Causes of the decline in British merchant ship-building and marine engineering

Britain's share of world ship-building has declined catastrophically during the twentieth century. Successive committees of enquiry have attributed this to a loss of competitiveness deriving both from poor production methods and laggardly innovation. An examination of innovation in ship design and construction and in marine propulsion highlights the declining British contribution in these fields. The conservative attitude adopted at various times by the Royal Navy together with restrictive arrangements in engine design and building seem to have been central in this. Additionally, few graduate engineers have been recruited either into management or into research, development, and design. For the future, a co-ordinated policy on research together with greater specialization in markets should be sought.