Thursday 4 December 08 - 00:26
 

Deck Equipment & Lifting Gear

  • Safer Deck Operations Takes Off

    28 Jan 2008

    Rolls-Royce launched its Safer Deck Operations (SDO) system for offshore anchor handlers back in 2006, and since then four vessels with SDO have gone into service and 35 more orders for new vessels are in place. 

  • Passive Damping for Regional Support Vessels

    28 Jan 2008

    S E Hydraulics (SEH) have designed and supplied an innovative passive damping system to BP's four new Regional Support Vessels (RSVs) working out of Aberdeen.BP have commissioned and procured the new RSVs to deliver their new North Sea rescue and recovery arrangements. 

  • Preffered Found 2007 an Uplifting Year

    28 Jan 2008

    Preffered Marine Cranes celebrated a successful year in 2007 and managed to draw successful contracts even in what they term as a somewhat erratic market. The company was able to supply a range of knuckleboom and stiff boom cranes from their Italian (Effer) and German (Global Davits) suppliers. 

  • Bigger Lift for Bigger Tugs

    28 Jan 2008

    The family run business of Colle Towing Inc, which operates tugboats on the Pascagoula River in Mississippi USA, has recently taken delivery of its second Marine Travelift. The new 600C boat hoist is seen as an investment that will contribute to the strengthening of the business for future generations. 

  • Double Deck Equipment Package for Holyhead

    28 Jan 2008

    Having recently supplied the deck machinery package for Holyhead Towing Company's new 35m tug, North Sea Winches has just completed manufacturing  an almost identical package for the same customer. Winches are also being built for a 24m tug and designs are on the board for 60 ton winches for the next generation of vessels. 

  • New Crane & Winch Operations Guidelines

    10 Jan 2008

    A key part of almost all offshore and subsea operations is lifting, lifting of stores and spares handling through to complicated and heavy lifts, and there could be in excess of 200 different kinds of lifting operations on a vessel. 

Dredging

  • Westerschelde Dredging to Boost Flanders

    24 Jan 2008

    Work has started on the deepening of the Westerschelde, which is intended to reinforce the competitive position of the port of Antwerp. Flemish Minister-President Kris Peeters officially started dredging works at a ceremony last month which marks the official start of the historic deepening works of the Westerschelde. 

  • Belgian Folk Hero Arrives at Christmas

    24 Jan 2008

    Dutch shipbuilders IHC Merwede celebrated the Christmas season by launching the 9,000m3 capacity trailing suction hopper dredger 'Breydel' from its Kinderdijk yard on 22 December. Named after 14th century Flemish freedom fighter Jan Breydel, the newbuild will join the fleet of Belgium's Dredging International, one of the main companies of the Dredging, Environmental and Marine Engineering NV (DEME) Group. 

  • CEDA Encourages the Next Generation

    24 Jan 2008

    The Netherlands based Central Dredging Association (CEDA) continued its campaign to involve students and young professionals more closely with the industry when it announced the winners of the CEDA Dredging Days 2007 poster competition at its gathering which took place within the recent Europort exhibition in Rotterdam. 

  • IADC Dredging and Reclamation Seminar

    24 Jan 2008

    The International Association of Dredging Contractors (IADC) will hold its 30th International Seminar on Dredging and Reclamation on 16-20 June this year at Delft in the Netherlands. 

  • Changes at Port Ramsgate

    24 Jan 2008

    Major changes in the way the UK's Port Ramsgate is run could be in the pipeline. In 2006 the Department for Communities and Local Government published a report entitled 'Opportunities for Ports in Local Authority Ownership'. Aimed at around 60 ports in England and Wales, it addressed concerns about the perceived shortcomings in the running of small ports and harbours by local authorities. 

Ferries & Short Sea Shipping

  • Seatruck Purchases Two More Ro-Ros

    27 Jan 2008

    Irish Sea freight only specialists Seatruck Ferries have taken a further step in their fleet expansion plans with the purchase of two ro-ro ferries from Attica Holdings in Greece. The 1998 built 'Challenge' and the 1999 built 'Shield' are sister ships. They measure 121m LOA and have the capacity to carry 65 trailers at a speed of 16.5 knots. 

