Nagroc-Class Freighter
| Name: | Nagroc-Class |
|---|---|
| Type: | Large Bulk Freighter |
| Builders: | Independent Shipwrights, Inc., Various |
| Operators: | Various, Umbrian Republic Merchant Marine |
| Completed: | 974 (Merchante Marine); Unknown number of private deliveries |
| Lost: | 165 (Merchant Marine); Unknown number of private losses |
| Length: | 742 m |
| Width: | 270 m |
| Height: | 169 m |
| Power Supply: | 2x Orvieto Heavy Industries F6r Fusion Powerplants |
| Sub - Light Propulsion | 2 Fulmin Propulsion Bf-Series Ion Engines (Primary); 2 x Fulmin Propulsion 3Mu Ion Engine Nacelles (Secondary) |
| Supra-Light Propulsion: | 1 x SSE 24-f supra-luminal drive core |
| Endurance: | Fuel for 48 lightspeed jumps, 12 months of provisions for the crew. |
| Crew: | 46 Officers, 372 contractors (Merchant Marine) |
| Sensors: | 2 x Cianave Systems 64r Passive Sensor Arrays |
| Armament: | None (Merchant Marine); Aftermarket kits for private users |
| Armor | None (Merchant Marine); Aftermarket kits for private users |
| Cargo Capacity: | 150000 Tonnes (In Gravity); 250000 Tonnes (In Vacuum) |
A relative newcomer to the trade fleets plying the star lanes between the Republic's scattered colonies, the Nagroc class would prove to be a huge commercial success, elevating its manufacturer, Independent Shipyards, Inc., from industry laggard to an important player in Umbria's shipping industry.
At over seven hundred meters long, the Nagroc could carry over a quarter of a million tonnes of cargo in its modular holds, though it lacked sufficient power to reach orbit when fully loaded within a planetary gravity well. This weakness proved immaterial as most cargo transfers occur in the vacuum of space, and the freighter's customizability more than made up for this minor drawback.
Orders for the Nagroc started to pour in from the major shipping companies, and Independent Shipwrights soon found that they couldn't keep up with the pace of demand. Sensing that their ability to deliver in a timely fashion was key to the model's continued success, they made the decision to license production to a number of smaller shipyards.
This strategy would prove to be a boon to business, as it pushed the operational burden to their license partners while simultaneously giving them a much wider network of local production to meet specific astrographical needs.
While the decision to license the model greatly increased the number of new units entering service, it did little to alleviate some of the practical challenges associated with constructing a ship of the Nagroc's size. Most smaller yards were much more adept at building ships in the two to three hundred meter range. Only a handful of builders had slips that were the necessary size, and most were invariably controlled by industry giants who were deliberately excluded from Independent's licensing scheme.
This would lead to further complications. Each yard had to adapt their own unique process for manufacturing the ships, and soon deliveries began to fall behind. Pressure began to build on the Nagroc's designers, as the larger shipyards began to whisper of unfair trade practices and hype Independent's inability to deliver.
Fate would intervene for the class however, as the arrival of the Ascomanni would dramatically increase the need for cargo ships, while slowly whittling down available tonnage through losses to the new alien menace.
Grants for expanding shipbuilding facilities and new contracts to support the Republic's Merchant Marine would soon appear. The yards themselves would begin to implement lessons learned from the first series of ships completed, driving efficiency and speed to delivery.
Other enterprising firms would develop aftermarket modification kits for the class, which could be installed in a relatively unsophisticated repair yard in the span of a few days. These included increasing the number of power plants, the addition of magnetic clamps for attaching cargo containers, and even adding armor and weaponry to allow the vessels to defend themselves on the dangerous runs to the front.
The Nagroc would soon become ubiquitous sights amongst the planets of the Frontier, with over nine hundred produced for the Merchant Marine alone. Hundreds more were operated by private firms, and by the time the Battle of Varese had concluded, it was the most numerous large freighter type in the Republic.