Introduces the analysis of forces and moments in static equilibrium: free-body diagrams, trusses, frames, distributed loads, centroids, friction and internal forces. Marine examples are used throughout, and the loading conditions treated include hydrostatic pressure, buoyancy and wave force.
The course establishes the analytical habits the rest of the degree assumes. Students are expected to draw a correct free-body diagram before writing an equation, and assessment reflects this.
A marine structure differs from a terrestrial one principally in that its loading is dynamic, corrosive and only statistically known. The course is static by design, and identifies at each stage which of its assumptions the later courses will remove.