Northern Lighthouse Board News

Spain's GONDAN Shipbuilders announced it held a steel cutting ceremony marking the start of construction on a new vessel it is building for the Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB), a non-departmental public body responsible for marine navigation aids around coastal areas for Scotland and the Isle of Man.The NLB, which has been responsible for the management of lights, buoys and beacons in the region since 1786, plays an essential role in safe navigation.The new hybrid-powered vessel…

The Northern Lighthouse Board (NLB), the General Lighthouse Authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man announced the award of a £51.8 million contract to Spanish shipyard Astilleros Gondán S.A, for the build of a hybrid powered buoy tender vessel to support its vital safety service to mariners.The tender includes a commitment to place over £2 million of contracts with U.K. suppliers with a requirement for any contract over £25,000 to be advertised in the U.K. As part of the deal Gondán will also create a special fully funded internship program for up to 15 U.K.

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has received an order from TraPac, Inc. to deliver two new 5th generation Kalmar automatic stacking cranes (ASCs) for the expansion of TraPac's automated terminal in Los Angeles. The cranes will join a fleet of 27 Kalmar ASCs and 28 Kalmar automated straddle carriers managed by the Kalmar TLS equipment control system. The new ASCs will be delivered in 2016 and they are expected to be commissioned by the end of 2016. Troy Thompson, Vice President, Ports and Terminals, at Kalmar Americas, commented, "Our partnership with TraPac has led to the development of the 5th generation Kalmar ASC, which combines together all the experience gained during the first phase of the project.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Paschal Donohoe T.D., announced today that he has agreed arrangements with his U.K. counterpart, Minister John Hayes MP, for light dues paid by ships coming into ports in Ireland and the United Kingdom from April 2015. Light dues fund the Aids to Navigation (lighthouses, buoys, beacons and radio aids) operated by the Commissioners of Irish Lights (CIL) in Ireland, and by Trinity House and the Northern Lighthouse Board in the U.K. The three lighthouse authorities, their integrated working arrangements and the single operating system for light dues represents a long standing cooperation between Ireland and the United Kingdom. A joint Ireland-U.K.

Remote monitoring enables early detection of problems and correction of system faults. Imtech Marine has been awarded a three-year contract by Northern Lighthouse Board to provide VSAT systems with connectivity and value added services. The contract also includes maintenance services for the five vessels operated by Northern Lighthouse Board and Trinity House in the U.K. The five vessels maintain safe shipping lanes around the Scottish and English sectors of the British Isles coastline.

ACCSEAS, an EU-funded project to support improved maritime access to the North Sea Region through minimizing navigational risk, welcomed over 80 regional and international shipping experts to Edinburgh for its second annual conference, held last week. The ACCSEAS Conference presented an array of e-Navigation test-bed solutions, all of which are aimed at increasing accessibility and improving navigational safety in the increasingly busy shipping waters of the North Sea Region.

The General Lighthouse Authorities (GLA) will be undertaking a review of Aids to Navigation provision around the coasts of Ireland and Great Britain during 2014. The GLA consider good quality user input to be an essential component of this review. The Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention requires the provision of “such aids to navigation as the volume of traffic justifies and the degree of risk requires”. The 2015 review will consider all AtoN provided by the GLA on the coasts of Ireland and Great Britain both individually and as AtoN systems.

In response to the Scottish Government's release of the 2014 pre-referrendum White Paper 'Scotland Future', shipping organization Maritime UK members suggest that the publication raises as many questions as it does answers. Maritime UK members have had constructive engagement with the Scottish Government in recent months, but today’s White Paper provides some interesting nuggets – raising as many questions as it does answers. In particular, they note this extract hidden away on page 418.

The UK Chamber of Shipping's new Chief Executive, due to start in January 2014, will be Guy Platten, currently Chief Executive of Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL). Guy Platten is a master mariner with a long background in the marine industry – including serving as a deck officer in the Merchant Navy, an Inspector of Lifeboats for the RNLI, Salvage and Mooring Officer with the Ministry of Defence and as Director of Marine Operations with the Northern Lighthouse Board. In his role as Chief Executive of Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd…

Eleven miles off the coast of Arbroath in Scotland, the Bell Rock Lighthouse, standing on the Inchcape Reef, has withstood two centuries of vicious storms and powerful North Sea surges to safely guide ships away from the dangers beneath. The Feb. 1 marked the 200th anniversary of the lighting of the beacon and sponsored by Inchcape Shipping Services, the anniversary will be celebrated with a series of events in Edinburgh, Arbroath and beyond. HRH The Princess Royal, patron of the Northern Lighthouse Board…