Damen wins Ship of the Year

Interestingly, two out of three nominees for the award were Damen vessels, the other ship being the MarineCo Shamal, a Fast Crew Supplier 2610 with a Twin Axe hull.

HMS Holland is the result of a unique cooperation between the government, industry, suppliers and knowledge institutions within the Netherlands Maritime Cluster – including Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding and the Dutch Defence Materiel Organisation.

The innovative ship was designed and mostly built in the Netherlands. It won largely due to its groundbreaking design. Among other things, the concept makes it possible to operate the vessel with a crew of only 50.

This is made possible partly due to its integrated mast, which incorporates sensor, communication and radar systems, and the revolutionary layout of the command bridge, which Damen says is the first command bridge to have windows. Another innovation is the one-man bridge concept.

The vessel runs on two diesel and two electrical motors, making it inexpensive to run and environmentally friendly.

HMS Holland is the first of a series of four patrol vessels that will be used to replace the multipurpose frigates that have already been decommissioned and sold.