Iron, steel, and the shipyard land trap

The move from composite construction to iron and then steel did more than substitute one hull material for another. Naval architects had to relearn how the materials behaved and alter hull shaping to use metal efficiently. Shipyards could initially regard their large timber-seasoning areas as obsolete and sell the land. Metalworking then demanded new facilities and space of its own, leaving yards that had pursued quick land savings unable to adapt. An apparently rational efficiency decision could therefore weaken long-term shipbuilding capacity.