  • Passenger Boat Industry Launches Conference

    23 Jan 2008

    Members of the UK passenger boat industry will gather in London on 6 March 2008 for the first national conference in the history of the industry. Opportunity, Challenge and Change: The Future of the UK Passenger Boat Industry is organised by The Passenger Boat Association (PBA) in partnership with Knighthood Assurance Services plc, a specialist marine insurance broker in the UK and Ireland. 

  • BMT Delivers Triplet Ferries to Indian Islands

    10 Jan 2008

    Three high speed aluminium catamaran ferries designed by BMT Nigel Gee Ltd, a subsidiary of BMT Group Ltd, have safely arrived in India’s Lakshadweep Islands. 

Hydrographic Survey by David Goodfellow

  • Greek Chart Dispute

    27 Jan 2008

    Louis Hellenic Cruises has blamed inaccurate charts for the loss of its ship Sea Diamond off the Greek island of Santorini. The vessel hit a reef and sank last April, killing two French passengers. 

  • Subsea 7 Norwegian Contract

    27 Jan 2008

    Extensive survey operations in support of installation of subsea structures, control umbilicals, tie-in and pre-commissioning of all flowlines are among the main requirements of a $140m contract placed by BP Norge with Subsea 7 of Aberdeen for general subsea construction work in the Idun and Skarv fields in the Northern North Sea. 

  • Liverpool to Host Hydro8 Symposium

    27 Jan 2008

    The Hydrographic Society UK, on behalf of the International Federation of Hydrographic Societies, is to stage the 16th International Hydrographic Symposium, Hydro8, in Europe's 2008 Capital of Culture, Liverpool, from 4 to 6 November 2008. 

  • NOC's New AUV Completes First Trials

    27 Jan 2008

    Following a brief test deployment in Falmouth Bay, Autosub6000, the new 5.5m long, 2,800kg deepwater Autonomous Underwater Vehicle developed by National Oceanography Centre engineers at Southampton, has successfully completed its first sea trials in the North Atlantic from aboard the UK's largest general purpose oceanographic research vessel, RRS Discovery. 

Marine Civils by David Foxwell

  • Boskalis to Deepen Entrance Channel at Port of Melbourne

    27 Jan 2008

    Royal Boskalis Westminster has confirmed that it has acquired a major contract for deepening the entrance channel to the Port of Melbourne in Australia. The project will be executed in an alliance with the Port of Melbourne Corporation, and the work will take some two years. The value of the contract is approximately €300m. 

  • Shetland Islands Council Loses Battle to Stop Dredging

    27 Jan 2008

    The Shetland Islands Council (SIC) is being asked to pay more than £5m towards the cost of dredging work at Port of Lerwick, having lost a legal battle to prevent the work going ahead. 

  • EBRD provides loan to Ukrainian port

    27 Jan 2008

    The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is to provide a €26m guaranteed loan to Illichivsk Sea Commercial Port, one of the largest ports in Ukraine. The 15 year loan will help the port carry out a programme of modernisation that includes berth reconstruction, procurement of cargo handling equipment and dredging. 

  • Construction of Jeddah's new container terminal under way

    27 Jan 2008

    The Saudi Trade and Export Development Company (Tusdeer) has announced that construction of its $443m Red Sea Gateway Terminal at Jeddah Islamic Port (JIP) was due to commence this month. 

  • Dutch Government Considers Creation of Huge Offshore Island

    27 Jan 2008

    The Dutch government is considering a radical plan to build a £7bn island in the shape of a tulip in the North Sea. The idea behind the concept is to relieve pressure on its overcrowded cities and protect the coastline from rising sea levels. 

  • Details of Damietta Container Facility Confirmed

    27 Jan 2008

    The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (ADB) have confirmed that they have approved a $150m loan to finance the Damietta container terminal situated on Egypt's Mediterranean coast. 

