The Miranda class starships were designed and built as a follow-up class to the Constitution Class starships, and introduced in the early 23rd century around the same time as the Constitutions to supplement their capabilities . Many components of the Mirandas are pulled from the Constitution class: the saucer and the warp nacelles, most obviously. These ships, being smaller and slightly less-capable than the Constitution class, were procured as a less expensive production line to project Federation presence and power into more areas than could be accomplished with the existing Constitution fleet. The result of this design philosophy was a relatively formidable warship which could be produced more quickly and less expensively than the Constitution class. Today the Miranda's are not front-line combat units in themselves, but they are still to be seen operating in major fleet actions in support of the modern vessels. Recently several Miranda class vessels have begun to show signs of serious stress fractures in their hulls; investigations are underway with all ships in the class, and although the results are yet to be announced it is thought that the problem is likely due to the age of the hulls. If so, the Miranda class is likely to be forced into retirement sometime over the next few years.