In traditional wooden shipbuilding, shipwrights overlaunch planks by ensuring the butt joints of one strake do not align directly with the joints of the strakes above or below it. Staggering these seams distributes stress across solid wood rather than concentrating it at a single vertical line, which would create a weak point in the hull.
Heard on the job
Make sure to overlaunch the next run of planking by at least three frame bays so we don't stack the butts.