Derivatives of the Seabee system, she and her sister ship, Tibor Szamueli, were built in the late 1970s by the Finnish state-owned shipbuilder Valmet in Vuosaari shipyard.

Together with the increasing oil prices, the development of efficient barge-carrying systems with high loading and unloading rate generated considerable interest in the Soviet Union.

[2] Although Valmet had been developing its own barge handling system,[2] it was agreed that the proven American Seabee concept would be adopted instead of the shipyard's own design due to the relatively short timescale before delivery.

The work included extensive model testing, which resulted in the adoption of a bulbous bow that alone increased the ships' service speed by 0.5 knots.

After the alleged plans for using the barge carriers to transport rolling stock from the United States to the Latin America fell through, the ships were laid up in Piraeus, Greece.

In addition to normal messes and saloons, the amenities of the ship also included sports and hobby rooms, library, sauna, photographic laboratory and even a swimming pool.

Although the bottom deck, located 0.8 metres (2.6 ft) below the waterline at maximum draught, was protected by a watertight stern door, flooding it while the ship was underway would not have compromised the stability of the vessel.

[1][12] The most striking feature of the ship was the lifting platform in the stern, abaft from the propellers and rudders, which was supported by high cantilever structures on both sides.

In addition, 54 LASH-type barges (the type used by the nuclear-powered Sevmorput) could be carried with another set of adapters, and the decks were strengthened for ro-ro cargo with axle loads up to 22 tons.

[13] Yulius Fuchik was powered by four 16-cylinder Wärtsilä-Pielstick 16PC2-5V400 medium-speed diesel engines located amidships, each producing 6,620 kW (8,880 hp) at 504 rpm.

The engines were coupled via double input/single output reduction gearboxes to two 5.5-metre (18 ft) KaMeWa controllable pitch propellers turning at 135 rpm.

[1] Yulius Fuchik played a prominent role in the 1986 techno-thriller Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy and Larry Bond.

[15] Later in the book, Yulius Fuchik was spotted by an American P-3C Orion shortly after launching four Lebed class hovercraft from her cargo deck.

The damaged Yulius Fuchik eventually reached the port of Keflavik and, after running aground during the approach, slowly settled to the bottom next to the quay in water only a few feet deeper than the draught of the vessel.