An Ecuadorian worker caulks a traditional wooden fishing vessel, inserting hemp fiber between planks of the ship's shell, in an artisanal shipyard on the beach in Manta, Ecuador, 8 September 2012. The construction process takes 3-4 months to complete, depending on the ship size and purpose (fish capture methods). Although a wooden boat tends to be more stable on the sea and less expensive to build (up to $0.5 million USD), it needs a maintenance every 2 years, while a fiberglass-made boat,...
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An Ecuadorian worker caulks a traditional wooden fishing vessel, inserting hemp fiber between planks of the ship's shell, in an artisanal shipyard on the beach in Manta, Ecuador, 8 September 2012. The construction process takes 3-4 months to complete, depending on the ship size and purpose (fish capture methods). Although a wooden boat tends to be more stable on the sea and less expensive to build (up to $0.5 million USD), it needs a maintenance every 2 years, while a fiberglass-made boat, costing almost double the wooden one, may serve 5-6 years without any repairs. The shipyard produces 6-8 vessels every year.
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