just mentioned. The termvoyage to a shipbreaking yard. Often times this is
for the water area between piers is slip.one the shipyards found in South Asia.
Dockyards and shipyards are places in which shipsHistorically speaking, shipbreaking was carried on in a
can be built or repaired. These can be yachts, militarydrydock in developed countries. High wages and
vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passengerenvironmental regulations; however, have resulted in
ships.movement of the industry to newly developing
Dockyards are usually associated more with theregions.
maintenance, and repair as compared to a shipyardHistorically, ships were the first items to be produced
which is associated with the initial building of a ship.in a factory. The Venice Arsenal in Italy was known
However, the terms are routinely usedfor its early version of the assembly line and was
interchangeably. This is partly due to the evolution ofable to produce one ship per day. This was even
the use of dockyards and shipyards.before the Industrial Revolution in the 1900's. At its
Countries such as South Korea, Japan and China arepeak, the Arsenal employed more than 16,000
known for having big ship building industries. The shipworkers and craftsmen.
building industry tends to be more fragmented inDocks have always been the lifeblood of
Europe than in Asia.inter-country trade and migration. Before the advent
Europe has more shipbuilding companies than Asia,of modern air travel, cities with docks became rich
but these companies tend to be smaller than theirbecause of the trade they generated.
Asian counterparts.Today, sea travel and trade remain strong. Dock still
The ship builders found in the United States areserve the same purpose as they had all these years.
usually privately owned. The largest shipbuilder in theAlthough, they are no longer connected to the
States is Northrop Grumman, a multi-billion dollarromantic trade dreams of the 1600's, they still
defense contractor. The publicly owned shipyards inprovide livelihood and trade to the many countries
the US are Naval facilities providing basing, supportthat employ sea trade.
and repair.