Is it Really Impossible to Design Safe Ships?

The reasons for the actual unsatisfactory state of the art of safety at sea are examined from a critical point of view with regard to the hydrodynamic aspects, i.e. those connected with capsizing, sinking or broaching. It appears that it is necessary to adopt an approach based on Reliability or Total Quality, possibly involving both the hydrodynamic and the structural aspects. Since this requires a detailed analysis of transient ship motions, the program can be accomplished by developing a fully nonlinear approach to ship safety based on time domain simulation of ship motions at sea including damage and sloshing of liquid in containers.