Vessel Maintenance News

Steve Nevey has been selected to serve as assistant secretary for the Washington State Ferries Division, the state's Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar announced on Thursday. Nevey will succeed Patty Rubstello, who is stepping down as head of WSF after more than 33 years of service with the Washington State Department of Transportation.A career mariner, Nevey progressed directly from high school to a maritime academy in the U.K. For the past two years he has served as director…

The North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Ferry Division is looking into whether a second vessel maintenance facility could improve service to customers.Currently, the NCDOT Ferry Division has one maintenance facility, the Manns Harbor Shipyard in Dare County.The new planning study—funded by a $400,000 Federal Transit Administration grant, plus a $100,000 match from Ferry Division—will explore the conceptual site design for a larger, better equipped depot-level maintenance…

The U.S Coast Guard has awarded Vigor Alaska, a Titan company, a $3.65 million contract to perform maintenance and repairs on U.S. Coast Guard Cutter John McCormick at the Ketchikan Shipyard.Work on the project begins this week and will cover comprehensive maintenance and repair of the vessel. After USCGC John McCormick is dry docked, the team at Ketchikan Shipyard will inspect the hull plating, conduct maintenance on the ship's propulsion system and renew hull coatings, as well as several other key maintenance and repair operations.

AD Ports Group and Premier Marine Engineering Services LLC formed a new joint venture, SAFEEN Drydocks, owned 51% by AD Ports Group, 49% by Premier Marine.The new enterprise will offer a broad range of vital services including drydocking, afloat repairs, ship building and refurbishment. The hub of SAFEEN Drydocks’ operations will be located at Khalifa Port and encompass a 45,000 sq. m. shipyard and repair facility, 350m quay wall for vessel afloat repair, and a floating dry dock for vessel maintenance and refurbishment.

Finland-based marine technology company Wärtsilä has signed a five-year vessel maintenance deal with Abu Dhabi-based firm National Petroleum Construction Company (NPCC).Wärtsilä said that the agreement covered seven vessels in the NPCC fleet and was designed to maximize operational uptime."It will also provide flexibility in maintenance scheduling, which will ease chartering arrangements, while providing long-term cost predictability," Wärtsilä said.NPCC is an engineering, procurement…

Japanese firms Mitsui O.S.K. Lines and MOL Marine & Engineering Co (MOLMEC) have been granted basic approval from ClassNK for two new training courses related to offshore wind power generation. The courses, for power cable laying and anchor handling training, use Dynamic Positioning (DP) simulator, which is owned by MOL and MOLMEC,They are currently being prepared for launch - expected by June 2023, and will be the first such courses offered in Japan.MOL and MOLMEC installed the DP simulator on the lobby floor of MOL's Head Office in June 2022…

Bridgeport Boatworks and Hornblower Marine have launched six scholarships supporting students at Porter & Chester Institute’s Bridgeport campus. The scholarships, totaling $15,000.00 and valued at $2,500.00 per student, will be dedicated to local Bridgeport residents, and will continue to establish the Bridgeport waterfront as a maritime industry leader and job center.The announcement was made at the launch of Porter & Chester Institute’s Bridgeport campus welding program.In April 2021…

This year, U.S.-flagged Great Lakes shipping companies will spend nearly $83 million for annual vessel maintenance and upgrades, according to trade group the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA).The winter ship repair work programs are performed annually to help keep iron ore, stone and cement moving on the Great Lakes during the nine-month operating season from March through January, when the Soo Locks are open for business. Work will range from engine and navigation system upgrades…

A Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) icebreaker is helping to keep shipping moving on the Great Lakes throughout the winter with a set of Thordon Bearings’ propeller shaft bearings that were fitted more than 30 years ago.Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Griffon, the oldest vessel of the CCG’s Type 1100 series, was retrofitted with a set of four Thordon XL polymer stave bearings in 1990, 20 years into her service life. Sister ships received Thordon bearings from new throughout the 1980s.

The U.S. Navy Military Sealift Command (MSC) has awarded GE Power Conversion an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract to maintain the electric and hybrid electric power and propulsion systems aboard its vessels. The five-year contract potentially could be worth $125 million.The contract covers maintenance, modernization and upgrades, training, repairs, parts, remote technical support, and program management on 35 vessels, with more ships to be added as they are built and turned over to MSC after commissioning.

ABB Ability Marine Fleet Intelligence – Advisory combines the power of cloud-based analytics and reporting with user-friendly visualizations to help shipowners, managers and charterers optimize ship performance fleet-wide.ABB Ability Marine Fleet Intelligence – Advisory is offered as a SaaS (Software as a Service), providing a complete overview of all data collected from shipboard systems, enabling a comparison of a a ship’s operational performance with another vessel, with ships built to the same specifications…

Allsalt Maritime announced the launch of four new Kinetix models of shock monitoring systems, each designed to provide easily assimilated guidance for maritime professionals to operate safely within designated shock and vibration exposure limits, reducing the risk of damage to vessels or injury to occupants.High speed watercraft and their crews experience severe shock and vibration levels when operating at sea. Vessel hulls, onboard equipment and, most importantly, human occupants…

