Slipway, Travel Lift or Beach Grid: Haul-Out Methods Explained

Three methods take a hull out of the water in eastern Indonesia — the marine railway (slipway), the travel lift, and the tidal grid — and which one your vessel can use is decided by hull form, displacement and keel structure long before price enters the conversation. This explainer sets out how each method works, what it stresses in a hull, and which vessels it suits, so the haul-out conversation starts with facts instead of assumptions.

The marine railway: the regional workhorse

A slipway runs a steel cradle on inclined rails into the sea. The vessel floats over the submerged cradle near high water, is centred and shored with timber against the hull, then winched up the rails until she stands clear of the tide. It is robust, proven technology that handles heavy displacement hulls — which is why it remains the standard method for phinisi, steel liveaboards and workboats across Indonesia.

What the method demands of a vessel: a keel line that can take the cradle’s bearing, tolerance for shoring pressure on the planking or plating, and a draft that lets her float over the cradle on the available tide. What it struggles with: very beamy hulls that exceed the shoring spread, fin-keel yachts whose keels concentrate load badly on a flat cradle, and any hull whose underwater shape the slipway crew cannot see — which is why good yards ask for a docking plan or lines drawing before they say yes.

The travel lift: precision that needs infrastructure

A travel lift is a mobile gantry on rubber tyres that drives over a dedicated lifting dock, lowers slings under the hull, and carries the vessel to a hardstand. For yachts and catamarans it is the gentlest method: slings can be positioned against the structure, load is spread predictably, and the vessel can be parked anywhere on the yard rather than occupying rails. The catch in this part of the world is simple availability — a travel lift is a large capital machine that needs a purpose-built pier, and access at useful capacities is far scarcer east of Makassar than owners arriving from marina economies expect. Where a lift of adequate rating is not available in your window, the practical alternatives are slipway (for suitable hulls) or crane lift-out for lighter craft within the rating of mobile cranes — sling placement planned against frames and running gear, never improvised on the quay.

The tidal grid: oldest, simplest, most misunderstood

A beach grid or tidal grid is a levelled hardstanding — timber baulks, concrete or firm sand — where a vessel takes the ground deliberately on a falling tide, work happens during the low-water window, and she floats free on the flood. For quick jobs below the waterline on a strongly built, flat-floored hull — a propeller change, a transducer, an inspection, emergency plating — a grid can be the fastest and cheapest answer available, and traditional Indonesian craft have used the method for generations.

Its limits are absolute, though. The hull must be able to stand on its own bottom or against legs without damage; the work window is only as long as the low tide; and jobs that cannot finish in that window leave the boat committed to another cycle. Fin-keel yachts, delicate GRP hulls and anything with vulnerable appendages should not take the ground without expert assessment.

One planning note applies to all grid work: the tide table is the contract. Materials, tools and crew must be staged before the water leaves, because nothing arrives mid-window, and the returning flood does not negotiate.

Matching method to vessel: the quick table in words

• Phinisi and heavy timber hulls — slipway, almost always; grid acceptable for short tidal-window jobs.
• Steel liveaboards and workboats — slipway as standard; grid for emergency bottom access; travel lift rarely available at their weight.
• GRP motor yachts and sailing yachts — travel lift where one of adequate rating exists; slipway possible with a proper docking plan; grid only with expert judgement.
• Catamarans — travel lift or crane by strong preference; their beam defeats most cradles and their bridgedecks complicate shoring.
• Tenders, skiffs and light craft — crane or trailer lift-out, planned against the frames.

Booking the right method from Raja Ampat

For vessels working Raja Ampat, all of these methods are accessed through Sorong, and the choice interacts with slot availability, tide tables and the work list — a paint scheme wants maximum days on the hard, while a shaft inspection may fit a tidal window. The haul-out and docking coordination desk matches hull to method and books the window; the practical preparation that follows is covered in the pre-docking checklist for a Sorong haul-out, and the location-specific facts in the guide to where vessels actually haul out in Sorong. Send LOA, beam, draft, displacement and hull material with your first message and the method conversation takes minutes instead of days.

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Email: sales@komodoluxury.com

Docking coordination contracts are issued by PT Komodo Galangan Nusantara. All quotations are stated in USD.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a slipway and a travel lift?

A slipway winches the vessel up rails on a cradle she floats onto at high water; a travel lift carries her in slings from a lifting dock to a hardstand. The slipway suits heavy displacement hulls; the lift suits yachts and catamarans where one of adequate rating exists.

Can a catamaran be hauled on a slipway?

Usually not comfortably — beam exceeds most cradle and shoring arrangements, and the bridgedeck complicates support. Travel lift or planned crane lift is the standard answer for multihulls.

Is drying out on a tidal grid safe for my boat?

For strongly built, flat-floored hulls with expert assessment, yes — it is a traditional and efficient method for short jobs. For fin-keel yachts and delicate hulls it risks real damage and needs specific advice first.

What information does a yard need before agreeing to haul my vessel?

LOA, beam, draft, displacement, hull material and ideally a docking plan or lines drawing. These decide cradle fit, tide windows and shoring, and sending them up front prevents a vessel being turned away at the cradle.