John Taylor News

Gibraltar ship repair and conversion yard Gibdock said it recently hosted the Vulica Shipping Company-owned bulk carrier Donald M James for a 30-day project which brought a first opportunity to work with a new type of coating from GIT Coatings (Graphite Innovation & Technologies Inc).The 229-eterm-long ship entered Gibdock’s No.1 Dock for extensive works, including renewal to cargo holds, piping, thrusters, tail shafts and rudders. The yard also applied shipping’s first antifouling…

Over the course of a six-week period during the last quarter of 2017, three German containerships docked at Gibdock’s Gibraltar yard for repair work, highlighting the yard’s success in attracting German ship owners. The containership visits are part of an encouraging general upturn in activity at the Gibraltar yard in recent weeks, Gibdock said. “Business has been picking up and container vessel owners and operators have been attracted to the yard by our location, close to key trade lanes…

1864 - CSS Tallahassee, commanded by Cmdr. John Taylor Wood, returns to Wilmington, N.C. to refuel on coal. During her more than two week raid, CSS Tallahassee destroys 26 vessels and captures seven others. 1927 - USS Los Angeles (ZR 3) rises to a near-vertical position due to the sudden arrival of a cold air front that lifts the airships tail, causing it to rise before she can swing around the mast parallel to the new wind direction. Los Angeles only suffers minor damage but the affair demonstrates the risks involved with high mooring masts. 1943 - Depth charges from USS Patterson (DD 392) sink the Japanese submarine RO-35, 170 miles southeast of San Cristobal Island, Solomon Islands.

Gibdock’s strategic location has been brought into sharp focus with the docking of HMS Scott, the largest vessel in the Royal Navy's Hydrographic Squadron, for a recent 19-day maintenance period at the Gibraltar yard. Work took place as part of the MOD UK’s Commercially Supported Shipping (CSS) Teams Through Life Support (TLS) contract with main contractor Babcock. The TLS contract, which runs to 2018, includes fleet time maintenance, design services and spares management. “Recent world events suggest that the Royal Navy will highly prize support from strategically-located facilities that can deliver vessels back into service on schedule and to high quality standards,” said Richard Beards, Gibdock Managing Director.

Gibdock has secured an exhaust gas scrubber retrofit project covering five vessels operated by ship management major Norbulk Shipping and owned by global shipping group Vroon. The contract represents a sizeable debut in specialized EGS work. With all five ships also undergoing special survey drydocking, the job is the Gibraltar yard’s largest single assignment in 2015. The landmark project is also the first ship-series SOx abatement technology retrofit win for any Southern European yard.

Gibraltar ship repair yard Gibdock said it is strengthening its impact within the German ship owning market. Working in partnership with its local agent, Hamburg-based Combitrade, the yard has managed to win a significant amount of business from some of the country’s shipowners and managers. Peter Döhle Schiffahrts-KG recently chose Gibdock to work on one of its 1,730 teu capacity geared containerships. John Taylor, Gibdock operations director, said, “In many respects this was a routine drydocking…

Part of the Van Oord fleet, the 137-meter-long trailing suction hopper dredger, Lelystad, has been through an extensive program of works at Gibdock in Gibraltar. The vessel was in dock for an initial 26 days and then went alongside the South Mole before redocking for a further 11 days. The project included steelwork, pipe, mechanical and painting work. The steelwork required inside the hopper tanks proved particularly challenging due to limited space for access. This was the second time Lelystad had been drydocked in Gibraltar, following a visit in 2008.

Saga Cruises has highlighted Gibraltar’s continuing attractions for cruise owners, returning to Gibdock for repair and maintenance work on one of the "grand old ladies" of the cruise industry, the 24,492grt, 670-passenger capacity Saga Ruby. Delivered by Swan Hunter in 1972 to Norwegian American Line as Vistafjord, the ship is the last cruise vessel built on the Tyne. Having previously docked Spirit of Adventure in 2011 for the same owner, the 13-day renewal Saga Ruby drydocking project required flexibility on the part of the yard…

The 189-room five-star floating hotel Sunborn Gibraltar is due to welcome its first guests in February 2014, after Gibraltar shipyard Gibdock drew on its extensive cruise ship expertise to undertake hull blasting and coating work. Despite its role as a tourist and business travel destination Gibraltar does not have a five-star hotel. The 142m long, seven deck Sunborn Gibraltar resembles a sophisticated high-end cruise ship or mega yacht. However, while the vessel can move under its own power, it has been designed for sustained mooring alongside, and features its own heavy-duty mooring arms.

