Reference
Ultramax
A more efficient Supramax. What it carries, how it is built and the limits that define the class.
- Typical deadweight
- Typically about 60,000–65,999 DWT
- Length overall
- Typically about 200 m
- Beam
- About 32.24 m
- Defining constraint
- Geared, built to the same port acceptability as Supramax
- Cargo gear
- Geared, typically four cranes of 30 to 35 tonnes
- Typical trade
- Worldwide
- Typical draught
- About 13 m
- Cargo holds
- 5
Size class names such as Handysize, Supramax and Capesize are commercial conventions rather than formal standards, and the deadweight bands attached to them vary between brokers, exchanges and shipowners. The canal and berth limits quoted below are published dimensions and are exact; the deadweight ranges are indicative.
About Ultramax vessels
The current evolution of the geared bulker: more deadweight than a Supramax on much the same dimensions, with better fuel efficiency per tonne carried.
Ultramax designs came out of the drive for lower fuel consumption after the 2008 downturn, using improved hull forms and more efficient machinery to carry more cargo for less fuel.
It has become the default choice for newbuilding in the geared segment, gradually displacing Supramax as the standard size ordered.
What it carries
How it is built
- A single-deck hull divided into large cargo holds, closed by weathertight steel hatch covers that roll or fold clear for grab and conveyor work.
- Ballast tanks in the double bottom and in the topside and hopper wings, which shape the hold and let the cargo self-trim as it settles.
- Corrugated transverse bulkheads between holds, stiff enough to take the pressure of a dense cargo without intermediate framing inside the space.
- Machinery and accommodation aft, leaving the full forward length of the ship for cargo.
- On geared ships, deck cranes or derricks between the hatches so the vessel can work in ports with no shore equipment.
Why it is used
- The cheapest way to move a tonne of dry commodity, because the cargo needs no packaging, unitisation or securing.
- Loading and discharge rates are very high where shore equipment is good — grabs, conveyors and shiploaders move thousands of tonnes an hour.
- Geared ships can trade almost anywhere, including ports with no cranes of their own.
- Hold arrangements are flexible enough to carry several parcels of different commodities on one voyage.
What to check before fixing
- Dense cargoes such as iron ore load the structure heavily and are subject to strict loading sequences to avoid overstressing the hull.
- Cargoes that can liquefy — some ore concentrates and fines — must be checked against their transportable moisture limit before loading.
- Draft and air draft govern which berths and waterways a ship can use, and both change with the season and the fresh-water allowance.
Track the ship, not just the box
Follow any vessel and its schedule, with live position, port calls and ETAs across the world fleet.