In the last decades an increase of interest for high-speed ferries has been registered and new problems have arisen as regards the request of data and adequate procedures for conceptual and preliminary design analysis. In particular, the request of increasing speed and large vessels is a continual challenge to designers to choose propulsions systems, to estimate the principal components of propulsion machinery and hull weights. Firstly, a large of database has been presented that considers new designs and high speed ferries in the world; the regression analysis of which permits rapidly to estimate the main parameters (Displacement, Length, Breadth etc). Successively, a new parametric procedure has been developed to estimate hull weight of both monohull and catamaran fast ferries, including steel and/or aluminum materials. Finally, a database for the machinery choice is presented, which includes medium and high-speed diesels and gas turbines, the regression of which has been particularly discussed.