  • Maasvlakte 2 Awarded to Van Oord and Boskalis

    24 Jan 2008

    The Port of Rotterdam Authority has announced its intention to award the contract for the Maasvlakte 2 port extension project to a consortium consisting of Dutch dredging and marine construction majors Van Oord and Royal Boskalis Westminster. The contract was due to be signed at the beginning of 2008. 

News

  • Master Plan Progress for Bremore Ireland Port

    30 Jul 2008

    Bremore Ireland Port Ltd, the joint venture between Drogheda Port Company and Castle Market Holdings Ltd, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a wholly owned subsidiary of Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) to develop a Port Master Plan for the new €300 million deepwater port at Bremore in north Co Dublin. 

  • Bremen Dockland Transformation Underway

    25 Jan 2008

    Pile driving has begun on new quaysides in Bremen’s Europahafen, part of a € 13.3m civil engineering development project to transform the historic Überseestadt docklands district into an office and leisure complex. 

  • Latest Meercat Moored in Fjord

    24 Jan 2008

    Southampton UK based Meercat Workboats has sold the latest of their road transportable multi-role vessels to Østlandets Plast og Dykk Service AS. 

  • Fassmer Delivers Biggest Newbuild to Senegal

    24 Jan 2008

    Small ship building specialist Fassmer in Germany has delivered one of its biggest newbuildings ever, the 76m Ro-Pax ferry 'Aline Sitoe Diatta for Senegal. 

  • Conference Examines UK Ports Policy

    24 Jan 2008

    Jim Fitzpatrick MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary for State for Transport will be the headline speaker for a one day conference on the theme of UK Ports Policy: Reaching Conclusions. 

  • 'Fair Maid' Delivers On Eastern Promise

    24 Jan 2008

    Macduff Ship Design was awarded a contract last month to provide a complete design and drawing package for the construction of two 13m twin screw harbour tugs, to be built by Boustead Yachts of Malaysia for their own use to handle new vessels and repairs within their docks and slipways. 

  • Narrow Escape for Two Ships in Channel

    23 Jan 2008

    In just over a week two ships escaped serious damage, or worse, in incidents in the English Channel. When the news broke early on the morning of 2 January that the 90,465grt container vessel 'LT Cortesia' had ran aground on the Varne Bank while travelling through the Dover Strait at over 20 knots, it seemed likely that the UK Coastguard was faced with another major incident. 

  • Passenger Boat Industry Launches Conference

    23 Jan 2008

    Members of the UK passenger boat industry will gather in London on 6 March 2008 for the first national conference in the history of the industry. Opportunity, Challenge and Change: The Future of the UK Passenger Boat Industry is organised by The Passenger Boat Association (PBA) in partnership with Knighthood Assurance Services plc, a specialist marine insurance broker in the UK and Ireland. 

  • Green Ships Sail to Rotterdam

    23 Jan 2008

    Regulations and systems designed to protect the marine environment raise crucial investment, procedural and safety issues for the shipping industry, but they also chart a course towards business retention, cost savings and improved public image. 

  • Rolls-Royce Order Rolls On

    10 Jan 2008

    Rolls-Royce has won £72m of further business on its largest ever offshore marine contract, taking the total order value to £155m. 

  • Finns Land Landing Craft Contract

    10 Jan 2008

    Marine Alutech of Finland has signed a contract with Geliga Slipway Sdn Bhd of Malaysia for supplying the design and parts for ten Watercat M14 high performance landing craft for the Royal Malaysian Police. 

  • Navy Chief Supports Chopped UKHO

    10 Jan 2008

    The head of the British Royal Navy visited the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO) last month to get an update on the navigational services and charts the organisation provides. 

  • Bremen Dockland Transformation Underway

    10 Jan 2008

    Pile driving has begun on new quaysides in Bremen’s Europahafen, part of a € 13.3m civil engineering development project to transform the historic Überseestadt docklands district into an office and leisure complex. 

