Sarawak Slipways: Building for Today’s Technology

Sarawak Slipways’ Executive Director for Production, Edward P. K. Chew, has 28 years in design and construction of new vessels since qualifying as a naval architect in the U.K. Commenting recently on the demand for new vessels in the oil industry, he said “I think it is not the life of the vessel but the demand for newer technology.”

A good example of the sort of new vessel that meets that need for up-to-date technology is the ABS-classed 58-meter Offshore Utility Vessel on which the yard is beginning construction for Miri-based Bumi Armada Navigation Sdn. Bhd.

With a 13.8-m beam and a 5.5-m molded depth, the vessel will have tankage for 500 cu. m. of ship’s fuel oil, an additional 800 cu. m. of cargo fuel oil as well as 300 cu. m. of fresh water. Accommodation for 40 men includes two single cabins for the captain and chief engineer and, five two-berth cabins, seven four berth cabins. Twelve of these berths are intended for the charterer’s use. A single berth sick bay will also be included. The propulsion package begins with a pair of 16-cylinder Cummins KTA50 M2 main engines each generating 1600 hp each at 1800 RPM. The engines turn into Reintjes LAF 665L gears with a 5.044:1 reduction. Flexible couplings will link the engines and gears. To accommodate the controllable pitch propellers the output shaft will be hollow bored. The CP propellers, manufactured by Kamome Propeller, will be supplied by Daikai Engineering of Singapore. The CP propeller will have four skewed Ni-Al blades giving the propeller a 2000 m/m diameter.

The vessel’s 1150 mm diameter bow thruster will also be from Kamome with power from a 500 hp Cummins KTA19-M3 engine supplied, like the mains, by Scott & English (Malaysia). Scott & English also supplied the boat’s two main generators, a pair of Cummins QSM11-D(M)-powered 245 kW sets, and a Cummins 4BT3.9G2-powered 50 kW emergency gen set.

The Conan Wu & Associates-designed, Malaysian-registered vessel is being built to Maltese Cross + A1 + AMS Circle E with descriptive Notation Offshore utility support vessel for unrestricted waters.