MgT HG 2e Crew for Back-up JD, MD, PP, etc.

[snrdg121408]

Morning PST,

Are the crew requirements for back up maneuver drives, jump drives and power plants the same as for the primary systems?

Do the Reaction Drives, Solar Sails, Solar Panels, Emergency Power, Collector, High Efficiency Batteries,and any other Back-up system require crew?

 

[AnotherDilbert]

Engineering crew is "1 per 35 tons of drives and power plant", any drives or power plants presumably.

I don't think batteries needs crew.

 

[snrdg121408]

Hello AnotherDilbert,

Engineering crew is "1 per 35 tons of drives and power plant", any drives or power plants presumably.

I don't think batteries needs crew.

Thank you for reply. None of the subs or the tender that I was stationed had full crew dedicated to the back-up systems like the emergency diesel when the main plant went down. I have noticed on the shows concerning ships I've seen they do not appear to have extra crew to operate back-up systems.

I do have to agree that there probably aren't any crew dedicated to the batteries, but I wanted to cover all the items.

 

[DivineWrath]

I think the crew numbers are recommendations. The basic questions you should be asking are: how much stress (like combat or general danger) is your vessel expected to be in and how much crew does it take to make sure the vessel performs well in those situations.

I don't think your backup systems needs a dedicated crew. I think its safe to assume that primary systems are larger than backups, so the manpower used by the primaries should be more than enough for backup systems.

I think non-standard or exotic systems will probably require crew if they are intended to be primary systems. Reaction drives, yes. Collectors, maybe. (Better safer than sorry?). Solar sails, no? (Can engineers do anything for solar sails?).

 

[AnotherDilbert]

I think the crew numbers are recommendations.

Agreed.

 

[DivineWrath]

I suddenly have a question. What happens if you are understaffed? Engineering, maintenance, or other crew roles? I'm talking big ships where they might otherwise have hundreds or thousands of crew.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

I suddenly have a question. What happens if you are understaffed? Engineering, maintenance, or other crew roles? I'm talking big ships where they might otherwise have hundreds or thousands of crew.

Up to the Referee. Things break down. Situations that should be routine become crisis. If no-one keeps an eye on the sensors or comms, things will de missed, such as approaching pirates or customs inspections.

 

[Condottiere]

You only need to supervise what happens to be running; if you bring the backups online at the same time, you'll need personnel to keep an eye on that as well.

Thirty five tonnes just happens to be a generic number, since you have to assume it's actually three watches, and one guy can keep an eye on one hundred plussish tonnes of engineering that's running; then you could shuffle crew between the manoeuvre and jump drives.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

You only need to supervise what happens to be running; if you bring the backups online at the same time, you'll need personnel to keep an eye on that as well.

I disagree, complex machinery that has not been maintained and tested regularly cannot be expected to work in an emergency.

 

[Condottiere]

You fire them up occasionally to see if anything needs Double You Dee Forty.

If you're going into combat, you could idle them.

 

[Reynard]

Back ups are not in need of regular diagnostics and maintenance if they are not fully functioning. There could be given a regular but limited diagnostic check as part of normal ship's duties to ensure systems are as usual otherwise they should be fit and ready. When monthly or yearly maintenance is performed, everything is given attention.

 

[snrdg121408]

Hello DivineWrath,

I think the crew numbers are recommendations. The basic questions you should be asking are: how much stress (like combat or general danger) is your vessel expected to be in and how much crew does it take to make sure the vessel performs well in those situations.

I don't think your backup systems needs a dedicated crew. I think its safe to assume that primary systems are larger than backups, so the manpower used by the primaries should be more than enough for backup systems.

I think non-standard or exotic systems will probably require crew if they are intended to be primary systems. Reaction drives, yes. Collectors, maybe. (Better safer than sorry?). Solar sails, no? (Can engineers do anything for solar sails?).

Solar sails are similar to sails used in sailing. In the early days of sail crew where needed to furl and unfurl the sails. Today some sailboats have mechanisms that can furl and unfurl them with a push of a button of flip of a switch. However, when the mechanism fails a crew member still has to do the job. There is also the fun part of making repairs to the sails.

A ship that depends on solar sails has a mechanism that furls and unfurls them when the damn thing breaks some one has to be available to fix the problem.

 

[snrdg121408]

Hello DivienWrath,

I suddenly have a question. What happens if you are understaffed? Engineering, maintenance, or other crew roles? I'm talking big ships where they might otherwise have hundreds or thousands of crew.

You keep your fingers crossed and hope nothing SERIOUS goes wrong. Unfortunately, Murphy always shows up.

 

[snrdg121408]

Hello Condottiere,

You only need to supervise what happens to be running; if you bring the backups online at the same time, you'll need personnel to keep an eye on that as well.

Thirty five tonnes just happens to be a generic number, since you have to assume it's actually three watches, and one guy can keep an eye on one hundred plussish tonnes of engineering that's running; then you could shuffle crew between the manoeuvre and jump drives.

The Ship's computer is in theory monitoring all the systems then there are the crew stations that are monitoring specific systems. So there is a possibility that a single individual could stand an 8 hour watch.

 

[steve98052]

You only need to supervise what happens to be running; if you bring the backups online at the same time, you'll need personnel to keep an eye on that as well.

Machinery ages partially due to use, partially due to time, and sometimes due to disuse. Use is obvious. Age is things like dirt and vermin getting into the machinery. And disuse can cause problems like lubricants getting sticky because they're not circulating.

I heard a report on NPR about the server farms in Quincy Washington. They're there because of reliable, inexpensive electricity. Although they're never had a failure of the utility power, they have diesel generators as backups. They turn them on regularly -- and even the periodic test runs are enough to annoy residents with the diesel exhaust.

Thirty five tonnes just happens to be a generic number, since you have to assume it's actually three watches, and one guy can keep an eye on one hundred plussish tonnes of engineering that's running; then you could shuffle crew between the manoeuvre and jump drives.

A scout ship is designed to be usable with a suitable solo crew member, though it's draining. Possible doesn't mean desirable.

 

[Condottiere]

I gonna speculate the Suleiman class scout is designed like an Kalashnikov Forty Seven.