Nina Savijoki: an architect for her time

“The idea that men will be more suited to naval architecture as they are generally more spatially capable is a little outdated: while some men might be better at thinking in three dimensions, it’s not so relevant in these days of CAD design tools where you can build up a virtual space and investigate it.”

“In fact I’d say women have some characteristics that are ideal for ship design: generally we are used to listening to everyone, getting to the bottom of what’s wanted and trying to work out a happy compromise. With engineering it’s the same: you have to listen, establish the drivers, and find those solutions that make the most of everything.”

Coming from a seafaring family, she admits at the age of 20 she was talked out of actually becoming a crew member by her father: it wasn’t just a matter of being ‘old-fashioned’ she says: “He quite wisely pointed out that it didn’t matter how organised I was, a seagoing career and any ideas I had of being a mother just didn’t mix,” one would always be at the cost of the other. “The compromise was studying naval architecture – and it meant I had an opinion about ship design to bring to the kitchen table arguments with my father and my brother.”

Just before graduating she started working in shipyard in Helsinki on deck outfitting new cruise vessels, often three at a time and each at a different stage of construction. “Workmen would come over, lean pieces of ship against my desk – and ask me what on earth I had done,” she said, adding that sorting it out provided very good training for a future as a naval architect.

However as soon as Deltamarin gave her the chance to handle a complete design she jumped at it: “Every naval architect really wants to be able to master the entire concept because that’s where it all starts. After that’s been finalised, after the deal with the yard is done, it’s actually then really hard to change anything significant because money is already being allocated and the timetable’s already fixed: so if you want to make a difference to how the vessel will perform, you have to do in the concept phase.”

But seeing through her first large project from start to finish was probably the biggest eye opener. Following an Arctic container vessel from initial work in Finland to the detailed design in Romania and the prototype build in Germany “was really important… I had to learn a lot about each phase of the design chain”.

On the whole, she remains fond of longer projects “as it means getting to know the different personalities, even the character of the ship itself” she says. Interestingly, assignments in both Romania and Vietnam saw her working alongside female senior engineers for the first time; although these are admittedly regimes with a difficult past, she says these countries prove that more could be made of women’s design and development talents.

These long projects have also been an eye opener in other ways. Working at the concept phase alone is a little like outlining a sketch she explains: “You can leave some of the details out and assume someone else will take care of them.” However being involved on one ship for a long period gives these details time to return to haunt you. She admits: “A number of times I was confronted by decisions I’d made earlier – only to wonder what I could have been thinking…”

However, she adds the experience is valuable for shaping an efficient build and it is one she recommends for every naval architect: “When you go back to being involved in concept designs, you really understand what it will mean for the person who will have to work out how to actually install it.”

She also believes it would be useful if designers could go to sea for short while in order to understand how a ship is actually operated – mostly as a ‘reality check’. Naval architects may get carried away “with some very nice features that look interesting on the design table” she says, “but these may not actually be that relevant”.

It’s not all down to the naval architects: “The owner sets a service speed early on in the project, maybe thinking that 18 kn is a nice round number. So we focus heavily on that 18 kn optimisation. But when you look at it, it turns out that the ship is actually driving 16 kn or 20 kn but not actually hitting 18 kn for any length of time at all. It would be much better to get this right from the start – especially now owners are aware that they have to specify the vessel much more accurately in order to build in the necessary efficiencies for the real trade.”

Nina has her favourites, and while she’s been involved with extremely sophisticated cruise ships like the Carnival Spirit class (under build during her time in Helsinki), she admits to an enduring love of ro-pax designs “as they are always tailor-made” – and unlike cruise, it can be handled by a single team.

This gives them added interest: “There’s scale, route, and all the operational variables including environmental legislation to consider.” Alongside this engine loads tend to be varied, embarking and disembarking needs to be fast, while at the same time, the passenger areas are often “almost cruise standard” on the bigger ro-pax ships.

Complex, certainly. But she adds, there’s deep satisfaction “in tying all these things together into one comprehensive form”.

By Stevie Knight