shipwright
Shipwrights build and repair small type of water vessels from pleasure craft to naval vessels. They prepare preliminary sketches and create templates. They use hand and power tools to construct smaller boat themselves or supervise a team of shipbuilders. They also construct cradles and slipways for the ship’s construction, transportation, launching and slipping. Depending on the vessels, they might work with different materials such as metal, wood, fibreglass, aluminium etc.
shipwright shipwrights build and repair small type of water vessels from pleasure craft to naval vessels. They prepare preliminary sketches and create templates. They use hand and power tools to construct smaller boat themselves or supervise a team of shipbuilders. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include engineering principles, mechanics of vessels, design drawings, engineering processes, mechanics.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £37,058 a year for Metal plate workers, smiths, moulders and related occupations (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 5212). ONS rates this estimate acceptable: it rests on a small sample, so treat it as a rough guide. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Craft and related trades workers” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only shipwright, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 7. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Mechanical
- Mathematics
- Building and Construction
- Education and Training
- Engineering and Technology
- Public Safety and Security
- English Language
- Design
What you'd actually do
- Replace defective parts of machine, or adjust clearances and alignment of moving parts.
- Align machines or equipment, using hoists, jacks, hand tools, squares, rules, micrometers, lasers, or plumb bobs.
- Insert shims, adjust tension on nuts and bolts, or position parts, using hand tools and measuring instruments, to set specified clearances between moving and stationary parts.
- Signal crane operator to lower basic assembly units to bedplate, and align unit to centerline.
- Conduct preventative maintenance and repair, and lubricate machines and equipment.
- Assemble and install equipment, using hand tools and power tools.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does shipwright do?
Shipwrights build and repair small type of water vessels from pleasure craft to naval vessels. They prepare preliminary sketches and create templates. They use hand and power tools to construct smaller boat themselves or supervise a team of shipbuilders. They also construct cradles and slipways for the ship’s construction, transportation, launching and slipping. Depending on the vessels, they might work with different materials such as metal, wood, fibreglass, aluminium etc.
What skills does shipwright need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include engineering principles, mechanics of vessels, design drawings, engineering processes, mechanics, prepare pieces for joining. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace shipwright?
Our AI-durability model gives shipwright a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.