Wirral News

Marine Specialised Technology Group has launched the first in a series of new Police Patrol Craft being built for the UK Ministry of Defense Police (MDP) and the Gibraltar Ministry of Defense Police (GDP)Awarded in March 2021, The Police Patrol Craft (PPC) contract is a six-year program that will see delivery of 18 patrol craft to various Police units around the UK and Gibraltar. The Patrol Craft will be used to ensure protection of major Royal Naval Assets, including capital ships and submarines…

A £25 million maritime center of excellence development project has been proposed to focus on innovation, engineering, R&D, entrepreneurship and training within the heart of Wirral Waters in the U.K.Peel L&P has formally submitted a planning application to Wirral Council to build the proposed Maritime Knowledge Hub, which would provide a high-level industrial and maritime facility, supporting the region’s £5 billion maritime ecosystem where research and innovation will focus on areas such as decarbonization of the maritime industry as well as technology transfer from other industries.

A fundraising campaign to build a international memorial dedicated to the estimated 100,000 people who lost their lives during the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II, as well as those who served and survived, is being launched in Liverpool. The Battle of the Atlantic Memorial (BOAM), the charity leading the campaign, will stage a press call with war veterans on the Liverpool’s iconic waterfront to launch the fundraising effort to build the 28 meter monument in the shape of a merchant ship split in two.

Business owners across the U.K. wanting to drive growth in the maritime sector are being urged to engage with the newly opened Maritime Knowledge Hub in Birkenhead, Liverpool City Region. The hub, based near Cammell Laird shipyard, is celebrating the formal completion of its recent fit-out and is now planning a busy agenda of events, seminars, training and networking. The completion of Phase 1 of the Maritime Knowledge Hub is a joint venture between Mersey Maritime, Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and Wirral Council on behalf of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. The fit-out was completed by Wirral based Beech Group, which specializes in demolition, but have a refurbishment division.

UK Shipping Minister Robert Goodwill MP has formally opened a new ‘Maritime Knowledge Hub’ in Wirral, UK, jointly operated by Mersey Maritime and Liverpool John Moores University. Operated jointly by sector development organisation Mersey Maritime and Liverpool John Moores University , the new facility will be a global centre of excellence within the UK, generating knowledge-led growth and innovation. First announced at London International Shipping Week (LISW) last year, the aim of the £15m ($21m) Maritime Knowledge Hub is to create a regional focal point for innovation, research & development, education and training and business support, enabling the UK to capture a greater share in the estimated £3000bn shipping market.

U.K. Shipping Minister Robert Goodwill MP has welcomed the investment being made by Peel Ports during a March 10 visit to the company’s Liverpool2 container terminal. Upon opening later this year, Liverpool2 will become one of Europe’s most modern and advanced semi-automated terminals, able to accommodate virtually all of the world’s deep sea container vessels. Marine trials are due to begin later this month, with other elements of the build coming online throughout Q2. The Liverpool2…

ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has won an order worth around $30 million from DONG Energy, a leading wind power development company, to supply a high-voltage export cable system that will transmit power from the Burbo Bank Extension Offshore Wind Farm in the UK. ABB’s project scope includes the design, engineering, supply and commissioning of the 25 kilometer (km) long 220 kilovolt (kV) AC (alternating current) submarine cable and the related offshore substation cable. ABB will also supply 32 km of AC underground cables and the associated substation cables as well as the cable joints, accessories and terminations related to the project. Mersey river, approximately 6.4 km from the Sefton coastline and 7.2 km from North Wirral.

Birkenhead-based shipyard and engineering services company Cammell Laird is ramping up its activity in the energy sector by investing more than £1.5 million in its facilities and appointing a leading nuclear sector engineer. John Eldridge has joined Cammell Laird from Sellafield Ltd. which operates the nuclear reprocessing plant in West Cumbria. He has a track record of more than 40 years working on the design, construction, commissioning and operation of nuclear facilities. Cammell…

A memorial has been unveiled in Birkenhead (Wirral, Liverpool City Region, United Kingdom) dedicated to the victims of one of the worst maritime disasters of the 19th century. HMS Birkenhead, a steam frigate built by John Laird’s shipbuilders in Birkenhead, sank off the coast of Gansbaai, South Africa on February 26, 1852. Out of 638 people onboard, only 193 survived. Many victims were taken by sharks. The tragedy was the first occasion when troops were ordered to stand fast and the protocol of women and children first was used. As a result, all women and children aboard the vessel survived.

HS Ocean Group (HSOG ) celebrates National Apprenticeship Week by committing to long-term Apprenticeship program. The marine services specialist HSOG has launched a formal Apprenticeship training program following the successful progression of its first ever apprentices. The global company – which has offices in 12 countries across four continents – engaged six apprentices at its McTays Shipyard and Warbreck Engineering facilities in Merseyside last year. The apprentices are training across a range of disciplines including steelwork, fabrication, mechanical fitting, machining and engineering. Lee Foster, HSOG Chief Operating Officer, said, “We are delighted to announce our Apprenticeship programme to tie in with UK National Apprenticeship Week 2014.

The next generation of engineering and maritime stars was recognized at the annual Maritime and Engineering College North West (MECNW) Apprenticeship Awards. The ceremony on November 14, held at MECNW in Birkenhead, celebrated the achievements of learners across 11 different award categories which were presented by former Liverpool FC and England player and coach Sammy Lee. George Day, from Peel Ports, was named overall Apprentice of the Year and also Peel Apprentice of the Year.

Cammell Laird has won a multi-million contract to build two ferries that are hoping to restore the Wirral shipyard to its former glory. The firm was appointed by Western Ferries as the preferred bidder beating off competition from Europe to build the vessels for the Gourock to Dunoon route in Scotland. Western Ferries announced that the bid from the Wirral based yard have offered "crucial" and "competitive" advantages to building the two ferries in the UK. The contract means engineers on Wirral will build the first two complete vessels at the Birkenhead yard since the completion of the nuclear submarine HMS Unicorn in 1993. Cammell Laird…

The UK's first full active escort tug simulator is to be installed on Merseyside. The Polaris(tm) System, manufactured by Kongsberg Maritime Ship Systems AS, allows tug captains to learn how to escort large ships in a completely safe, simulated environment. The escort tug simulator-training facility is an enhancement of the 360* ship's bridge simulator at Birkenhead-based Lairdside Maritime Centre, which is the only one of its kind in the UK. It is expected to be fully in service by November. The £50,000 project has been jointly funded by Shell UK Ltd, Svitzer Marine and Wirral Waterfront, a single Regeneration Budget Initiative funded by the North West Development Agency.