For most of us, the word “camel,” brings to mind a large-lipped, humped-back ungulate. A camel has one hump (dromedary) or two humps (Bactrian), which store fat that can be metabolized into food and water. Their ability to adapt to a harsh environment and carry up to 500 lbs. earned the animals the tag “ships of the desert.”
The nomenclature also made it into the air when the World War I British single-seat biplane fighter aircraft was deemed the Sopwith Camel. The Sopwith Camel was introduced to the Western Front in 1917 and was later immortalized by the Peanuts character Snoopy, who fought imaginary battles aboard the doghouse he nicknamed the Sopwith Camel.
It's in water, though, where camels have continued to resurface. Dutchman Meeuwis Meindertsz designed the first camels in 1690 to allow large merchant ships to cross the shallow banks that barred Amsterdam’s harbor from the open sea. The city carpenter built large pontoons and fastened them to the sides of big ships. When pumped dry, the pontoons raised the ships by nearly 6.5 ft. Meindertsz’ camels were used for more than a century before man made canals made them obsolete.
Fast forward to 2009. The US Navy’s quest for a one-size-fits-all camel - or float that serves as a fender between a vessel and a pier - that could help reduce inventory and maintenance, save costs, improve operational efficiency and enhance support between bases led to Dayton, Ohio. The Composite Advantage team developed a universal Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composite camel that can berth submarines of all classes yet meet Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) requirements for energy absorption, stability and long service life. In 2010, Composite Advantage installed the first set of FRP camels at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Connecticut. The camels demonstrated their ability to protect the hull underneath the waterline from potential damage. We then built and installed two more sets for the submarine base in 2011. The camels are 36 ft. long, 18 ft. high with a stand-off depth of 17 ft. and a structural weight of 70,000 lb.
We've since fabricated and installed 15 sets of FRP submarine camels, which led to the development of FRP camels for the Navy’s aircraft carriers. Installed in 2017, the camels weigh 235,000 lb. and can transfer loads from the ship to the pier or wharf. The ship side of the camel features a fender system comprised of UHMW-PE facings on FRP panels with high crushing strength. Multiple internal shear panels transfer load to the backside of the camel for reaction to the wharf. Long edge panels complete the module and provide a bonding surface for the addition of more modules. Each module has an open bottom box design to accommodate wave motion. Five modules were bonded and bolted together to create the set installed at Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, Florida.
So if you ever happen to find yourself aboard a four-legged camel, the side to side swaying motion might just bring to mind the feel of waves and a camel of a different sort.
