Radiance of the Seas – lifeboat covers, games deck barriers, stair towers
The lifeboats on the sister ships Radiance of the Seas and Brilliance of the Seas have covers made from curved GRP sandwich panels. The total area of the covers on each ship amounts to approx. 980 m².
The rigid sandwich construction rendered stiffening ribs unnecessary. Design methods backed up by CAD plus CNC manufacturing techniques also simplified the individual adaptation of the individual panels to the sloping and curved edges as well as the tolerances of the steelwork installed by the shipbuilders. All the panels are bonded to the steel structure with a high-performance adhesive.
The advantageous design options offered by fibre-reinforced plastic can be seen in the two structures mounted on the open leisure and sport decks of both ships.
The so-called Viking Tubes curve down gracefully from the bulwark of one deck to the deck below. The tube has a diameter of 500 mm and a total length of about 9 m and was transferred directly from the architect's CAD model to the CNC-milled moulds.
The "masts" placed in an arc to mark the limit of the games deck were joined together with a decorative transverse beam which emphasizes the curving line of masts and also incorporates concealed lighting. The twin-walled beam is made up of push-fit segments.
Lightweight construction on the upper decks and high corrosion resistance are easy to combine when using composite materials, particularly around the pool landscapes. The stair tower shown here provides an attractive "packaging" for the massive start platform and the access to the water slide.
| Client | Meyer-Werft |
|---|---|
| Reederei | Royal Caribbean International |
| Year | 2000–2002 |
| Superstructures | lifeboat covers, Viking tubes, games deck barriers, stair towers for water slide |