RMS Olympic Ismay had previously planned to build a ship named "Olympic" as a sister ship to . The senior Ismay died in 1899 and the order for the ship was cancelled. Construction of "Olympic" began three months before "Titanic" to ease pressures on the shipyard. Several years would pass before "Britannic" would be launched. In order to accommodate the construction of the class, Harland and Wolff upgraded their facility in Belfast; the most dramatic change was the combining of three slipways into two larger ones. "Olympic" and "Titanic" were constructed side by side. "Olympic"s keel was laid on 16 December 1908
Vessel (structure) of "Vessel" are being assembled in the commune of Monfalcone in Italy. From there, ships transport the sections of the sculpture to the Hudson River docks. It was planned that ""Vessel"" would be the structure's temporary name during construction, and that a permanent name would be determined later. In an interview with "Fortune" magazine, Ross said that he "wanted to commission something transformational, monumental," which led to the concept for "Vessel". Ross was looking to five unnamed artists who were renowned for designing similar plazas, then asked them for in-depth proposals. He rejected all of the plans, at which point