The Dublin Pilots were hugely impressed with Gleann Mor’s rough weather sea keeping, even when being engulfed by huge breaking seas. Especially inspiring was the vessel’s directional stability in following seas, whilst the deep V hull kept the motion soft into head seas and eliminated slamming.

Now in service, the Cork pilot vessel’s performance prompted the Port’s Harbourmaster Michael Mc Carthy to say, ‘The Gleann Mor has been tested in service during severe gale force 9 conditions and her handling both running into and ahead of the weather is reassuringly controllable. We also find that due to her twin chine hull design, spray suppression is very effective and visibility is exceptional, the deck with its high freeboard also remains very dry. During ship boarding in rough conditions her design makes a very stable platform for the pilot and assists the coxswain in coming away from vessels.’

The Port of Dublin’s vessels will incorporate a number of small design changes to accommodate the specific requirements of the Port. The vessels will have the same central helm position, facilitating boarding on the side most suited to the prevailing conditions, a feature that has proved very popular with the Cork Harbour coxswains.

The operational speed will be 23 knots on a fully loaded 18,000kg displacement. The Port of Dublin’s head of operations Seamus Mc Clouglin was also impressed by the vessel’s build strength, with huge 150mm x 150mm transverse framing at 500mm centers and substantial knees at the hull to deck join ensuring that the likelihood of any structural damage occurring during normal operation is remote. This heavy build strength also translates into a heavy displacement, giving the vessel a very solid feel in the water which is especially beneficial when coming alongside, with steadier, slower motions than would be felt in a lighter, and correspondingly livelier craft. The new boats will also be self righting due to the size and buoyancy of the superstructure.

The Dublin boats will be fitted with a specialized coxswain identification system and impact/damage data logging hardware. Individual crew will log on board with a swipe card system which gives the port an accurate record of who is control of the craft at any given time. The data logging system is to be designed with GPS monitoring of speed, position, course and time. It will be connected to a six axis accelerometer with individual impact sensors fitted around the vessel’s hull. The data logger will continuously record data when predetermined impact thresholds are exceeded, effectively becoming a ‘black box’ system similar to that used in the aircraft industry. It will allow the Port to download and study data corresponding to any impact damage. The engines are also to be fitted with features such as remote monitoring of operating parameters from a shore based station, three minute cool down on the engines when switched off to prevent turbo damage and engine stand heaters, all of which are designed to prolong engine life.

This is thought to represent an industry first for a sophisticated data logging and remote monitoring system to be used on a pilot boat.

The first of the new vessels is due for delivery in the Spring of 2007, with the second craft to follow in the Autumn.

MJ Information No: 22408