News Snips

  • FleetBroadband Launches

    30 Jul 2008

    Global satcomms provider Inmarsat has launched FleetBroadband, its new commercial service delivering voice and high speed data services for maritime users. 

  • Ship Ahoy Doha

    30 Jul 2008

    Ahoy Rotterdam, organiser of the recent Europort Maritime exhibition, has entered into a partnership with Dubai based Al Fajer Information & Services to host the third edition of a renamed Ship & Port + Europort Maritime shipbuilding, port and marine technology exhibition. 

  • RESON Med Buy-Out

    27 Jan 2008

    Mr Pietro Basciano has acquired all the shares of RESON Mediterranean in Bologna, Italy and changed the company's name to REMED sri. 

  • Ferries Find Favour

    27 Jan 2008

    Over the three months of July, August and September, SeaFrance enjoyed an increase of 13% in car traffic. This performance sees the French operator currently investigating shipyard availability in Europe to build a new vessel with significantly increased garage space. 

  • Cash for Seaford Sinking

    27 Jan 2008

    Marine South East, which addresses the needs of the marine sector in the UK South East region, has offered 40% of the funding for an initial scoping study into a project which aims to boost the local economy of Seaford and Newhaven. 

  • Ports Expertise Expanded

    27 Jan 2008

    The BMT Group has acquired the ports and shipping consultancy Baxter Eadie Ltd, which has expertise in port planning and development, market surveys, traffic forecasting, statistical and risk analysis, management, and financial modelling. 

  • Fos Box Tops

    27 Jan 2008

    The French Port of Marseilles was closing on the one million TEU mark for 2007 as the year ended, with throughput reaching 826,000 units to the end of October. 

  • Surf Harbour's Past

    27 Jan 2008

    New sections added to the Chichester Harbour Conservancy's website enables users to see what sediments have been deposited in the harbour over the last 10,000 years an thus learn about the changing harbour landscape and how it was used. 

  • Voith Takes AIR

    27 Jan 2008

    Ship propulsion systems specialist Voith Turbo GmbH & Co KG has acquired a majority share in AIR Fertigung-Technologie GmbH & Co KG, with whom it has been working for the past two years. 

  • STG Joins CEMT

    27 Jan 2008

    The German Society for Maritime Technology (STG) became a member of the Confederation of European Maritime Technology at CEMT's recent board meeting in Hamburg, joining member institutions from the UK, Poland, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Italy. 

Power & Propulsion

  • $7m Research Into Propulsion System Coatings

    23 Jan 2008

    A strategic alliance between Rolls-Royce and UCT Coatings Inc. is bringing new technology to the marine market and is about to start work on a $7m U.S. Navy research contract. 

  • Outboard Power for Olympics RIBs

    23 Jan 2008

    Two 21' Sea Rover boats fitted with Suzuki 70hp four stroke outboards have been supplied to Newham Council in East London by International Marine Services (IMS). The boats, used for tours of the Olympic Park before construction started, are now in use at the Watersports Centre at Surrey Docks.

     

  • The 'Dokter' Seeks Emissions Cure

    23 Jan 2008

    Dutch ferry operator Teso is claiming to be the first shipping company in the world to make use of  environmentally benign GTL diesel-type fuel. The company's ferry 'Dokter Wagemaker', which carries goods, vehicles and passengers between Den Helder and Texel is trialling the new fuel. 

  • Lister Petter Back with Bio-Diesel

    23 Jan 2008

    The venerable Lister marine engine which has powered so many inland waterway craft returns to the UK market in versions capable of running on up to 100% bio-diesel fuel (B100) through an expansion of a distribution arrangement with the Hendy Group's Hendy Power. 

  • Evolution Guides Cat's New MaK

    23 Jan 2008

    Caterpillar Marine Power Systems began delivering upgraded C versions of the popular MaK M 25 series of marine engines from the first of this month. Since it was introduced in 1996, more than 700 M 25s have collectively logged over 11m operating hours as main propulsion engines. 

