how long does it take to construct one of the animal inspired submarines? and what kind of technology goes into this?

Question: how long does it take to construct one of the animal inspired submarines? and what kind of technology goes into this?
- Keywords:
  animal,
  construct,
  submarine,
  submarines,
  technology
Asked by 08mhook to Ryan, Ailsa, Evan, James, Kath on 20 Jun 2011. This question was also asked by charlieevans, pollyedwards.
- Ryan Ladd answered on 17 Jun 2011:
  
  It totally depends on the submarine. The ones I work on are mostly prototypes, so you probably couldn’t consider them completely finished! The human powered submarines which the students build generally take about a year to make though and are about 3 meters long.
  
  Unfortunately, my lab doesn’t have a huge amount of money, so the technology is often quite basic! The human powered submarines are made mostly out of fibreglass and bicycle parts. My latest submarine system has more advanced technology and will use a linear motor (kind of like a monorail) to flap its fins up and down.
  
  Really it’s the way we’re using the technology that’s important, rather than the technology itself…
- Evan Keane answered on 20 Jun 2011:
  
  I think this is Ryan’s area of expertise!

Question: how long does it take to construct one of the animal inspired submarines? and what kind of technology goes into this?