Strategically located Gibraltar shipyard Gibdock has continued its run of technically advanced offshore support vessel repair and maintenance projects, securing a contract involving a returning customer. The Viking Vanquish, a high capacity 3D seismic survey vessel operated for CGG, has undergone a 21-day program of works, leaving the shipyard’s drydocks in mid-September prior to sea trials. Based in France, CGG operates 23 seismic survey vessels, after acquiring Fugro’s geoscience division earlier this year - claimed to be the largest high-end seismic fleet in the industry.

Gibdock has completed its work on the semi-submersible accommodation platform, Etesco Millennium - the first offshore platform project to be undertaken by the yard in almost 15 years. The semi-sub’s eight-month stay at the yard represented an important milestone for the Gibraltar shiprepair facility, as it continues its campaign to broaden the range of its growing offshore business. Etesco Millennium arrived at Gibdock in October 2011 and the yard worked closely with the owner…

As part of a three day Royal tour of Gibraltar in June, HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex set time aside to inspect work under way at Gibdock, the territory’s strategically located repair and conversion yard. Accompanied by Gibraltar Governor, Sir Adrian Johns and Gibraltar Chief Minister, Fabian Picardo, the Earl was welcomed by the Minister for the Port, Neil Costa, Gibdock Chief Executive, Joe Corvelli, Commercial Director, Richard Beards, Finance Director, Paul Singleton, and Production Director, John Taylor.

The Norwegian-owned offshore accommodation vessel, Edda Fides, one of the most  advanced and sophisticated vessels of its type in the world,  has been dry-docked at Gibdock in Gibraltar for a week-long package of work at the yard. The ‘floatel’, owned by Østensjø Rederi, arrived at Gibdock on April 2nd and was docked the following day. The main scope of work involved disconnecting and lowering the starboard aft Voith Thruster and renewing the main thruster seal. Edda Fides has a unique monohull form to enable the positioning of the accommodation forward and the Voith thrusters to the stern.

Gibdock completed a complex propulsion system job, following the recent docking of the 57-ton bollard pull capacity Boluda group harbour tug Siroco. The 2001-built Siroco, which operates in the port of Algeciras, arrived in Gibraltar in early June for a one month docking that included the complete removal and overhaul of the two Voith Schneider Propeller (VSP) units onboard. As soon as the vessel was drydocked, it was jet washed with high pressure water and hand-scraped to remove marine growth in preparation for the VSP overhaul. The next task was to crop four access plates and two upright supports from the protective structure to allow access for Gibdock engineers so they could remove the VSP blades.

A collision involving the three-year-old multipurpose general cargo/container vessel Ems, owned by Werse Schiffahrts of Münster, Germany, recently brought a new customer to Gibdock, the Gibraltar-based ship repair yard. The 308 ft long, 5500dwt Ems (formerly the Buluklu and Rhone) - delivered in 2007 by the Torgem yard in Turkey - was alongside in the port of Montril, near Almeria, Spain, when the vessel was struck by the bulbous bow of the ferry Ace 2, formerly Euroferry Atlantica, which had broken free from its moorings. Ems was effectively sandwiched between the Ace 2 and the quay wall, and in the process suffered significant damage to both her port and starboard sides.

Gibraltar’s Gibdock shipyard has completed a challenging maintenance and upgrade program on the 6430bhp DP2 class ROV/Subsea Service and Platform Support vessel, Toisa Vigilant. The 2005-built, 3426dwt vessel spent over three weeks at the yard in July and August this year for a diverse package of works. For Sealion, Gibdock undertook a series of conventional docking works, including the extensive overhaul of the MAK 8L26 main engines, the two bow thrusters and two stern thrusters.

Taylor has spent months analyzing traffic flows on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway to measure the economic benefits. found. are about $55 million annually," said Taylor. penalty of $54.9 million per year. and barge options are quite competitive. invasive species. benefits of ocean shipping were critical. freshwater Great Lakes. Great Lakes in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Lakes to the world.