A Ferri good package for RRS Discovery
The UKs leading environmental research organisation commissioned a state of the art scientific research ship in 2010 to replace the RRS Discovery, which was built in 1962 and was coming to the end of its scientifically useful working life.
The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) awarded the contract to a Spanish shipyard, C.N.P. Freire, S.A. under public procurement rules at a total projected cost £75m. The new Royal Research Ship Discovery was delivered to the NERC in July and is undergoing sea trials, with scientific research due to start next year.
The 99.7m LOA ship will operate worldwide, with its design allowing it to work in higher sea states, complementing the work of the NERC’s other research vessel RRS James Cook.
The design of the new research ship has been developed by design company Skipsteknisk AS, a leader in the design of sophisticated and noise reduced research vessels. Skipsteknisk AS also designed the RRS James Cook.
A comprehensive package of deck equipment was supplied by Industrias Ferri S.A. of Gondomar, close to the famous port of Vigo in Spain, which includes the manufacturer’s largest ever articulated crane. The Ferri Serie A6 100170 has a safe working load of 10 tonnes (single pull) at 17m and is operational in offshore working conditions up to Beaufort 6. The crane can also work with up to 20 tonnes (double pull with block) at 17m in sheltered waters. It is supplied with a hydraulic winch rated for 10 tonnes and with 500m of wire in the drum.
Also fitted is a Serie A0 020120 forward stores knuckle crane with a safe working load of two tonnes at 12m. This crane is suitable for sheltered waters working conditions to Beaufort 0 and can handle up to 0.5 tonnes for offshore working conditions up to Beaufort 6.
Ferri’s Series 2520 TN003 docking head is designed to load an ISIS ROV and has a safe working load of 4.5 tonnes for offshore operations in Sea State 5/6.
Ferri has also supplied a hanger longitudinal transfer gantry which will handle 10 tonnes in sheltered waters and five tonnes Sea State 5/6. This gantry will be used to lift equipment and containers from the aft deck into the hangar. It consists of a fixed boom and another mobile boom driven by electric motors and gears as well as the electric winch and electric wire guides.
A Ferri five tonne hanger transverse transfer gantry will also work in Sea State 5/6 and will be used to lift equipment of the hangar side into the hangar. It consists of a fixed boom and another mobile boom driven by electric motors and gears, again including the electric winch and electric wire guides.
There is also a water sampling room transverse transfer gantry to lift equipment from the working deck into the water sampling room and a water sampling room longitudinal transfer gantry for lifting equipment from the hangar into the water sampling room.
