Gladding-Hearn Refits Boston Pilots Vessel
Somerset, Mass. shipyard Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, announced it has delivered the first of the Boston Pilots’ two Chesapeake-class pilot boats undergoing a comprehensive refit.“The vessels are well used and well maintained. Only minor structural repairs were necessary so definitely worthy of refitting,” said Peter Duclos, the shipyard’s co-president.Along with installing new shafts and Brunton propellers, the 53’ all-aluminum pilot boat’s twin 600 hp Lugger L6140AL2 engines were replaced with a pair of Volvo Penta D-16 diesel engines…
SAR Officer Caleb Halle Receives 2023 IMO Bravery Award
The 2023 IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea has been presented to Caleb Halle, Aviation Survival Technician Second Class (AST2) of the United States Coast Guard (USCG). He was recognized for the outstanding courage, endurance and determination he showed during the rescue of the seven-strong crew of the tugboat Legacy in January 2023.AST2 Halle, based at the Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City, received the award at the annual IMO Awards Ceremony in London. The ceremony…
The $1 Billion Offshore Wind Prize for US Shipyards
The U.S. offshore wind market presents a $1 billion long-term opportunity to builders of crew transfer vessels (CTV) and service operation vessels (SOV) that will support both wind farm construction and long-term operations and maintenance. Unlike many of the construction vessels to be deployed on U.S. wind projects, CTVs and SOVs must be Jones Act compliant, meaning they will be built, owned and operated by U.S. companies and personnel.However, although seen as somewhat commoditized vessels…
Marine Biofouling in Ports: Wet Docks Acting as ‘Hot Spot’ Biofouling Transfer Stations
The GEF-UNDP-IMO Glofouling partnership (2017) is a global initiative to counter the environmental issue of invasive aquatic species (IAS) and the resulting harmful ecological and financial damage that can occur when such invasion events are introduced through the medium of biofouling on ships hulls and other marine structures such as those found in the oil and gas industries.One of the key objectives of the Glofouling project is to develop a Global Knowledge Hub and also identify…
China's Changxing Shipyard Clears Cruise Ship's Screws
The Star Cruises' ship 'Superstar Gemini' was towed in to the yard for emergency repairs to fouled propellors. En route from Shanghai to Jeju Island the Superstar Gemeni's port side propellor shut down after becoming entangled with fishing nets and ropes, and while in the CJK anchorage the remaining starboard side unit shut down as well, leaving the cruise ship without means of propulsion. CIC Changxin shipyard quickly arranged five tugs to bring 'Superstar Gemini' into its JiuhuaShan floating dock where it was found that the propellers were entangled with fishing nets and ropes.
Contra-Rotating Propellors: New System Prediction Software
New features for the industry-standard resistance and propulsion software, HydroComp's NavCad. Many contemporary marine vehicles are being outfitted with contra-rotating propellers (CRP), and naval architects need the ability to model the performance of CRP systems – a capability that has been lacking until now. As part of its ongoing internal R&D program, HydroComp, Inc. has just deployed a new CRP system analysis module into HydroComp NavCad®, the industry-standard software for the prediction and analysis of vessel speed and power performance. Published comparisons of the efficiency between standard fixed-pitch propellers (FPP) and CRP propellers typically indicate that CRPs are between 3% and 10% more efficient.
Tugboat Engine Failure Imperils Alaska Drillship Tow
Tugboat 'Aiviq' experienced total engine failure, casting it & the Shell drilling rig 'Kulluk' adrift in stong winds & heavy seas, S. of Kodiak Island. The US Coast Guard cutter Alex Haley was sent to assist, establishing a tandem tow of both Aivig and Kulluk, which effectively prevented their drift towards shoal water, then, due to the severe weather the tow-line parted and became entangled in one of the cutter's propellors. The USCG recalled the vessel to base. Meanwhile the Royal Dutch Shell despatched tugboat…
Beached Yacht Salvage Pulls Crowd
The 64-foot yacht 'Rays the Bar' driven ashore on Vilano Beach, Florida, center of attention for responders & spectators. A response operation for a 64-foot yacht on the shoreline at Vilano Beach, Fla., involving the Coast Guard, St. Johns County Fire Rescue, St. Johns County Sheriffs, commercial salvage and environmental response companies drew a large crowd of spectators. On passage from Boston to Fort Lauderdale in heavy seas and dense fog the vessel damaged its propellors as it ran aground near St. Augustine Inlet.
UK Offshore Wind Farm Support Vessel Launched
First of five boats ordered by Rix Sea Shuttle launched in Grimsby, NE England. The vessel will be employed in the transport of maintenance engineers to and from offshore wind turbines in the North Sea. Each of the aluminium vessels will be crewed and operated by Rix and are designed to carry up to 12 technicians at a speed of up to 25 knots. The remaining boats are to be delivered next year and in 2014, representing a £7.5m investment by the Hull-based company in the UK’s burgeoning renewable industry.
New Propellor Design Software by HydroComp
PropElements is a new software product from HydroComp for detail propeller design and analysis. Propeller specialists will find it an essential addition to their propeller design toolbox, but it also was developed to elegantly address the system-level hydrodynamic needs of naval architects, as well. Useful for both design and analysis, PropElements provides the ability to uniquely capture the performance of a particular propeller on a particular vessel. Users can prepare a noise-sensitive wake-adapted propeller design for a vessel, for example. Or analyze the behavior of an existing propeller.
Smit Orders Damen Stan Tug
Smit International awarded a contract to Damen Shipyards Gorinchem for the construction of a new terminal tug, a Damen Stan Tug 3509 for delivery end of this year under yard Nr. YN511606. Built as an enlarged Damen Stan Tug 2909 under standard rules of Bureau Veritas, the vessel will have an overall length of 35.3 m, a beam o.a. of 8.9 m, a draft of 4.3 m and a displacement of 420 tons with empty tanks. The twin screw tug will be powered by two Caterpillar 3516B TA/A main engines driving, via Reintjes WAF 872/7.087:1 gearbox, bronze Promarin fixed pitch propellors within 2,500 mm v.d. Giessen Kort nozzles. The total ouput will be 2950 kW (3959 bhp) at 1600 rpm. A bollard pull in excess of 52.8 tons is anticipated, with a free running speed of approximately 12.7 knots.
