Building Expertise News

While the average person may have a little trouble placing the name Jan De Nul, as in “JDN Group”, that’s not necessarily the case throughout parts of Europe and in nautical circles. There the Belgium-based company is known for its dredging capabilities and high-profile projects in Dubai and the Suez Canal.In addition to dredging, JDN is building a reputation as a global player in its other business segments: offshore services, civil engineering, and environmental. Today, the company continues to invest heavily in all areas of the business.

Two Danish companies have joined forces to test a novel workboat stabilizer for the first time at sea.DACOMA’s groundbreaking Airkeel-technology will be integrated on a 7-meter test vessel from Tuco Marine's ProZero workboat range to demonstrate heel compensation and optimization of roll damping in waves.The DACOMA stabilizer is based on the Airkeel, a submerged, air-filled flotation body mounted at the bottom of the hull. A computer-controlled mechanical drive system moves the Airkeel from side to side…

Britain's newest aircraft carrier has sailed out of Rosyth dockyard for the first time. The GBP3bln, 65000 ton HMS Prince of Wales will sit at anchor in the River Forth for around 2-7 days following departure from the dockyard to complete Initial Sea Safety Training.The vessel is the sister ship of HMS Queen Elizabeth."Cammell Laird is proud to have played a key role in the construction of this magnificent vessel – one of the most powerful surface warships ever constructed in the UK," said a press release from the British shipbuilding company.Following Cammell Laird’s successful completion of nine units for the first Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier, the company’s block building expertise was called upon once again in 2013.

Norway's leading cargo and ferry port, the Port of Oslo has placed an order to build one of the world’s most environmental efficient working boats possible, with Grovfjord Ship Yard.The boat is especially designed for efficient collection of waste at the water surface. The contract sum is NOK 23 million. Expected delivery is December 2019.Norway's shipbuilding and maintenance services has previously built the world's first full-electric fish farming boat."Today the boat "Pelikan" keeps our harbor area clean and tidy. The new environmental boat replaces the old port environmental boat, which during the course of 30 years has picked up about 1…

The new flagship, named “Race” by its owner, took to the seas in a ceremony at the Riva Superyachts Division shipyard in Ancona."Riva 50 mt realises the dream of Carlo Riva who, in the 1960s and ‘70s, driven by his brilliantly ambitious desire to exceed every limit, created the famous Caravelle and Atlantic series steel motor yachts of which Riva 50 mt is the worthy heir, with her peerless standards of aesthetics, style and innovation," said press release.At 50 meters long and with a maximum beam of 9 meters, she offers an outstanding experience at sea, featuring comfort, elegance, care over detail and exceptional yacht building expertise.

Ulstein, now a century old, has spent the last 100 years looking to the future. Since its formation on August 9, 1917 in Ulsteinvik, Norway, the family-owned shipbuilder, designer and systems supplier said it has focused on tomorrow’s opportunities today. Over the years, Ulstein has evolved through innovation and pioneered trailblazing solutions, driven by its desire to meet shifting customer demands, commercial openings and market challenges head-on. There isn’t much that remains the same in a century of operation…

South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has won a $100 million order to build two liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers for Korea Line, reports Yohnap. Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) has chartered Korea Line to transport LNG from Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province (mainland) to Jeju Island for 20 years. Under the deal with Korea Line, SHI will build the ships by December 2019, the company said. One of the two vessels would have LNG bunkering capability. The ships, which can carry up to 7,500 cubic meters of LNG each, will be deployed to transport LNG between local ports, it added. The shipyard would be building expertise in the home-grown containment system, small-scale LNG carriers and LNG bunkering vessels through the order, it said.

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) is on track with its $100m tug building contract and celebrated the ceremonial launch of the fourth of its nine new tugs being built in Durban. The tug – named OSPREY in honor of the fish eagle – will serve at the Port of Saldanha. In line with maritime tradition, the duty of officially naming the vessel was carried out by Lady Sponsor, Thandeka Mabija, who earlier this month was appointed General Manager for Human Resources at TNPA. TNPA Chief Operating Officer…

The Damen Shipyards Group has received an order for a state-of-the-art, 74 m Fishery Research Vessel from the Angolan Ministry of Fisheries. This special vessel, which has Silent-A/F/R Class notation and features a basic design from Skipsteknisk. The Angolan Ministry of Fisheries has been a customer for many years and previously Damen delivered two 62 m Fishery Inspection Surveillance Vessels 6210 and a smaller Fishery Research Vessel (FRV 2808). This vessel represents the cutting edge of its type and Damen is confident that it will help develop and preserve the important Angolan fishing economy. Hein van Ameijden, Managing Director of Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, commented that the yard’s vast naval building expertise can also be applied to this innovative research ship.

