AKA Maritime were at that time looking for a vessel suitable for conversion into a dedicated cable installation support vessel to suit their needs as defined by many years of contracting in that industry. It was soon realised that Ocean Alert met these requirements and would provide the platform needed to extend their company capability and offer a low cost responsive and flexible option to their customers. After taking specialist advice, the company decided that an extensive refit and reclassification was required and decided to keep the vessel in Malta.

Lloyds Register were contracted to guide the reclassification and documentation through their Malta office. Their surveyor in Malta was both meticulous and thorough so AKA now have gained a new regard for Lloyds 100A1 vessels and an understanding what standards ships have to meet to gain this classification. The vessel now fully complies with all major legal requirements and relevant legislative standards and is ready for charter.

AKA Maritime are particularly fortunate in having a top rate and hard working ship crew who, amongst other jobs, completely rebuilt the ship's four engines, three generators and just about everything else mechanical required by the special survey.

Malta has a fine skill base, centrally located in the Mediterranean, so many local contractors were employed.

Malta Dry-Docks (MDD) proved to be a fortunate choice, they were an invaluable partner during the refit, undertaking the majority of the structural work including large amounts of steel renewal. The replacement of 39 frames, six shell plates and a large section of keel has helped to produced a fine strong vessel fit to operate safely for many years to come. MDD carried out all work to Lloyd's satisfaction in a timely and cost-effective manner.

Ocean Alert is a versatile vessel, capable of undertaking work in several fields of operation.

Traditionally AKA Maritime has been involved in supporting the cable industry primarily through route clearance and 'Pre-Lay Grapnel Runs (PLGR) and will continue to do so operating a variety of vessels including their own ship Ocean Alert.

Additional to this work and since acquiring the ship, the company now has been approached to charter the vessel for operations such as hydrographic surveying, pipe and cable route survey, seabed research, ROV operation, wreck and debris investigation and filming. Equipped with a wide range of equipment such as cranes, a moon-pool, 'A frame' and winch the ship is ideally suited to such work. The retractable moon-pool is an attractive feature allowing transducers and other sensors to be fitted and changed cheaply and quickly. A 240m 2covered aft deck and work area makes Ocean Alert adaptable and an ideal platform for a variety of tasks.

The ship has air-conditioned accommodation for 30 supernumeraries, a dedicated survey room and a comfortable, spacious, well-appointed lounge. She is certified to work worldwide, with the exception of ice regions, and has the capacity to stay at sea for a minimum of 30 days - thanks to spacious freezers and two desalinators.

A legacy from early days with the coast guard as a search and rescue vessel is a top speed of 24 knots. At her 10 knots cruising speed, on two of the four engines, fuel consumption is 8 tonnes per day including generators. The two, four blade, controllable pitch propellers and twin rudders combine with the 200hp bow-thrust to give her a high degree of manoeuvrability enabling operation in waters ranging from 10m to deep ocean.

'Teddy bears residing in each cabin and names given to each of the main engines symbolises the level of care and attention to detail AKA Maritime lavishes on Ocean Alert compared to that received by vessels employed in larger fleets', says AKA director Ursula Smith. She added 'AKA Maritime has built itself a reputation based on the philosophy of a "fair price for a good job" and has extended this into their new venture - Ocean Alert'.