  • Diesel Electric On the North Sea

    23 Jan 2008

    While diesel-electric propulsion continues to garner converts in North America, it is a more usual system in Europe. 

Tugs & Towing by Jack Gaston

  • JP Knight (Caledonian) Consolidate Their Scottish Fleet

    27 Jan 2008

    The Invergordon based towage company J P Knight (Caledonian) Ltd has consolidated its UK tug fleet after completing the purchase of a number of modern ASD tugs from Japan. In it’s new form the Invergordon fleet comprises four modern vessels, the existing tug 'Kincraig', purpose built for the company in 1998, and three newly acquired vessels delivered under their own power from Japan during 2007. Prior to entering service in the UK, each vessel has undergone surveys and modifications to comply with Lloyds Register, MCA and British flag requirements. 

  • Smit Acquires the Remaining Shares in URS

    27 Jan 2008

    On the last day of 2007 Smit Internationale NV announced its agreement with Fairplay Towage to acquire Fairplay’s 50% interest in Antwerp based URS. Through this acquisition Smit will become 100% shareholder of URS, the leading towage provider in Belgium. The total value of this transaction was given as €182.5m. 

  • 'Flying Phantom' Lost in a Tragic Accident

    27 Jan 2008

    The Clyde tug 'Flying Phantom' and three of her crew were tragically lost when the vessel capsized and sank near Clydebank on 19 December. Owned by Svitzer, Flying Phantom was one of three tugs towing the 39,000 grt bulk carrier 'Red Jasmine' bound for Rothesay dock in dense fog when the incident occurred. Initial reports indicated that the tug may have grounded during the towing operation but the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is carrying out an extensive investigation. 

  • Serco Denholm Awarded MOD Contract

    27 Jan 2008

    Serco Denholm Marine Services (‘Serco Denholm’), a joint venture led by Serco Group plc, has signed a 15 year PFI contract valued at up to £1bn with the UK Ministry of Defence to deliver a wide range of marine services to the Royal Navy. 

  • An Important New Tug and Barge for Osprey

    27 Jan 2008

    When the new tug 'Osprey Fighter' and a smart new barge arrived in Newcastle towards the end of November it marked a significant step forward for owner Osprey Shipping Ltd. The new tug is designed and equipped for worldwide service and intended to enhance the company’s towage and tug and barge transportation services. By the time Osprey Fighter arrived in the Tyne on its delivery voyage from China, with Osprey’s own crew onboard, it had already proved to be a very capable seagoing vessel. 

Tugs, towing & salvage

  • Tug Designer Finds 'Independence' in Philadelphia

    27 Jan 2008

    Although internationally well known for its prolific output of tug designs, Vancouver based Robert Allan Ltd is not averse to bidding for other types of contract. Shortly before Christmas the City of Philadelphia Fire Department commissioned 'Independence', the new RAnger 2000 Class fireboat designed by Robert Allan Ltd and built by Derektor Shipyards of Bridgeport in Connecticut. RAL worked closely with the City of Philadelphia Fire Department and Office of Fleet Management personnel to develop the final design details and specifications. RAL also oversaw construction throughout the build period. 

  • Tsavliris Longed for a Calm Christmas

    27 Jan 2008

    The Christmas past may have taken a back seat for Tsavliris Salvage Group if the number of operations it was conducting continued to come thick and fast. The last three months of 2007 saw Tsavliris take on significant salvage cases. Following a highly active start to the year, Tsavliris closed out 2007 in much the same way as it started. 

  • 'Napoli' Legacy Looms Large for Salvors

    27 Jan 2008

    Salvors, other sectors of the maritime industry and government agencies, including Coast Guards, are voicing concern at the scale of the challenge which would be presented by ultra-large containership casualties. The International Salvage Union (ISU) is amongst those sounding a cautionary note about the lack of suitable cranes and other heavy equipment needed to confront such huge casualties. 

Vessel Launch

Vessel Repair & Maintenance

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