XL Group informs that its leading marine underwriters will join the annual International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) conference, the first time to be held in Hong Kong in the organisation’s 140-year history. IUMI is being held in HK from 21-24 September 2014 with the theme 'Building Expertise for a Changing World'. XL Group’s Chief Underwriting Officer, Marine, Asia Pacific, Mike Davies, has been global Vice Chairman of IUMI for 3 years and prior to that was Chairman of the Technical Cargo Committee for 6 years. Mr. Davies, who has worked in Singapore for many years, has been actively involved in shaping this year’s conference, which will focus on the opportunities and risks specific to Asian markets and the region’s fast growing maritime sector. Commenting, Mr.

Members of the International Union of Marine Insurance, in its 140th year, will gather in Hong Kong from 21-24 September at the Intercontinental Hotel, Kowloon for its annual conference themed Building Expertise for a Changing World. Over 500 attendees will hear from leading experts on how the marine environment is evolving as governments and businesses attempt to chart a secure, sustainable economic recovery. From cargo inventory, legal disputes, loss ratios and offshore drilling, the conference - with an emphasis on Asia - has the best and latest information to help the marine insurance community navigate its way through a changing world.

Belgium Diesel Engine Manufacturer Provides Main Engine for Alaska Fishing Vessel. When the owners of the fishing pollock trawler, Great Pacific decided they needed to purchase a new main engine to replace their MAN B&W Alpha 10V23L-VO they took a hard look at all the engine manufacturers currently on the market that could support their needs. “Our goal was to find an engine that offers superior fuel and lube oil consumption; that had its EPA Tier III Certification and had domestic parts and service.” When the investigation was over and the dust cleared…

Trans Marine Propulsion Systems, (TMPS) appointed agent by Anglo Belgian Corporation (ABC) Diesel Engines. TMPS has locations in Seattle, Washington and Tampa, Florida, and services most makes and types of diesel engines, including medium-speed and slow-speed engines for the marine industry and for diesel power plants. TMPS is one of the world's few service facilities that offer this range of experience. Anglo Belgian Corporation has been manufacturing diesel engines since 1912 and is headquartered in Gent, Belgium. The company has a century of engine-building expertise, founded in 1912 by a group of Belgian entrepreneurs soon after building the first licensed Rudolf Diesel engine.

Strategic Marine, a specialist shipbuilder operating in Singapore and Vietnam, has delivered the Njord Curlew, a high-grade crew transfer and service vessel for Njord Offshore, the UK fleet operator specialising in supply services for the growing offshore windfarm sector. Today’s delivery is the third in a series of eight vessels for Njord Offshore, underscoring Strategic’s recent move into a new market sector, one in which it sees significant growth opportunity. “This major contract…

Australian shipbuilder Strategic Marine delivers first of 8 Wind Farm Support Vessels (WSV) from its Singapore shipyard. The 21 metre multipurpose vessel was built at the company's recently expanded Singapore shipyard for Madliena Shipping (Jersey) Ltd and will be managed by Njord Offshore Limited, a subsidiary of Norse Management UK, to be employed in wind farm crew transfer and support in European waters. The offshore wind farm crew transfer and support vessels are among the most sophisticated in the market, built to DNV Class Rules - +IAI HSLC R2 Wind Farm Service 1.

At 134-feet (40.8 meters) in length the research vessel Sea Scout is the largest catamaran built by All American Marine in Bellingham, Washington and the largest vessel designed by Nic deWaal’s Teknicraft Design of Auckland New Zealand. With its length and 37-foot 4-inch beam, this is not only a large vessel it is, as C&C Technologies Survey Services newest vessel, a highly sophisticated and complex craft. A vessel such of this has a dual personality. The first being a crewed vessel designed to get from place to place in an efficient manner.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding’s fast ferry building expertise has taken an unusual turn, with the testing of a new torpedo-launching system for the U.S. Navy. Systems Engineering Associates Corporation (SEA CORP) of Middletown, R.I., chartered Millennium, the 125-ft. Incat-designed high-speed passenger ferry owned by Rhode Island Fast Ferry and built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard in 1998 in May, to test an experimental surface torpedo launching system under development by NAVSEA.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding's fast ferry building expertise has taken an unusual turn, with the testing of a new torpedo-launching system for the U.S. Navy. Systems Engineering Associates Corporation (SEA CORP) of Middletown, R.I., chartered Millennium, the 125-ft. Incat-designed high-speed passenger ferry owned by Rhode Island Fast Ferry and built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard in 1998 in May, to test an experimental surface torpedo launching system under development by NAVSEA. The catamaran's 37-knot light speed and open third deck were ideally suited to simulate launching from a destroyer or carrier deck. Using their 3-D Finite Element Modeling (FEM) capability…