INTERIOR OUTFITTING
COVID-19 INFLUENCING PASSENGER VESSEL DESIGN
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By Eric Haun
ot long ago, at the start of 2020, the market for passenger vessel construction was booming, with record orders rolling in across the size spectrum, from small passenger vessels all the way up to the world’s largest mega cruise liners. But then passenger vessels of all types and sizes began to empty out as COVID-19 spread. A large number of ferries were taken out of service or left operating with drastically reduced ridership (or in some cases, none at all) while the cruise industry—a related but separate species—was brought to a virtual standstill. The new construction business that was so strong quickly dried up. Many existing vessel orders were shelved or scrapped altogether, and the once steady stream of new orders was reduced to something less than a trickle. Now, as travel and transit restrictions begin to ease in some locations, the passenger vessel industry is plotting for its eventual return to full service, complete with health and safety adjustments suited to the new coronavirus world. While the timing of any significant restart remains uncertain, the fact that safe operations will require a host of procedure and protocol changes is a given. Even design changes, especially to vessel interiors and onboard public spaces, are expected to come about. Tomas Tillberg, a managing partner at Tomas Tillberg 40 MN
Design International, noted that even in the past, before COVID-19, there were high-profile cases of illnesses on passenger ships that led to an increased focus on sanitation measures on board as well as new rules and regulations for things such as hand washing and dining arrangements. Of course, a strong focus on health and safety is nothing new for the passenger vessel industry. The current pandemic has simply amplified it as operators and designers hash out new solutions to the current situation. “Now what we see occurring is companies will come up with new ideas and new materials and new design solutions that will be more cutting-edge in this aspect. And the companies that are on the forefront of that have a lot to gain,” Tillberg said. Tillberg’s Florida-based company specializes in the design of passenger vessels. Carlos Reyes, the firm’s other managing partner, said the company is hard at work developing a number of solutions that will, first and foremost, keep passengers safe, but also help them to feel safe and comfortable on board. “The selection of a given cruise line by the customer is not going to be driven only by the itinerary or the food, entertainment or the price; it’s going to be heavily driven by at what point you feel safe bringing your family on board,” Reyes said. October 2020
