A large cleat is not proof of a strong berth. The load path runs from line -> cleat -> bolts -> backing/frame -> pontoon -> pile/anchor system.
Buyer inputs
- vessel type and displacement
- windage
- expected storm mooring condition
- number and position of lines
- fender contact height
- vessel movement envelope
Fender systems
- rubber D-section
- foam
- carpeted rubbing strip
- timber wale
- vertical fender pile
- proprietary marina extrusion
For RIBs and high-finish yachts, remove sharp corners and exposed fasteners. For workboats, specify energy absorption and replaceability rather than appearance alone.
Follow the load path, not the hardware
A cleat is only as good as everything behind it. The load runs from the line, through the cleat, through its fasteners, into a backing plate or frame member, and then into the structure. A heavy-looking cleat bolted through unreinforced deck is a failure waiting for the right weather.
Fendering is the other half of the same problem: it manages the energy of a vessel arriving and of a vessel working against the structure in wind and wake, and it is a consumable.
Questions to settle before you specify
- What is the design vessel, and what line loads does it generate in the worst expected conditions?
- Where do the lines actually lead for that vessel at that berth, in both directions of wind?
- What is behind each cleat — a backing plate, a frame member, or nothing in particular?
- What berthing energy does the fendering need to absorb, and how often?
- How is fendering replaced when it wears, and by whom?
What to put in the RFQ
- Cleat or bollard type, rated capacity and the standard it is rated to.
- Positions dimensioned to suit the design vessel's line leads.
- The load path drawn: fasteners, backing plates and the member receiving the load.
- Fender type, coverage and replaceability, with the vessel and energy it was chosen for.
- Isolation between dissimilar metals at every fixing.
Where this goes wrong
- Cleats placed to suit the module layout rather than the boat.
- Fasteners into deck alone, with no backing.
- Stainless hardware on aluminium without isolation, quietly corroding.
- Fendering chosen for appearance, crushed in the first season, never replaced.
- No allowance for the loads that occur when a vessel surges rather than sits still.
Questions buyers ask
How many cleats does a berth need?
Enough for the vessel to be secured properly in the conditions the berth sees, positioned where the lines actually lead. Ask the builder to show the arrangement against the design vessel rather than quoting a count.
Is a bigger cleat always better?
No. An oversized cleat on inadequate backing simply moves the failure into the structure. Capacity has to be matched through the whole load path.