Machinery shock and quieting checks

HMAS Diamantina's triple-expansion machinery demonstrates that an older steam plant is simple only in comparison with still more complicated machinery. Its bearings and interacting components can be misbuilt or disturbed by maneuver and explosive shock. A long production run lets experienced inspectors recognize what looks wrong, but most modern warship classes are too small for that familiarity to replace trials. A damaged computer shows how an impact can propagate beyond the visibly struck component into electronics elsewhere in a system. Machinery and computers are therefore mounted or rafted to absorb vibration, and testing must confirm that the isolators have not locked solid. Effective rafting supports both shock survival and acoustic quieting.