U.K.-based Bowman International said it has launched to market a split roller bearing with substantially higher radial and axial load capacities. Suited for applications such as propulsion shafts and electric motors, the new Bowman Advanced Split Roller Bearing offers up to 75% higher radial load capacity and up to a 1000% increase in axial load capacity in both directions, the manufacturer said.“For the first time, shipbuilders and vessel maintenance engineers can specify a split roller bearing that does not rely on race lips alone to accommodate axial force in high-load applications…

The incorrect installation of a single set screw led to the loss of propulsion control on the Canadian-flagged, 736-foot-long Atlantic Huron, causing the ship to strike a pier at 6.8 knots, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday.On July 5, 2020, the self-unloading bulk carrier made contact with a pier associated with the Soo Locks, in Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., resulting in $2.2 million in damage. There were no injuries.While on approach to the locks and attempting to slow…

AST said it has secured an order to supply its iRAMS monitoring systems for Norfolk, U.K. boat builder Goodchild Marine Services, to install on nine new ORC fast pilot vessels being built for British ports.The Pantocarene-designed launches were ordered in November by Associated British Ports in a £9 million deal. Construction of the first vessel has already begun and it is expected to be delivered to ABP’s Humber region in 2021. In total, ABP has commissioned five vessels to serve its Humber ports…

Baxter Marine Group announced it has acquired Wheelhouse Technologies, VesselVanguard and SeaKits Brand.The combined companies support more than 3,000 commercial, military, charter and recreational watercraft worldwide. Intuitive user tools, mobile applications, work orders, inventory and advanced telematics give owners and operators complete command of their vessel’s operations.Rick Heine, Baxter Marine Group Chairman, said, “Our goal is to provide the marine industry with the most advanced and intuitive systems to improve vessel reliability, safety, and reduce operational costs significantly.”Donald Hyde, founder of Vessel Vanguard…

Recognizing a need in the market following the implementation of Subchapter M, the Towing Vessel Inspection Bureau (TVIB) launched a drydock and internal structural examination certification course..Subchapter M brought many new changes to the towing vessel industry, and now that two and a half years have gone by since the U.S. Coast Guard issued the first Certificates of Inspection (COI), towing vessel operators are beginning to address compliance with another key component of…

Data analytics firm ioCurrents will offer KVH Watch connectivity as part of its vessel maintenance and optimization servicesKVH Industries, Inc., announced today that ioCurrents, a provider of real-time, remote vessel analytics, has joined the KVH Watch Solution Partner program and will offer KVH Watch connectivity as part of its maritime services. The company is the creator of the MarineInsight platform, which uses machine-learning algorithms to support maritime maintenance and fuel optimization and has thus far relied on vessels’ existing communications systems for data transfer.

Two Canadian firms are partnering to develop and commercialize 3D digital twin capabilities with hopes of making Canada more globally competitive, driving export opportunities and creating jobs in the marine sector.The the $3 million-plus Digital Ship In-Service Support Project comes from Canada’s Ocean Supercluster’s (OSC) Accelerated Ocean Solutions Program. Led by British Columbia-based Seaspan Shipyards together with partner and Newfoundland and Labrador-based, Genoa Design International…

Spanish state-owned shipbuilder Navantia on Wednesday launched the first of five Avante 2200 corvettes it's building for the Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF) for delivery through 2024.The five frigates were ordered in July 2018 for a cost of €1.8 billion ($2.1 billion), and first steel was cut for the series' first vessel in January 2019.Launched at the builder's San Fernando shipyard, the new vessel Al-Jubail has a length of 104 meters, a beam of 14 meters and will be able to accommodate 102 people (crew and additional personnel).

Tradepoint Atlantic, a 3,300-acre multimodal global logistics center in Baltimore, Md., said its dry dock will return to service this week after last being used in 2017. BAE Systems’ Titan dry dock departed is scheduled to arrive in Baltimore and dock at Tradepoint Atlantic’s onsite dry dock to undergo a five-month-long repair and maintenance program starting Thursday.Used in Norfolk, Va. for servicing ships as long as 1,000 feet, BAE Systems' massive Titan dry dock has a 52,534-ton lifting capacity and is one of the world’s largest and most modern floating steel dry docks.

Two dozen small shipyards in the U.S. have received a combined $19.6 million through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) Small Shipyard Grant Program to help fund upgrades and expansions that often lead to more competitive operations, quality ship construction and improved employee skill.“This $19.6 million federal government investment in the nation’s small shipyards will help maintain the U. S. shipyard infrastructure of our country,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L.

The company which owned Spirit of 1770, a passenger vessel that caught fire and burnt to the waterline with 42 paying customers and four crew members on board while returning from a voyage to Lady Musgrave Island on May 11, 2016, has been fined $25,000 for reckless operation of a commercial vessel.The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) investigated the incident and recommended a charge against the company, Panforta Pty Ltd – trading as 1770 Great Barrier Reef Cruises Pty Ltd. The charge was pursued by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP).On March 16, 2020, the company plead guilty in the Brisbane Magistrates court to one count of reckless operation of a commercial vessel…