Deck machinery serves as a ship’s equivalent of a Swiss Army knife, offering a variety of sorts and functions to meet different needs. Capstans and mooring systems maintain the ship firmly fastened to the dock, while winches and windlasses do the hard lifting when it comes to anchors and towing. You can probably guess what anchoring systems do. Not to be overlooked are the reliable davits and lifeboat handling gear, which are indispensable for those “just in case” scenarios. Other deck machinery, such as cranes for handling containers or hose handling systems for moving liquids, is also useful for cargo operations.