Optimization techniques are used to investigate changes in structural design which increase the energy absorbing capabilities of a marine vessel in a collision. The structural model of the vessel includes the stiffened shell, web frame supports, and rigid bulkheads. The failure criterion used is hull rupture, appropriate for tanker design. The collision scenario is a right angle strike by a rigid vertical bow midway between two rigid bulkheads. The stiffened shell is modelled as a series of longitudinal beams in plastic bending and plastic membrane tension. Optimization parameters included both the number and dimensions of the transverse web frames and longitudinal beams. The technique was applied to the redesign of a large oil tanker. Minimizing the weight with a constraint on the energy was superior to maximizing the energy with a weight constraint in both computation time and performance. Optimization increased the volume of the shell beams while decreasing their moment-of-inertia. In addition the volume and strength of the frame were decreased precipitating early development of membrane tension in the shell and spreading of damage throughout the compartment. An reduced the number of web frames from optimum design six to two and increased the energy absorbed before rupture by 130%. Lesser collisions energies were found for more conservative designs which included a set number of web frames and restrictions of other design parameters. The use of high strength steel was also investigated. / M.S.