Industry Solutions · Shipbuilding & Marine

Heavy Plate Machines for Shipbuilding & Marine Fabrication

Hull plates, bulkheads and stiffeners — heavy-duty cutting, rolling and bending for shipyards.

Step 1Cutting & Blanking
Step 2Bending & Forming
Step 3Welding & Finishing
Step 4Automation & Tooling

Shipbuilding Basics

How Shipbuilding & Marine Are Made

Ships are built from steel plate, typically 6–50 mm thick, plus aluminum for superstructures and workboats. Plates are sheared, plasma or laser cut, rolled into curved hull sections on 3- or 4-roll plate rolling machines, bent into brackets and profiles on heavy-duty press brakes, and welded into blocks.

Shipyards need large capacities — long beds, high tonnage and thick-plate rolling — together with accurate forming so blocks fit together with minimal rework.

Typical Parts & Materials

Hull & shell platesSingle and double curvatureSteel plate 8–40 mm
Bulkheads & decksLarge flat panels with stiffenersSteel plate 6–20 mm
Brackets & kneesFlanged platesSteel plate 8–25 mm
Stiffeners & framesCurved angles and bulb profilesSteel profiles
SuperstructuresLight panels and doorsAluminum / steel 4–10 mm

Manufacturing Process

From Flat Sheet to Finished Part

Select a stage to see what happens and which HARSLE machines do the work.

Step 1Shipbuilding & Marine

Cutting & Blanking

Heavy guillotine shears and plasma or laser cutting machines produce plate blanks; ironworkers cut and punch profiles.

Shearing Machine

43 models in the HARSLE range.

Plasma Cutting Machine

1 models in the HARSLE range.

Laser Cutting Machine

60 models in the HARSLE range.

Ironworker

6 models in the HARSLE range.

Recommended Machines

Machines for Shipbuilding & Marine

Live from the HARSLE product range — models suited to shipbuilding are listed first.

View all 43 Shearing Machine models

Challenges & Solutions

What Matters in Shipbuilding

Thick, large plates
Heavy guillotine shears, 4-roll rolling machines and MegaBend press brakes handle thick, long plate.
Accurate curvature
CNC 4-roll machines pre-bend both ends and repeat radii so hull blocks fit.
Long parts
Tandem (SyncBend) press brakes bend long stiffeners and brackets in one stroke.
Edge quality for welding
Clean cuts and deburred edges reduce weld preparation time.

Automate Bending

Panel Bender for Shipbuilding

A HARSLE panel bender clamps the sheet flat and forms all four sides in one cycle with universal tooling — ideal for the repeat panels, doors and boxes found in shipbuilding & marine.

Bending length 1400–3000 mm (AutoBend)
0–180° bending angle, 0.2 s per bend
Minimal operator skill, fast changeovers

Explore panel benders

Global Footprint

Shipments & Customer Stories

Every shipment and customer story HARSLE publishes appears here automatically. Filter by machine or country.

1,209Shipments published
118Destination countries
118Customer stories
LiveUpdated as we ship

All 1,209 shipments

Knowledge Center

Shipbuilding Guides

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about machines and processes for shipbuilding & marine.

Ask our engineers

Which machines does a shipyard need for plate work?

Heavy guillotine shears or plasma cutting for blanks, 3- or 4-roll plate rolling machines for hull plates, heavy-duty or tandem press brakes for brackets and profiles, and hydraulic presses for straightening and flanging.

3-roll or 4-roll rolling machine for hull plates?

A 4-roll machine clamps the plate and pre-bends both ends in one pass, giving more accurate curvature and less flat end on thick plate; 3-roll machines are more economical for general rolling.

How thick can a HARSLE rolling machine roll?

HARSLE QuadRoll 4-roll machines handle plates up to about 200 mm depending on width and material; contact HARSLE with your plate size for an exact model.