Almost looks like a Springer! 
I suppose the cost saving of construction (Using slab sides) outweigh the fuel running costs with of all those "edges" causing drag.
They are about 10-15% cheaper to build with the hard chine hull Martin and quite a bit quicker to build as well. Fuel costs are getting lower with the new designs of bulbous bow , semi-bulbous stern skeg and new LIPPS propellers and high-efficency kort nozzles. To compare this design to an older steel design of the same length would mean this would need more power to steam at 10 knots than an older design from 30 years ago although burn not much more fuel. Some of the early hard-chine designs were pretty fuel hungry though.
I would also guess that square means a bigger load capacity. And more powerful modern engines make lumpier boats easier to push through the water.
Yes the fishroom in the new boat would be bigger than the older design but when the wooden Fruitful Vine was built she was a whitefish pair trawler so all her catch went in together starting from the aft side of the hold next to the engineroom bulkhead. With prawn trawling you keep the prawns stored forrard ( starting at the foreside of the hold working towards the middle ) and the fish stored aft. This is so they can discharge the prawn catch as soon as they tie up onto the lorries to the factories. The old Fruitful Vine has a 500hp Caterpillar main engine and the new steel one has a Mitsubishi main engine of 650hp but will fish with almost identical gear.
Hi Davie 
Hope things have settled down now.
Yes when I came on to your site some time ago I was surprised at the shape of these boats have become. I take it, it is to do with health and safety, stability and storage area. They also look like they are self righting.
Seaspray
Yes things have finally started to settle down ( I didn't mention on here but my Father passed away on the 29th of August from C.O.P.D. after 40 years of heavy smoking so not a total surprise but still sudden ) thankfully. The safety aspect has driven the design of these new boats because of the restrictions on the amount of days they can fish they have to fish in very bad weather at times and the new designs have 15-25% more reserves of buoyancy than older designs. They do roll faster than a round bilge design however.
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Topic: The changing shapes of fishing vessels (Read 4073 times)